Tag Archives: South Africa

Exxaro cuts Group Five ties as contractor goes into business rescue proceedings

Coal technology, Mine operation news, Mining services, Power supply for mines, , , , , , , ,

Exxaro has taken the decision to terminate its agreement with Group Five Construction subsidiary, Group Five Projects, following Group 5’s announcement that it has embarked on business rescue proceedings.

Johan Meyer, Executive Head, Projects & Technology, said: “It is indeed a sad day as more than 750 contract workers will be impacted by this decision.”

Exxaro appointed Group 5 Projects on April 3, 2017, to construct a new small coal plant as part of the Grootegeluk Plant 6 (GG6) expansion project at its Grootegeluk mine near Lephalale, in Limpopo, South Africa. Barring unforeseen incidents, the Group 5 Projects scope was due to be completed at the end of May.

“The decision will regrettably now result in a delay to project,” Exxaro said.

“Exxaro has notified Group 5 of its decision and has embarked on discussions to mitigate the business impacts arising from this very sad situation. In the meantime, however, Group 5 Projects workers and subcontractors have moved off-site.”

Exxaro is engaging with its labour support (both legal and human resources) to maintain stability on site.

Grootegeluk is a critical source of A-grade, export-quality coal and power station coal that fuels Eskom’s Medupi and Matimba power stations. The site has an estimated life of mine of 45 years, producing 17 Mt/y.

The ZAR4.8 billion ($332 million) expansion of GG6 will ensure increased throughput and enhanced processing efficiencies to ramp up export coal production at this important site, Exxaro said.

The new GG6 plant will enable an additional 600 t/h of throughput on the run of mine feed, as well as higher, more valuable yields through enhanced operational efficiencies and better beneficiation processes.

Technical alterations at the plant consist of a new small coal beneficiation plant (SCP), enabling the processing of fragments of less than 10 mm, improving fines plant beneficiation processes through the use of reflux classifier technology, a dewatering plant and ancillaries and expansion of the current stockyard.

A new double-stage, dense medium separation plant will be established to process and prepare the export coal. The plant will also include a fines beneficiation Reflux Classifier circuit and dewatering section. The existing GG6 stockyard will be upgraded and expanded to accommodate additional product volumes.

Murray & Roberts Cementation to sink ventilation shaft at Palabora copper mine

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Murray & Roberts Cementation says it has been awarded a contract by Palabora Mining Co for a 1,200 m deep ventilation shaft at its copper complex in Phalaborwa, Limpopo Province, South Africa.

The shaft, with a lined diameter of 8.5 m, will reach a final blind sink depth of 1,190 m before a drop raise takes it to its final depth, according to Braam Blom, Project Executive at Murray & Roberts Cementation.

“The duration of this project is expected to be just over three years,” Blom said. “After mobilisation, site establishment and surface civils have been completed, we expect to conduct pre-sinking until the end of 2019, with the use of our special shaft sinking gantry to a shaft depth of 65 m.”

A surface headgear and winder installation will then be constructed from January to March 2020. This will facilitate the slow sink to 200 m and the main sink until February 2022. Canadian shutter and lining methods will be employed, the company said. The team is expected to conduct shaft stripping by mid-April 2022 and to dis-establish the site by the end of May 2022, it said.

“There will be no stations or other excavations required, so this will help keep the team in a sinking cycle and optimise production levels,” Blom said. “We will run full calendar operations with 12 hour shifts and cycles of five day shifts, five night shifts and five shifts off.”

A relatively small labour force of 123 people is planned for steady main sinking conditions, with some sub-contractors conducting surface piling and civil works for the winder, headgear and other site construction. Shaft drilling itself will be done with two twin-boom Komatsu shaft drill rigs, and mucking by a Komatsu excavator with close to 1 t of loading capacity.

Blom said ground conditions were expected to be a challenge in some areas, as profiled from the cover and core drilling “However, we have various ways of reducing the risk and downtime during these intersections – such as keeping the shaft lining as close as possible to the shaft bottom,” he said.

