Tag Archives: Iron ore

Fortescue’s autonomous haul truck fleet at Christmas Creek still growing

Automation, Bulk handling, Environmental, IoT, Mine operation news, Mining equipment, Mining services, Power supply for mines, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , , , , ,

Fortescue Metals Group has now seen 35 manned haul trucks converted to autonomous mode at its Christmas Creek operations in the Pilbara of Western Australia, with Caterpillar recently completing a Command for hauling installation on a Komatsu 930 E, according to the iron ore miner.

The company shared the news ahead of an investor and media tour of the company’s operations this week.

During the tour, attendees will take in details of the company’s new 60.1% Fe product, West Pilbara Fines, in addition to viewing the innovative relocatable conveyor that started operating earlier this year.

Visitors can also expect to see first-hand Fortescue’s roll out of autonomous haulage technology. This includes a global first where Cat Command for hauling, part of Caterpillar’s MineStar technology offering first used on a commercial scale at Fortescue’s Solomon Hub operation, has been retrofitted on a CAT 789D and a Komatsu 930E haul truck.

Chief Executive Officer Elizabeth Gaines said: “Fortescue has led the way globally in embracing automation at our operations. The 789D is the 35th manned truck to be converted to autonomous at Christmas Creek, demonstrating our progress to becoming the only iron ore operation in the world to have a fully autonomous haulage fleet.”

Gaines said the tour will also see the company discuss Fortescue’s new energy agenda, including the integration of renewable energy and its recently announced landmark partnership with CSIRO to commercialise hydrogen technology.

BNP, HSBC, Cargill and Rio Tinto complete iron ore blockchain transaction

IoT, Mining finance, Mining services, Steel and iron ore, , , , ,

BNP Paribas and HSBC Singapore have completed Singapore’s first fully digitised end-to-end letter of credit transaction between two different companies. The deal involved Rio Tinto selling a bulk shipment of iron ore originating from Australia to China to its trading customer Cargill.

It represents a move that will take the digitisation of trade finance a step closer to becoming a commercial reality, according to BNP and HSBC.

As part of the transaction, BNP issued a letter of credit (LC) over the blockchain on behalf of Cargill to HSBC Singapore acting on behalf of Rio Tinto.

Both BNP and HSBC enabled a transfer of electronic bill of lading (eBL) over traded goods using a digital LC for the first time in Singapore, by integrating the Voltron trade finance solution (through R3’s Corda blockchain platform in the back-end) with Bolero’s eBL system.

Benefits of the system include:

  • Digital transactions ensure trade flows are faster, simpler and more efficient;
  • The LC issuance was completed in less than two hours compared with one to two for traditional, paper-based LCs;
  • More counterparties were engaged in this transaction, compared to previous blockchain transactions with full digital integration, indicating there is increased interest across the industry to digitise cross border transactions;
  • The faster documentation turnaround for each shipment can potentially lead to increased flexibility in liquidity management resulting in working capital optimisation.

Zoran Lozevski, Head of Global Trade Solutions, Asia Pacific, BNP Paribas, said: “Blockchain technology is an important pillar in our innovation agenda and we believe that transactions like this one will help achieve greater efficiency and transparency in trade finance for the benefit of all players in this space.”

Iain Morrison, HSBC Singapore Head of Global Trade and Receivables, said: “The transaction represents a significant advancement of this solution since our first transaction earlier this year, which further validates its commercial and operational viability to establish a new era of digital trade. Together with banks and the trade finance industry we will continue to improve this solution by adding new features and functionality as we move towards a commercial launch.”

Rio Tinto Head of Commercial Treasury, Abel Martins-Alexandre said blockchain offers efficiencies and greater transparency, while also creating a viable new offering to Rio’s customers and stakeholders along the supply chain.

“This pioneering transaction demonstrated our commitment to partnering with our customers to meet their needs, to stay agile and responsive to opportunities for improving efficiencies, and make our respective businesses stronger,” he added.

