Tag Archives: Manfred Schaffer

FLSmidth to deliver dry-stack tailings solution at Hindustan Zinc’s Rajpura Dariba mine

Base metals, Environmental, Mine operation news, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining services, Sustainable mining, Water management, , , , , , , , , , , ,

FLSmidth has been contracted to deliver an integrated dry-stack tailings solution and a paste fill plant to Hindustan Zinc’s lead-zinc mine in Rajpura Dariba, Rajasthan.

The solution will ensure environmental sustainability and significant process water recovery, as well as reduce the footprint of the tailings storage facility, the mining OEM said.

The new order, which was booked in the December quarter, includes design, engineering, procurement, supply of equipment and the commissioning for integrated dry tailings and stacking along with tailings paste fill plant. FLSmidth will also supply two Automatic Filter Presses (AFP-IV™, pictured), two E-Disc filters and one 26 m diameter High-Density Thickener as the main pieces of equipment. The project is expected to be completed by February 2022.

This new order follows a previous tailings-related order for Hindustan Zinc at its Zawar mine site in 2018.

Hindustan Zinc operates beneficiation plants at Rajpura Dariba and Sindesar Khurd, which both discharge tailings to the same tailings pond. The tailings dam was reaching capacity for conventional wet tailings deposition and so Hindustan Zinc needed a way to resolve this issue, FLSmidth said.

The solution the company required would involve creating a small dry-stack tailings area with minimal environmental and physical footprint and also a method to backfill the mine by using an adjusted dry filter cake mix.

By choosing FLSmidth’s hybrid technology – a combination of the E-Disc filter and the AFP-IV Automatic Pressure Filter – Hindustan Zinc will now be able to achieve this and recover around 85% of process water, according to FLSmidth. This recovered process water can be reused by the process plant located at the mine site with minimum operating and capital expenses.

The cake from the E-disc filter will contain below 16% moisture and can be used for mine backfilling, while the cake from the automatic filter press, with below 12% moisture, can be stacked on the surface in a safe and compact manner, FLSmidth says.

“The solution will also significantly reduce industrial water consumption, something that is of heightened importance in water-scarce areas, such as Rajasthan,” the company said. “The site will also have zero effluent discharge, further boosting its sustainable mining goals.”

Manfred Schaffer, Mining President, FLSmidth, said the order was another strong “proof point” for the quality and flexibility of the company’s technology for filtration and engineering solutions for tailing management.

“This project resolves the customer’s challenge through optimum utilisation of available space and ensures the paste backfill requirements are met with the lowest possible operating and capital costs,” he added. “Importantly, it also secures a high level of reusable water for the mine site, which helps their sustainability efforts and supports our own MissionZero ambition.”

Mikko Keto to head up FLSmidth’s mining division

Automation, Bulk handling, Comminution of minerals, Equipment maintenance, IoT, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining people, Mining services, Sustainable mining, Water management, , , , , ,

Mikko Keto is set to join FLSmidth as President, Mining Industry, less than two weeks after leaving his post as President of Minerals Services and Pumps at Metso.

Keto, who will embark on his new role from early July 2020, will also become a member of the Group Executive Management team at FLSmidth. The appointment follows current President, Mining Industry, Manfred Schaffer’s decision to retire in 2020.

Keto worked for Metso for 10 years, the last two of which he headed up the Minerals Services and Pumps business area, where he delivered growth in services along with profitability improvement, FLSmidth said. He also served as a member of the company’s Executive Team.

His prior roles for Metso include Senior Vice President, Spare Parts, Senior Vice President of Performance Services business line, President of Automation Services, Vice President of Flow Control Services, and various line management positions. Before joining Metso, he was Head of Sales for the Maintenance business unit at KONE Corp and held senior management and sales positions at Nokia Networks, with assignments in multiple countries.

FLSmidth CEO, Thomas Schulz, said: “Mikko Keto will lead the FLSmidth Mining organisation in capturing profitable business opportunities. He comes with an extensive experience in Service Line Management, Spare Parts and lifecycle offerings. He brings a strong commitment to customer partnerships, and believes strongly in delivering significant enhancements in performance, sustainability and asset optimisation.”

Keto said: “I am excited to join FLSmidth and help drive profitable growth in the mining business and further develop FLSmidth’s portfolio of solutions towards zero emissions. FLSmidth has close to 140 years’ experience, excellent technologies and outstanding competencies in its global workforce.”

On the retirement of Manfred Schaffer, Schulz said: “Since joining FLSmidth in 2014, Manfred Schaffer helped navigate an extended mining industry downturn and led the mining organisation through the transition to a new way of working. In the face of market headwinds, Manfred travelled extensively in order to meet with as many customers as possible and support sales opportunities. I am very thankful for Manfred’s strong contribution to our mining business over the last five years.”

FLSmidth to help modernise crushing, grinding circuit at Zijin’s Serbia copper op

Base metals, Comminution of minerals, Mine operation news, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining services, , , , , , , , , , ,

Zijin Mining Group has chosen an FLSmidth gyratory crusher, SAG mill and ball mill for the Majdanpek mine, part of the Chinese mining company’s majority owned Zijin Bor copper mine, in Serbia.

