Tag Archives: Rosemont

Barminco, Ausdrill transport Rhino 100 raise borer to Regis’ Rosemont gold mine

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Having become the first company globally to have taken delivery of a mobile raiseboring machine with uphole, downhole, and back reaming capability, Barminco is transporting a Rhino 100 Raise Borer to another client site in Australia.

With the help of its Perenti surface mining partner, Ausdrill, the newest addition was recently transported to Regis Resources’ Rosemont gold mine in Western Australia.

Just last year, Barminco sealed a three-year underground mining services contract with Regis at Rosemont, which has been transitioning from open-pit to underground mining at the operation.

Barminco said: “Through safe and rapid mobilisation, we are able to meet our clients’ needs and transport our equipment across multiple sites to complete a range of drilling campaigns.”

Since April 2019, Barminco’s first Rhino has travelled a combined 15,000 km between four client sites in the Goldfields of Western Australia, drilling a total of 3,843 m.

The Rhino is manufactured by TRB-Raise Borers in Finland but is equipped with Sandvik tools and is distributed by Sandvik. It is a fully mechanised and self-contained electro-hydraulic mobile raiseborer designed for slot raising in underground mining. The latest models also have an optional back reaming module.

In addition to helping transport Barminco’s latest Rhino to Regis’ site, Ausdrill has recently added a new Boart Longyear LF™160 drill rig and FREEDOM™ Loader combination to its diamond drilling fleet.

This rig reduces the crew’s “Hands On Steel” interaction, while improving overall safety standards, Ausdrill said.

When paired with the FL262 FREEDOM Loader, the LF160 combination is ideal for contractors who want to target sophisticated surface drilling exploration contracts that stipulate some of the highest safety standards, without compromising on productivity, Boart Longyear says.

Rosemont now a ‘fully-permitted, shovel-ready copper project’, Hudbay says

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Hudbay Minerals says it has received the approved Mine Plan of Operations (MPO) for the Rosemont copper project from the US Forest Service.

This completes the required permitting process for the project given Hudbay received the Section 404 Water Permit earlier this month.

Alan Hair, Hudbay’s President and CEO, said: “With the receipt of the Section 404 Water Permit, an agreement to consolidate 100% ownership and receipt of the approved MPO, Hudbay continues to move the project forward.

“Rosemont is now a fully-permitted, shovel-ready copper project and we look forward to developing this world-class asset.”

Rosemont, some 48 km southeast of Tucson, Arizona, is one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper projects. A 2017 feasibility study showed Rosemont could produce 112,000 tons (101,605 t) of copper over its life of mine and, based on a $3/Ib copper price, deliver a 15.5% after-tax unlevered internal rate of return.

Hudbay’s Rosemont copper project moves forward with 404 Water Permit

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The US Army Corps of Engineers has issued a Section 404 Water Permit for Hudbay Minerals’ Rosemont copper project in the US, the mining company says.

Rosemont has already received the Final Record of Decision from the US Forest Service (USFS), a process that involved 17 co-operating agencies at various levels of government, 16 hearings, over 1,000 studies, and 245 days of public comment resulting in more than 43,000 comments.

The company said: “Now that the 404 permit has been issued, Hudbay expects to receive Rosemont’s Mine Plan of Operations from the USFS shortly and looks forward to moving the project into development.”

Rosemont, around 48 km southeast of Tucson, Arizona, is envisaged as an open-pit mine producing copper, molybdenum and silver. It is expected to have an annual average life of mine copper production of 112,000 tons (101,605 t).

The Rosemont site will include a processing plant and associated facilities, transmission lines for power and water, the pit, and waste rock and dry-stack tailings storage facilities.

“Best available demonstrated control technologies will be the hallmark of Rosemont,” Hudbay said. “These technologies will contribute to maximising production while minimising environmental impact. At Rosemont, this will include the use of dry-stack tailings – a technology that significantly reduces water use and improves reclamation – along with leading-edge lighting designs to maintain dark skies, solar energy as a source of power, dust collectors with cartridge filters and trucks with Tier 4 engines to ensure compliance with air quality standards.”

Alan Hair, Hudbay’s President and CEO, said: “The receipt of Rosemont’s 404 Water Permit is a major milestone in our efforts to build a modern mine that will fulfil the requirements of its permits, create jobs and provide benefits for all of our stakeholders.

“We appreciate the diligence that the Army Corps has put into its consideration of Rosemont’s permit application, and look forward to advancing Rosemont into construction.”

Hudbay said it would continue to execute its plan regarding the Rosemont project and provide updates as developments warrant.

Ausdrill’s Barminco to go underground at Regis Resources’ Rosemont gold project

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Having recently closed a deal to acquire fellow contractor Barminco, Ausdrill has announced A$171 million ($123 million) in new work across the mining space.

Its Barminco business has sealed a three-year underground mining services contract with Regis Resources at the Rosemont project (worth A$113 million), in addition to receiving the nod to perform decline rehabilitation and development works at Western Areas’ new Odysseus mine. Meanwhile, Ausdrill has booked a 12-month contract from Consolidated Minerals for the provision of exploration drilling services at the Woodie Woodie manganese mine. This comes on top of a similar contract with Bellevue Gold at its namesake project in the Eastern Goldfields of Western Australia.

Ausdrill Managing Director, Mark Norwell, said: “These new projects demonstrate the diversity of the expanded Ausdrill group across different projects and resources, solid progress of Barminco, and the professional service our businesses have been providing to our customers.”

Rosemont has been a fully operational open-pit gold mine since March 2013 and is one of three Regis projects in the Duketon deposit area, 130 km north of Laverton in the Goldfields region of Western Australia.

Regis recently approved expansion of the mine to an underground operation located directly below the current Rosemont open pit, with Barminco to perform development and production work at the underground deposit. In August, the Regis board announced it had approved the development of an underground mining operation directly below the current Rosemont open pit exploiting the maiden underground mineral resource estimate of 1.4 Mt at 5.1 g/t for 230,000 oz of gold.

Barminco will commence mobilisation immediately and expects to employ around 100 staff at the project. Onsite works will commence in the March quarter, including commencing portal development at the southern end of the Rosemont Main open pit.

Barminco CEO, Paul Muller, said: “This project adds to Barminco’s extensive experience in the Western Australia Goldfields, with current mining projects at Sunrise Dam and Agnew. We will draw on our deep capability across Barminco’s people, equipment, systems, processes, and expertise in underground mining to ensure we provide a safe and reliable service at Rosemont and look to build a strong, long-term relationship with Regis.”

Meanwhile, the company has already mobilised on the 14-month contract to carry out decline rehabilitation and development works at Western Areas’ Odysseus mine. The contract builds on Barminco’s 14-years of continuous service for Western Areas at Forrestania, which includes the Spotted Quoll and Flying Fox mines where Barminco is the mining services provider.

Ausdrill’s work at the Woodie Woodie manganese mine, in the Pilbara of Western Australia, will commence next month, will run for 12 months and will require five RC drill rigs and one diamond drill rig to be drawn from the company’s existing fleet.

The company has already kicked off work at the Bellevue gold project, which will require around four diamond rigs to be drawn from the existing fleet.