Palabora operates a large block cave copper mine and smelter complex employing around 2,200 people, according to the company’s website. It has developed a $410 million underground mine with a production capacity of 30,000 t/d of ore.

Orion Minerals looks at renewable options for Prieska zinc-copper project

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Orion Minerals, through its subsidiary, Repli Trading No 27, has entered into a collaboration agreement with juwi Renewable Energies South Africa to investigate renewable energy generation for its Prieska zinc-copper project in the Northern Cape of South Africa.

The preliminary scope is to investigate the feasibility of generating and supplying 35 MW of electricity for Prieska, from a hybrid power system using integrated wind and solar technologies. The renewable energy generation site will be located within 20 km of Prieska, making the establishment of a dedicated feed via an overhead power transmission line possible, Orion said.

juwi is part of the international juwi Group, one of the world’s leading renewable energy companies. Its business is focused on both solar energy and onshore wind energy. To date, juwi South Africa has built five utility-scale solar plants totalling 121 MW and developed the 138 MW Garob Wind Farm, which will soon start construction.

juwi South Africa also participates in the South Africa Government’s Small Independent Power Producer Program and operates and maintains all its solar projects on behalf of their owners.

In Australia, juwi was recently responsible for the project development, design, construction and now operations of a $40 million, 10 MW solar power facility which came into commercial operation in 2016 at Sandfire Resources’ DeGrussa copper-gold mine in Western Australia. Orion said: “This facility has since attracted international attention as the largest off-grid integrated solar and battery storage facility in the world. With close to three years of operational data and 100% uptime, this successful project has established juwi as leaders in hybrid power supply solutions for mines.”

The investigations into renewable energy solutions at Orion’s Prieska project will complement the ongoing bankable feasibility study, with the additional benefit of potentially improving the base case plan of obtaining national grid power directly from the Cuprum sub-station already established on site, Orion said.

“Developing the renewable energy potential of the region is also a strategic goal of local government, as communicated in its Integrated Development Plans,” Orion said.

The Prieska copper mine operated from 1971 to 1991, employing approximately 4,000 people. The mine milled 46.8 Mt, producing more than 430,000 t of copper and more than 1 Mt of zinc in concentrate. Post May 1987, no more than 2 Mt of ore was blasted, with milling of surface stockpiles carried out from 1989. In 1991, the mine was closed and the site rehabilitated. It now has a defined maiden resource under the Orion ownership of 1.1 Mt of contained zinc grading 3.8% Zn and 365,000 t of contained copper grading an average 1.2% Cu. The deposit is regarded as one of the world’s 30 largest VMS orebodies, according to Orion.

FLSmidth after sub-Saharan Africa growth with manufacturing move

Bulk handling, Comminution of minerals, Equipment maintenance, Mineral processing, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining maintenance, Mining services, , , , , , , ,

FLSmidth South Africa has relocated the manufacturing of its core screen media products to the Delmas Supercenter facility, providing, it says, a cost-effective base from which to grow its sub-Saharan markets.

The move follows the 2017 decision by FLSmidth to proceed with a significant investment at the 120,000 m² premises in Delmas, Mpumalanga, South Africa.

Stephan Kruger, FLSmidth Director for Manufacturing and Warehousing in the region, said: “The targeted efficiency improvements for the production lines at the facility will allow us to better serve our extensive installed base of FLSmidth equipment in the sub-Saharan Africa and Middle East region.”

In line with this strategy, FLSmidth has opted to focus on the in-house manufacture of three core product lines – polyurethane, wedge wire, and ceramic wear solutions.

FLSmidth, last year, concluded the sale of its non-core screen media product lines, including woven wire screens, perforated plate and wire conveyor belts, to Crusher Support Services. During this process, FLSmidth secured a preferential supply agreement to support local industry customers with the continued supply of these products.

Kruger said: “We have invested in state-of-the-art equipment, including full computer numerical control (CNC) machining capability. The new facilities include 5-axis and 6-axis machining centres, introducing a high level of technology to support the product lines in our business while optimising production costs.”

The investment in production capacity will allow FLSmidth to manufacture a broader range of components for its spare parts portfolio in-house, and to do this more cost effectively, it said.