Lee Kirk, Managing Director for Cargill’s Metals business: “What was previously a complex process is now accessible via a more modern, digitally-based approach and a secure platform. At Cargill, we are transforming our supply chain with digital technologies like blockchain in trade finance, commodity trade operations and traceable food programs to better serve our customers across the globe.”

Metso offloads grinding media business to Moly-Cop

Base metals, Comminution of minerals, Industrial minerals, Metallurgy, Mineral processing, Mining consumables, Mining mergers and acquisitions, Precious metals, Steel and iron ore, , , , , ,

Metso has signed an agreement to divest its grinding media business to Moly-Cop, a portfolio company of private equity firm American Industrial Partners.

The transaction comprises the sale of Metso Spain Holding SLU, including operations in two locations with around 80 employees in Spain (Bilbao and Seville). The estimated turnover of the business in 2018 will be approximately €60 million ($68.5 million).

Sami Takaluoma, President, Minerals Consumables business area at Metso, said: “Metso’s growth strategy in the consumables business is to focus on developing a world-leading global offering. We are confident that our customers and our grinding media team will benefit from this transaction and from the combination of our strong regional know-how with Moly-Cop’s global capabilities.”

Moly-Cop is a leading global manufacturer of grinding media used primarily by global copper, gold, and iron ore producers to break down ore in the primary phase of mineral concentration. Moly-Cop was acquired by American Industrial Partners in January 2017. Only earlier this year, the company received approval to buy forged steel grinding media leader Donhad.

Jim Anderson, Chief Executive Officer of Moly-Cop, said: “Metso has a valued and longstanding reputation as a trusted grinding media supplier for western Europe and northwestern Africa. This acquisition is a great match for Moly-Cop and our strategy moving forward. Metso’s operations and team align perfectly with our global manufacturing network, and this transaction will further enhance our industry-leading value proposition to our customers.”

The transaction is expected to close in December 2018 and is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals. The proceeds from the divestment will have no material impact on Metso’s financial results, Metso noted.

LKAB weighing up the prospects for crooked borehole drilling

Mineral exploration, Mineral project development, Mining equipment, Mining techniques, Steel and iron ore, , , , ,

LKAB is using a variation of conventional prospecting drilling to search for new orebodies and secure reserves for the future.

Prospecting drilling will allow the iron ore miner to gain more detailed knowledge of the geometry and geochemistry of mineralisation, but this process can often be expensive in both man hours and euros.

That is why this year the company started trials with crooked, or deviated, bore holes in prospect drilling.

Karin Lindgren (pictured), geologist at LKAB, explains: “We can already see several advantages with crooked holes. Overall, the number of drilling metres is reduced, and we do not have to drive drifts at the outer edges of the orebody to the same extent and can reach the intended drilling locations with greater precision.”

She continued: “With crooked drilling, we can reach greater depth and access the ore from different angles. The technique can be used to reach the outer boundaries of the orebody and gain a better understanding of its geometry.”

Today, two drill rigs are being used and a third will soon be operational at the company’s operations, LKAB said. The company is testing the crooked-hole technique to first learn, and then evaluate, the method, it said.

Anders Edlert, Project Manager for Prospecting Drilling at LKAB, said: “We want to push the boundaries and find out what can be done with this technology in this type of rock and at what cost.”

He does admit drilling deviated holes comes with more friction, so drilling takes longer and currently costs nearly three times as much as conventional drilling.

“We, therefore, have to press the costs and compare them against the time and resources that are needed for driving new drifts for conventional drilling,” he concluded.

NRW Holdings ready to blast at Greenbushes, South Flank

Mine operation news, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining services, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , , ,

NRW Holdings Ltd’s Action Drill & Blast subsidiary has announced new contracts at two of the biggest development projects in Australia.

It has been awarded a 15-month extension by Talison Lithium for services at the Greenbushes mine, in Western Australia, which is currently in the process of going through an expansion to boost lithium carbonate equivalent production to more than 160,000 t/y.