The delivery of the equipment to Majdanpek, 180 km from Belgrade, is expected to occur between 12 and 18 months from now, with the project estimated to reach completion by the end of 2020. The order has a combined value of around DKK200 million ($30 million), according to FLSmidth, and has been recognised in the order intake for the September quarter.

The order of the new FLSmidth crushing and grinding circuit for the front end of the concentrator comes as Zijin looks to modernise Majdanpek, which will be the largest of its three Serbian copper concentrators, FLSmidth said.

Acquired as part of the majority acquisition of Bor in late 2018, the Majdanpek mine uses open-pit mining and flotation to produce copper concentrates, with a designed mining and processing scale of 10 Mt/y, according to Zijin. The operation is currently at a scale of 6 Mt/y, it said.

In the next six years, the company says it plans to invest more than $1 billion in the upgrading, expansion, or construction of the four mines and smelter at Bor. After the completion of the first phase of the project, it is estimated output will go to 82,000 t/y of copper in concentrates, with the smelter producing 80,000 t/y of copper cathode. After the completion of phase two, this could go to 120,000 t/y of concentrate and 150,000 t/y of cathode.

Manfred Schaffer, President of Mining and Group Executive Vice President at FLSmidth, said: “This extensive order underlines the strong value proposition of FLSmidth to our customers in the copper industry. Our market leading crushers and mills will provide significant improvements for Zijin Mining in terms of productivity and processing efficiency.”

FLSmidth to bring the latest smart 3D design to Rio Tinto’s Koodaideri iron ore mine

Automation, Bulk handling, Comminution of minerals, IoT, Mineral processing, Mineral project development, Mining equipment, Mining project news, Steel and iron ore, , , , , ,

Rio Tinto has chosen FLSmidth to supply key minerals handling equipment for the company’s Koodaideri iron ore project in Western Australia, the mining OEM says.

The contract is a turnkey agreement for the design, supply, installation and commissioning for the new greenfield iron ore mine.

“FLSmidth will provide the products and know-how that will be instrumental in developing the Koodaideri mine to be Rio Tinto’s most technologically-advanced mine to date,” FLSmidth said. “Rio Tinto will for the first time apply smart technology to interconnect all components in the mining value chain. FLSmidth will design the equipment to the latest Australian standards and incorporate smart 3D design and a variety of advanced engineering solutions, such as BulkExpert™ (pictured).

Manfred Schaffer, President, FLSmidth Mining, said: “Koodaideri will set new benchmarks in digitalisation and will feature the most technologically-advanced solutions employed to date in the iron ore sector. This will enable Rio Tinto to run the most advanced mining operation featuring high productivity and high safety in a cost-efficient set-up and we are proud to be part of this.”

Construction at the Koodaideri mine will commence this year with the first ore expected to be fully functional by late 2021, with a production capacity of 43 Mt/y of iron ore.

The exact total contract value for the supply of the equipment won’t be disclosed but is exceeding A$80 million ($56 million) and will be booked in the June quarter, FLSmidth said.

FLSmidth completes laboratory mining solutions line with IMP Automation Group buy

Automation, Environmental, Metallurgy, Mineral exploration, Mining mergers and acquisitions, Mining services, Water management, , , , , , ,

FLSmidth says it has completed its portfolio of automated laboratory solutions for the mining industry with the takeover of IMP Automation Group.

The market for automated laboratories is growing due to a combination of high exploration activity and an increased focus on productivity, automation and digitalisation, according to FLSmidth.

“IMP is the global leader in automated laboratory solutions for the mining industry and has a strong foothold in Australia and South Africa. Its solutions complement the products FLSmidth offers for quality control and optimisation for the mining process,” the company said.

The acquisition includes more than 130 IMP employees, including the Managing Director, Boyne Hohenstein.

Hohenstein said: “In FLSmidth, we have found a partner with the right global sales network to take us to the next level. For years, we have combined profound laboratory process knowledge with automation skills and developed novel and innovative solutions. I am very excited that we now can reach a global audience with our offerings and solutions.”

Manfred Schaffer, President Mining for FLSmidth, said: “Knowing your ore characteristics from the mine and all the way through the processing plant is of increasing importance in mining as declining ore grades make it necessary to increase productivity by process optimisation. We see a strong match between some of our digital initiatives in FLSmidth and IMP’s automation solutions that will help miners get better data on their ore and assist in optimising the processing.”

Included in the transaction is IMP’s 50% share in a joint venture, which provides complete operations and maintenance-based solutions for automated labs.

The acquired parts of IMP Automation Group, including the JV, generated revenues in excess of DKK250 million ($38 million) in 2018, with the acquisition expected to be accretive to FLSmidth Group margins.

The takeover is subject to customary closing conditions and closing is expected in the June quarter.

IMP says it works with like-minded customers to provide innovative robotics and automation solutions from sampling to analysis that improve ergonomics, health and safety for laboratory operators, improve integrity, quality and precision of analytical data and improve efficiencies.

It designs and supplies manual, semi- and fully-automated robotic sample preparation and process control laboratories, turnkey sampling systems and laboratories for mining, metallurgical, cement, non-ferrous industry and steel plants.

Its customers include Anglo American Platinum, Freeport McMoRan, BHP and Rio Tinto