Design and construction activities began in 2018 and the infrastructure development is nearing completion. A formal launch is planned for April, when the facility will be fully functional and production will have commenced, according to the company.

This Supercenter is strategically positioned close to customers and has the capabilities for warehousing, production of FLSmidth equipment and spare parts, refurbishments, rebuilds and retrofits, the company said. Current manufacturing activities produce over 150 strategically selected parts for the FLSmidth product range, Kruger said.

The wedge wire screens to be produced at the facility are commonly used in carbon recovery in carbon-in-pulp and carbon-in-leach plants in the gold sector. They are also used for dewatering and magnetite recovery in the coal sector and in other applications such as water filtration and sugar production, according to the company.

The polyurethane products include screen panels and larger spares such as rotors and stators used in the flotation process. Ceramic wear solutions to be produced and distributed from the Delmas facility include the WEAR MAX™ ceramic wear compound and FerroCer® impact wear panels, which combine steel and ceramic parts and are commonly used in feed chutes to address impact and abrasion.

The Delmas operation includes a 10,500 m² workshop with 120-t lifting capacity and 11.5 m under crane hook. More than 100 staff members are currently employed at the facility, which hosts offices, warehouse facilities and a training centre that can accommodate up to 65 people for technical training purposes, according to FLSmidth.

President cuts the ribbon on Vedanta’s Gamsberg zinc mine in South Africa

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South Africa President, Cyril Ramaphosa, has officially opened Vedanta Zinc International’s (VZI) Gamsberg mine, outside Aggeneys in the Northern Cape Province.

Ramaphosa was joined by Minister of Mineral Resources, Gwede Mantashe, Northern Cape Premier, Sylvia Lucas, and hosted by Vedanta Chairman, Anil Agarwal, Vedanta CEO, Srinivasan Venkatakrishnan, and VZI CEO, Deshnee Naidoo, at the ceremony.

The Gamsberg zinc resource, though discovered more than 40 years ago, had been held undeveloped in the portfolios of various South Africa mining companies until Vedanta acquired it in 2011, as part of the Black Mountain Mining complex. Vedanta gave the project the go-ahead in 2014, and the first blast occurred in mid-2015, eight months later. Gamsberg has a reserve and resource of more than 214 Mt with a grade of 6-6.5% Zn and an estimated life of mine (LoM) of 30-plus years.

Phase 1 of Gamsberg, celebrated today, represents a $400 million investment by Vedanta in South Africa. It has a LoM of 13 years and will see 4 Mt/y of ore produced from the open pit and 250,000 t/y of concentrate from its concentrator plant.

Investigations into Phase 2 and 3 are underway and will see production of zinc-in-concentrate increase to 450,000 t/y, and in a modular fashion ultimately, to 600,000 t/y. It will reflect an additional investment of $350-$400 million.

Vedanta is simultaneously pursuing a feasibility study into the development and construction of a smelter-refinery complex, it said.

Vedanta’s CEO, Srinivasan Venkatakrishnan, said: “More than 90% of our $400 million investment at Gamsberg has been spent in South Africa. Our expenditure with local enterprises was around R77.5 million ($5.5 million) in 2018, while we invested more than R44.6 million in 2018 on training and social projects aimed at skills development, education, health, enterprise development and municipal infrastructure support. And this was before the mine had made a single cent.”

Delivering the keynote address, Cyril Ramaphosa, said: “The Vedanta Gamsberg project is an important step in our shared journey to revive our mining industry. It confirms our view that with an effective regulatory framework, improved collaboration between all stakeholders and sustained investment, mining has the potential to be a sunrise industry. South Africa has vast undeveloped mineral deposits that we have the opportunity to exploit for the benefit of all the people of this country.”

Gamsberg is one of the most digitally advanced greenfield mining projects in South Africa, according to Vedanta. Digitalisation at Gamsberg includes Smart Ore Movement, Spatial Risk Monitoring and Management and Collision Avoidance Systems.