The contract extension is for blasthole drilling, grade control and blasting services and builds on the relationship from 2011 when the original contract was awarded. The contract, which incorporates an increased scope of works, has an estimated value of A$13.5 million ($9.6 million), according to NRW.

The subsidiary has also been awarded a sub-contract for drill and blast services at the South Flank iron ore project, also in Western Australia, which is owned by BHP.

The contract is valued at some A$11 million and will have a duration of eight months, NRW said.

South Flank is a $3.6 billion development, involving construction of an 80 Mt/y crushing and screening plant, an overland conveyor system, stockyard and train loading facilities, procurement of new mining fleet and substantial mine development and pre-strip work. It is expected to result in first ore coming out from the new mine in 2021.

Caterpillar busy with Pilbara automation retrofit on Komatsu 930E haul trucks

Automation, Equipment maintenance, IoT, Mine operation news, Mining equipment, Mining services, Mining software, Steel and iron ore, , , , , ,

Caterpillar says it is putting its commitment to retrofit solutions and mixed-fleet interoperability into practice by installing Cat® MineStar™ Command for hauling technology on Komatsu 930E mining trucks in the Pilbara of Western Australia.

The first commercial installation of the automation retrofit package will be completed before the end of the year, the company said, with 24 of the retrofitted, 290 t capacity 930E trucks working autonomously alongside the mine’s fleet of autonomous Cat trucks.

Craig Watkins, MineStar Solutions Manager, said: “Our interoperability initiative is driven by mining companies’ goals of making best use of their existing fleets.

“The Cat system makes it possible to operate different brands and sizes of trucks as well as manned trucks and autonomous trucks in the same space. Dynamic truck assignment optimises productivity. Our system also offers the flexibility to scale up fleet size to meet the mine’s needs.”

MineStar Command for hauling also allows trucks, no matter the payload or manufacturer, to operate at their full capabilities.

“The productivity gains attributed to Command for hauling are proven and growing,” the company said. For example, Caterpillar customer Fortescue Metals Group has measured a 30% improvement in productivity from its fleet of 70 Command-equipped trucks working at its Solomon Hub iron ore mines, also in the Pilbara, according to Cat.

In addition to the commercial launch of the 930E system, the first trial of autonomous Cat 797F mining trucks is underway at a mine in North America, Caterpillar said.

With nominal capacity of 363 t, the 797F is Caterpillar’s largest truck. It will join the 227 t capacity Cat 793F CMD, already operating in the Canadian oil sands, South America and Australia, in the autonomous truck line up.

Metso and Ferrexpo Poltava Mining’s iron ore pellet evolution

Comminution of minerals, Metallurgy, Mine operation news, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining services, Steel and iron ore, , , , , , ,

Ferrexpo’s Poltava Mining subsidiary has been on a journey to both stimulate demand for iron ore pellets and increase the Fe content of its product. The crushing and flotation technology of Metso has played a key role in this evolution, according to Alexey Strikha*.

In 1960, the exploration of Kremenchug magnetic anomaly started on the left bank of the Dnieper River, Ukraine. At that time, the foundation of the future Poltava Mining refinery was laid, and, 10 years later, the plant produced its first batch of concentrate.

There were several phases of plant construction: in 1980, after launching the pelletising plant, the company presented a new type of product to the market – iron ore pellets. To stimulate the demand for this product, the company needed to improve the product’s quality, ie increase the iron content in the concentrate.

Keeping this in mind, the company’s managers decided to upgrade the ore pre-treatment operations: reduce the fragmentation size to cut the costs of further ore degradation. Due to space constraints at the crushing plant, the company was in need of new equipment with the exact dimensions of the current foundation structures. At that time, Svedala (acquired by Metso in 2001) engineers suggested testing the Barmac vertical shaft impact crusher.

“The conventional crusher-based closed cycle of check screening was not an option for us, so we were offered inertial crushers for coarse lumps. And this proved to be a good technical solution,” said Vladimir Khovanets, Chief Concentrating Engineer at Poltava Mining.

