Tag Archives: MACA Interquip

MACA to refurbish Three Mile Hill processing plat at Focus’ Coolgardie gold project

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MACA Interquip has been awarded a A$39.7 million ($26.3 million) engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for the refurbishment of the Three Mile Hill (TMH) processing plant at the Coolgardie gold project, in Western Australia.

Focus Minerals, the owner of the project, paused production in 2013 in response to lower gold prices to concentrate on the exploration of the wider Coolgardie area, yet, with operations now resuming, MACA Interquip is scheduled to reach commissioning of the refurbished plant by mid-2023.

MACA General Manager, Ben Thomas, said the MACA Interquip team have begun site works with the construction team ramping up throughout November. “The TMH plant will be refurbished to safely operate at its original nameplate of 120,000 tonnes per annum. We look forward to delivering value for our client, Focus Minerals.”

Focus issued a new life of mine plan for the Coolgardie gold project, in October, outlining a plan to produce 402,000 oz of gold over a seven-year mine life.

MACA Interquip delivers to plan at Capricorn’s Karlawinda gold project

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The MACA Interquip team has successfully reached completion of services provided to Capricorn Metals at the Karlawinda gold project in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, the company has confirmed.

MACA Interquip undertook steelwork procurement and SMP (structural, mechanical, and piping) construction services for the 4 Mt/y three-stage crushing plant, grinding and conventional carbon-in-leach plant.

Plant commissioning is now complete and the MACA Interquip team has begun to demobilise from site after a successful job done.

Project Manager, Brett Smith, said the success of this project is a testament to the skillset, dedication and diligence of the MACA Interquip team.

“Construction is complete and now the plant is efficiently up and running and being ramped up to nameplate capacity. As our works came to a close, our teams remained highly committed to delivering a safe work environment and achieved an LTI-free project,” Smith said.

MACA Mining, meanwhile, is carrying out open-pit mining services including drilling & blasting and loading & hauling at the project as part of an agreement the companies signed recently.

Based on a 1.2 Moz reserve, Capricorn envisages a 12-year mine life at Karlawinda, with an annual production target of 110,000-125,000 oz of gold. The company plans to mine a single large, low strip ratio open pit and process it through the carbon-in-leach plant.

MACA receives early call up for Red 5’s King of the Hills gold project

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Red 5 Ltd says it has taken another key step towards the development of its King of the Hills (KOTH) project in Western Australia, after issuing a notice of award for the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract and the bulk earthworks for the process plant to MACA Interquip.

The EPC contract and bulk earthworks – which encompass the KOTH processing facility, equipping of the bore fields, high voltage power distribution, workshop, warehouse and bulk earthworks – will be undertaken as a fixed‐price contract, Red 5 said.

The KOTH feasibility study outlined a 16-year life of mine plan from open-pit and underground mining, whereby the company would produce 176,000 oz/y of gold over the first six years. The capital cost came in at A$226 million ($158 million) and life of mine all-in sustaining costs were A$1,415/oz.

MACA Interquip, a multi‐disciplined mineral processing provider, has a strong track record of the construction of similar carbon‐in‐leach processing plants to the 4 Mt/y process plant planned at KOTH, Red 5 explained.

Following execution of the EPC contract, commitments to‐date for the KOTH project will total A$143 million, compared with the capital budget of A$155 million for these items – which represent 82% of the total capital budget for processing infrastructure of A$188 million (excluding owners costs and contingency).

Commitments made to date include:

  • Purchase of 240‐bed camp accommodation, water and waste water treatment plants and central facilities;
  • Design and construction contract for a 450‐person village;
  • 6 Mt/y gyratory crusher and 4 Mt/y SAG mill;
  • Early works agreement with APA Group for the gas pipeline lateral; and
  • EPC contract for the process facility and bulk earthworks.

Construction of the village commenced in October 2020 and is on track to be operational in February 2021. The process plant bulk earthworks (for which equipment will be mobilised) are scheduled to commence on December 1, 2020, pending the final remaining permit (currently on schedule).

The EPC contract provides for two phases. The first is limited to A$50 million and Phase 2 is for the remainder of the contract value, which will be released at the discretion of Red 5, based on the status of debt financing.

The notice of award provides for the immediate commencement of the design and procurement activities for the process plant as well as mobilisation of earthmoving equipment to site, Red 5 said. It, however, limits commitments to A$10 million and is an interim measure to allow the plant design and mobilisation for earthworks to commence immediately while the contract is executed.

Once executed, the value of these contracts, together with the purchase of the 6 Mt/y gyratory crusher and 4 Mt/y SAG mill (already awarded to MACA Interquip), is A$129 million.

The purchased long‐lead items of the crusher and mill are currently being transported, in preparation for the planned delivery to Australia late in the June quarter of 2021.

The company is currently calling tenders for both the open pit and underground mining contracts, the independent power producer contract and the supply of gas. These contracts are expected to be finalised in the coming months, it said.

Red 5 Managing Director, Mark Williams, said: “Our decision to award these key contracts and make commitments to significant long‐lead items prior to completing project debt funding reflects our confidence in the robustness of the King of the Hills project.

“Importantly, the commitments made to date are below budget for this stage of the KOTH project, and should give our stakeholders confidence that we are well on track to progress the development of this major project, with production planned to start in June quarter of 2022.”