ANDRITZ pumps draining flooded mining tunnels in South Africa

Environmental, Mining equipment, Mining services, Precious metals, Water management, , , , , , , ,

Just as IM’s water management feature goes live, ANDRITZ has released details of a project it has been working on to de-water old mines in Johannesburg, South Africa.

South Africa has been dealing with an acid water problem in recent years. Underneath the old gold mining city of Johannesburg is a lake containing heavily contaminated water, which spreads horizontally and vertically into the abandoned pits of the former gold mines, according to ANDRITZ.

The water line has reached a critically high level, as determined by the specialists from the ANDRITZ subsidiary, ANDRITZ Ritz, in Schwaebisch Gmuend, Germany, which was given the first order to drain the mine water back in 2010.

The execution of the project was delayed by four years, however, and it was only in Spring 2014 that two powerful ANDRITZ submersible motor pumps were installed in the middle of Johannesburg city centre, in the so-called ‘Central Basin’. Each pump is capable of bringing 1,500 m³/h (1.5 million litres per hour) of water to the surface, according to ANDRITZ; with 60 million litres of water per day pump, it is a never-ending task, ANDRITZ said.

“In Johannesburg, however, acid mine water is an ongoing problem. Rainwater seeps into the tunnels and reacts chemically with residual minerals like pyrite, producing corrosive sulphuric acids. In the worst case scenario, this can result in a pH value of 2, which is enough to cause lasting damage to humans and the environment.

“Because of this corrosive acid, the Johannesburg pumps had to be completely redesigned. The design is based on ANDRITZ’s proven HDM (Heavy Duty Mining) technology, which uses the concept of a double-suction pump. The thrusts produced are offset by the counter-rotating arrangement of the impellers and the pumps run without axial thrust, giving a properly maintained pump a service life of 10 to 15 years.”

The pumps for the Johannesburg project are a tailor-made, customised design built for this special individual application, according to ANDRITZ. Part of the new system is an encapsulation of the submersible motors (see top photo), which enables the creation of an internal pressure higher than the external pressure. This prevents the intrusion of the corrosive water and the components inside the motor being attacked and possibly destroyed. “At the same time, the water being drained is used to cool the motor by means of a heat exchanger,” ANDRITZ said.

ANDRITZ engineers spent weeks developing the sophisticated technology needed to encapsulate the motor so it could withstand the higher internal pressure. The first two pumps have been running since June 2014. These 21-t pumps, each 15 m long with a 1-m diameter, were installed side by side in March, 5 m apart, but could only be started after completion of the water treatment plant.

Freely suspended on 430-m-long duplex steel pipes, they transport the acid mine water to the surface and onwards into an adjacent treatment plant (pictured). Here, through the addition of lime, the pH value is raised, the acid is neutralised and the heavy metals dissolved in the water are absorbed and precipitated as hydroxides, ANDRITZ said.

The South African authorities are planning a total of three pumping stations, which will each be developed at the mines’ disused extraction shafts. In addition to the Central Basin in Johannesburg’s city centre, invitations to tender for the ‘Eastern Basin’ and the ‘Western Basin’ are currently in progress, according to ANDRITZ.

“The long-term goal is to force the water level in the flooded mines back from its current level of approximately 200 m to a depth of 1,000 m, and to keep it there, to then be able to begin mining gold and gold ore in the drained upper layers of the mines once again,” the company said.

Liebherr crawler excavators proving their worth in South Africa chromium mine

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After more than 1,000 operating hours, three Liebherr R 920 crawler excavators are still exhibiting the fuel efficiency, manoeuvrability and hydraulic performance that convinced mining company KEDASE to buy the equipment, the original equipment manufacturer said.

KEDASE, based in Boshoek, South Africa, purchased three R 920 crawler excavators from Liebherr in 2016. They are used for trenching, pipe laying and the feeding of a screen in a chromium mine in the country.

With an operating weight of 21 t and equipped with a Stage IIIA/Tier 3/CHINA III engine with an output of 110 kW/150 hp, the R 920 crawler excavator was developed specifically for these types of applications, according to Liebherr. For KEDASE, the machines have been configured with a 5.7 m boom, a 2 m stick and a 1.15 m³ bucket.