Alexander Lysenko, Poltava Mining’s Chief Technical Officer said: “Metso always does lots of research and testing to offer us an integrated solution, i.e. technology that gives us exactly what we want.”

After the pilot testing, the middle and small fraction crusher lines were upgraded with Barmac crushers. That project was a success, so both companies decided to expand further joint activities: two double-drum separators were installed instead of eight locally manufactured triple-drum separators with no loss in productivity.

Flotation technology

These earlier projects to upgrade the crushing and magnetic concentration processes laid the foundation for further improvement in the concentrate quality.

Lysenko said: “It’s common knowledge that our ore is quite lean, and the market was in demand of high-quality iron ore pellets containing 62-65% Fe.”

Two methods are used for concentration of lean ores: magnetic and flotation concentration. During the engineering study of these methods, Metso installed a pilot plant with laboratory mills, flotation cells, magnetic separators and hydrocyclones.

Igor Grebeniuk, Regional Sales Manager at Metso, said: “The pilot results proved that 67-68% Fe content in the pellets manufactured from Poltava Mining ores was quite possible after the flotation upgrading.”

In 2002, the company launched Flotation Plant 1 equipped with Metso RCS130. It was the first project in the former Soviet Union to use flotation upgrading in the ferrous industry. Keeping this in mind, the engineers at Poltava Mining ran a detailed preliminary analysis of the new technology, studying the cases of Metso equipment supplied to the concentration plants in the USA and Canada.

Lysenko said: “Metso explained all the benefits and the hidden risks. And we saw that the technology works. It’s friendly to the environment and commercially feasible.”

Reducing grain size

Commissioning of the new flotation plant entailed the modification of the crushing lines, since super-fine grain is required for efficient magnetic upgrading of concentrate.

Khovanets recalled: “While working with Flotation Plant 1, we gained the insight that Flotation Plants 2 and 3 need to be constructed for the strategic development of the company. And conventional drum mills were not so good for that process.”

Lysenko said: “Thanks to flotation, we were able to increase the yield of iron from quite lean ores, but we couldn’t get enough homogeneous product using the conventional crushing line.”

Metso engineers suggested Vertimill for high-quality and fine milling of the product. In coordination with Ferrexpo engineers, a concentration line with vertical mills for all flotation cells was developed.

Khovanets said: “After magnetic concentration, we get about 85-89% of below 44 microns grade. Vertimill machines help to bring up the fineness of grinding, ie up to 90% of ground materials are minus 33 microns.

“Vertimill machines offer a new design. A conventional drum mill operates in the horizontal position, while Vertimill is installed vertically. The space needed of such equipment is much smaller, and it provides proper crushing grade.”

Boosting pellet iron content

Two additional flotation cells were commissioned in 2014. These additional cells gave a step change in the concentration technology. Today, ore from different fields is processed separately at Flotation Plants 1 and 2, while Flotation Plant 3 is used for iron recovery from froth.

Lysenko said: “Before commissioning the plant, we produced pellets with 62% Fe content. Due to flotation upgrading we now have 67% concentrate, and this brings the product’s quality to a new level. I mean pellets with 65% Fe content.”

Introduction of the new iron ore concentration technologies entails upgrading the next downstream process, namely filtration. After the equipment upgrade, it will be possible to reach the maximum dehumidification of concentrate to gain additional quality.

Grebeniuk said about the current projects: “But we go the extra mile. To increase production, we’re now constructing two additional plants, a crushing plant and filtration plant.”

A tough market requires high-grade product rich in iron and with minimum impurities. After the process upgrade, Poltava Mining was able to improve the pellet quality, which also means more investments in the infrastructure of its hometown.

Ruslan Klimenko, Chief Communication Officer of Poltava Mining, said: “We want to offer benefits to as many people in the city as possible.”