“The R 920 concept is based on the standard European models with high levels of reliability and increased productivity combined with low fuel consumption,” Liebherr said. “Launched onto the market at Bauma 2016, the R 920 is accompanied by a revamp of the range of 20-25 t crawler excavators.”

In addition to the R 920 are the R 922 and R 924. The R 922 weighs 22 t and has an output of 110 kW/150 hp and the R 924 weighs 24 t with an output of 125 kW/170 hp. “These machines are aimed at less regulated markets like South Africa, South East Asia, Russia, China and India,” Liebherr said.

Since their arrival in 2016, the R 920 crawler excavators have met all expectations, according to the OEM.

“After more than 1,000 operating hours, these machines are currently used for nine to 12 hours every day with an average fuel consumption of only 15 l/h. The manoeuvrability and hydraulic performance, in particular, make the machines efficient on site. From the operator’s point of view, the R 920 is characterised by its speed, comfort, stability and performance: “I feel like I’m in a pickup”, one operator said.

Liebherr said the expectation is that these machines will keep performing over time and reach 15,000 operating hours.

Ivanplats reports on Platreef PGM-nickel-copper-gold project progress

Base metals, Mine shafts and equipment, Mineral project development, Mining services, Precious metals, , , , , , , ,

Following a site visit to the Platreef PGM-nickel-copper-gold asset in South Africa just after this month’s Mining Indaba, Ivanplats has provided an update on progress at the project.

In July 2017, Ivanhoe, which indirectly owns 64% of the Platreef project through its subsidiary, Ivanplats, issued an independent, definitive feasibility study (DFS) for Platreef covering the first phase of production at an initial mining rate of 4 Mt/y. The DFS estimated Platreef’s initial, average annual production rate would be 476,000 oz of platinum, palladium, rhodium and gold, plus 21 MIb (9,525 t) of nickel and 13 MIb (5,897 t) of copper.

In the latest update, Ivanplats said good progress continued to be made on Shaft 1’s 850-m-level station. This is the second of three horizontal mining access stations planned for Shaft 1 at Platreef on the northern limb of the Bushveld Complex.

Platreef said: “The first underground mining access station has been constructed at the 750-m level, following earlier development of a water-pumping station at the 450-m level. The third mining access station will be developed at a mine-working depth of 950 m.”

Shaft 1 is expected to reach its projected, final depth of approximately 980 m below surface, complete with all four of the stations, in early 2020, Ivanplats said. The mining zones in the current Platreef mine plan occur at depths ranging from approximately 700 m to 1,200 m below surface.

Construction also is underway on the concrete foundation for the project’s main production shaft ─ Shaft 2, according to Ivanplats. “This foundation will support the 103-m-tall concrete headgear (headframe) that will house Shaft 2’s permanent hoisting facilities and support the shaft collar,” the company said.

Shaft 2 will have an internal diameter of 10 m and will be equipped with two 40-t rock-hoisting skips with a capacity to hoist a total of 6 Mt/y of ore – the single largest hoisting capacity at any mine in Africa, according to Ivanplats.

The South African beneficiaries of the approved broad-based, black economic empowerment structure have a 26% stake in the Platreef project. The remaining 10% is owned by a Japanese consortium of ITOCHU Corp; Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation; and Japan Gas Corp.

aluzinc simplifies and speeds up Shaw Controls’ MCC manufacturing process

Equipment maintenance, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining services, , , , ,

The replacement of steel by aluzinc in the manufacture of Shaw Controls motor control centres (MCCs) has brought with it a range of benefits, Shaw’s Senior Manager Operations, Anderson Kohler, says.

“Traditionally, we used only steel for our MCCs, which needs to be powder coated in order to protect it from corrosion,” Kohler said. “This made it necessary to follow quite a long process in completing our products – a process which aluzinc can now simplify and speed up.”

The usual process of preparing MCC panels includes welding, grinding and prewashing before the powder coating painting process can take place. These phases can now be bypassed by using aluzinc; a material that resists corrosion without a protective coating being applied.

Kohler highlighted the extended lifespan of aluzinc, which comprises 55% aluminium, 43.5% zinc and 1.5% silicon – manufacturers of the product guarantee it will last for about 35 years before any major maintenance is required.

He said the powder coating of steel panels complicates the earthing requirement on an MCC, as the paint layer insulates the panel and prevents conductivity. “This means that technicians and installers must take special care to ensure that proper contact is made between the unit and the earth connection,” he said.

For instance, the use of star washers must be strictly enforced among installation staff. Alternatively, certain areas of the MCCs are left unpainted to allow for earth connections. This does raise the concern that it only takes a small oversight and the earthing will not be fully effective, Kohler pointed out. The use of aluzinc eliminates this issue as there is no longer a paint layer between the earth connection and MCC panel, he said.

Shaw Controls said: “There is also the possibility of painted parts being scratched or damaged during transport and installation. When this occurs, it leads to the time consuming task of being returned to the factory for proper powder-coating, further delaying the installation and commissioning process. Indeed, if there is a need to weld again for any reason, then there is a repeat process of grinding and pre-washing before painting again.”

Kohler said the corrosion-resistant properties of aluzinc allowed parts to be kept in stock, ready for quick assembly; something not possible with mild steel due to corrosion.

“By introducing the use of aluzinc in the manufacture of our MCCs, we can reduce the lead time on components by as much as two to three weeks, and this is a time-saving that we can pass on to our customers by delivering more quickly,” he said.

There are also environmental benefits to using aluzinc as a replacement, said Kohler. No welding means a saving on gas and electricity, for instance, while no pre-washing obviates the need for harsh chemicals. In the painting process, there is invariably waste created through surplus paint that must be carefully disposed of in terms of environmental regulations.

Shaw Controls, a Zest WEG company, has over 30 years’ experience as a manufacturer of MCCs, distribution boards, medium voltage switchgear, control desks, PLC and instrumentation enclosures, portable and containerised substations, E-Houses and various other electrical enclosures.

B&E International lines up launch of track-mounted mobile coal crushing solution

Coal technology, Comminution of minerals, Mineral processing, Mining equipment, Mining services, Steel and iron ore, Water management, , , , , , ,

B&E International’s investment in research and development (R&D) is starting to pay off with the development of its own primary crushing plant and the potential for future dry separation technology for coal plants.

The company thinks its build-own-operate-transfer (BOOT) plants can offer a solution to a number of South Africa coal miners looking to reduce capital spend on infrastructure as the size and lives of their deposits shrink.

Ken Basson, Director of Plant and Engineering at B&E International, said: “Our expertise and equipment in crushing and screening takes the capital expenditure pressure off the customer and relieves them of considerable production risk. We can even assume other responsibilities in the value chain, from drilling and blasting to coal conveying and processing.”

This allows B&E to flexibly fit in to customer value chains, maximising production performance and machine uptime while taking on the risk of meeting the agreed output targets, according to the company.

Basson said: “Our R&D focus has allowed us to develop our own primary coal crushing plant; a high capacity, track mounted unit that is currently under construction and will soon be launched.

“The design is aimed at further reducing unit costs that we can achieve when conducting a contract for a customer. Its high-volume capacity means better efficiencies while being able to serve multiple small deposits on the same mine site.”

Water conservation in the coal beneficiation process is another element of the company’s R&D. It is exploring practical options for dry separation technology for coal plants, in collaboration with a local university. Traditional water-based coal washing technology is a major consumer of water in mine plants.

Process optimisation is also a service B&E provides for customers, based on its years of experience in designing, constructing and operating plants, Basson said.

“Whether a project is greenfield or brownfield, we can assist in providing solutions and addressing challenges,” he said. “For existing plants, our engineering team can identify and address constraints in the process – whether the equipment is ours or a competitor’s. We conduct detailed studies on how customers can remove bottlenecks from their plants.”

Equipment is designed, built and maintained by B&E International’s experts at its facilities in Kempton Park, Gauteng, South Africa. As a member of JSE-listed Raubex Group, B&E International is B-BBEE-compliant and works closely with mines, project houses and contractors, it said.