*This story was written by Alexey Strikha, one of Metso’s Regional Directors

Downer EDI to maintain BHP’s Port Hedland iron ore export facilities

Bulk handling, Equipment maintenance, Mine operation news, Mining maintenance, Mining services, Steel and iron ore, , , ,

Downer EDI has been granted a three-year maintenance contract by BHP’s iron ore division as the world’s biggest miner by market capitalisation looks to shore up its export facilities in Port Hedland, Western Australia.

Downer’s scope of works spans the maintenance of the Port Hedland export operations across the Finucane Island and Nelson Point facilities. This will include the provision of mechanical, electrical, heating, ventilating and air conditioning, minor civils, rope access services and integration with the BHP maintenance team in planning and executing the services, Downer said.

This is the second such maintenance contract BHP’s iron ore divison has awarded in recent days.  The company, this week, signed a similar agreement with Monadelphous that covered five of its iron ore mines.

Grant Fenn, Chief Executive Officer of Downer, said the contract win demonstrated Downer’s leading position in the delivery of major maintenance and industrial services to customers in the resources and energy sectors.

Monadelphous wins more iron ore work off BHP

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Australia-based engineering group Monadelphous has been awarded a contract with BHP’s iron ore division worth approximately A$240 million ($172 million) over a three-year period.

The contract, which contains an additional two one-year extension options, involves the provision of general maintenance services at BHP’s Mt Whaleback, Jimblebar, Eastern Ridge, Mining Area C and Yandi mine sites, in the Pilbara of Western Australia.

Monadelphous Managing Director, Rob Velletri said the contract built on the company’s long-standing relationship with BHP, on both construction and maintenance projects, over the past two decades.

“We look forward to further developing our relationship with BHP over the coming years, growing our operational footprint in the Pilbara and continuing to strengthen our long-term commitment to the region and the communities in which we operate,” he said.

In 1996, Monadelphous’ engineering and construction division ventured into the iron ore market with BHP on the Yandi II project to construct the crushing and screening plant, while, in 2008, it secured part of the structural, mechanical and piping works for BHP’s Rapid Growth Project 4 at the Newman Hub iron ore processing facility.

Roy Hill receives training plaudits at Western Australia awards ceremony

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Roy Hill Holdings has been named the Western Australia Employer of the Year at a gala ceremony for the WA Training Awards.

The awards are presented by the Department for Training and Workforce Development, to recognise the outstanding achievement of apprentices, trainees, vocational students and the contribution to training made by trainers, training organisations and employers.

Roy Hill’s acknowledgement as WA Employer of the Year 2018 is in recognition of achieving excellence providing nationally recognised training to its employees, the company said. In addition, this year Tarra Ninyette was also named a finalist in the Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Student of the Year.

Roy Hill CEO Barry Fitzgerald said the award was especially significant given the company is still young and evolving.

“Since Roy Hill’s inception in 2012, we’ve held a passionate belief that by helping our people to continually learn and develop, they can reach their full potential – and we all succeed. We are absolutely committed to the training and development of our people, aligned with our values of Lead, Care, Think and Perform,” he said.

“This year, we have developed and implemented a large number of training and development initiatives for our employees. As Roy Hill accepts this award, we have more than 800 people actively engaged in training programmes, complementing more than 300 staff who have successfully completed an accredited training course in the last two years.

Fitzgerald said Roy Hill allocates additional training days for its site-based operators and trades personnel for their personal development, enabling the development of additional skills for alternative career paths.

“We are also committed to providing people without mining experience, but the right values, attitudes and behaviours with opportunities in the industry, through a willingness to train and develop these people hands on,” he said.

“Our training and development initiatives also extend into the broader community, with the establishment of a curriculum based, learning experience where Year Eight students participate in a hands-on visit to our Remote Operations Centre. This initiative is focused on highlighting both the educational and diverse career opportunities in the mining industry with a focus on science, technology, engineering and maths courses, and opportunities for girls.

Fitzgerald concluded the win demonstrated the company’s commitment to a career enrichment programme of upskilling, providing development and career progression opportunities is not only working, but achieving award winning standards.

Roy Hill operates a 55 Mt/y iron ore operation in the Pilbara of Western Australia.