Tag Archives: Tharisa

Tharisa puts Liebherr T 236 trucks and PR 776 dozer to the test in the Bushveld

Mining equipment, Precious metals, Sustainable mining, , , , , ,

Tharisa, the platinum group metals (PGMs) and chrome co-producer, says three Liebherr Generation 2 Litronic Drive machines – two trucks and one dozer – have been delivered to the Tharisa Mine and begun operational testing.

The partnership with Liebherr is part of Tharisa’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiative to reduce its carbon footprint.

The two 100-t T 236 mining trucks and one 72-t PR 776 dozer, both of which use the latest generation diesel engine technology with the T236s using Cummins QST 30 engines and the PR 776 utilising the Liebherr D9512 engine, are characterised by low-level fuel consumption, Tharisa said. They will be fully stress-tested under operational conditions for 18 months, operating as part of the production fleet under supervision of both Tharisa’s mining team and Liebherr Mining Africa.

“These state-of-the-art diesel-electric mining trucks’ drive train technology benefit from improved fuel economy due to their efficient engine and fuel system, advanced airflow system as well as low-end torque performance and emissions capability,” Tharisa said. “The trucks’ continuous drive system technology will be field tested to determine whether the machines can withstand the climatic and geomorphological makeup of the hard-rock mining of the Bushveld Complex.”

The aim of the long-term, real-life tests is to ensure the trucks reduce diesel consumption and costs while testing the machines’ ability to deliver a minimised environmental footprint, and still deliver on production metrics, as part of Tharisa’s drive for a more sustainable mining environment.

One of Tharisa’s core values is safety and the T236 has a variety of operational safety features such as payload warnings, anti-rollback features, engine shutdown switches in the cab and at ground level and an integrated four corner park brake system, the miner said. These safety systems are in line with the current specifications of the existing truck fleet operating at the Tharisa Mine.

The PR 776 dozer has a high-efficiency rating of the hydrostatic drive across the entire vehicle speed range, which further minimises fuel consumption and ensures reduced levels of carbon dioxide emissions, it added.

Tebogo Matsimela, Head of ESG at Tharisa, said: “Our commitment to reducing our carbon footprint by 30% by 2030 and becoming net carbon neutral by 2050 is in action and includes using efficient technology. When we announced our targets, we already had an action plan in place and the intention to meet, if not exceed, our 2030 target.

“Liebherr has been a partner to Tharisa, and like all our other partners, we constantly challenge them to come up with innovative, cost-saving and environmentally friendly solutions that ensure our materials, which themselves are necessary for a more sustainable world, are produced in a sustainable manner. Investing in the next generation of mining equipment will reduce our carbon footprint and costs, allowing us to deliver enhanced and sustainable returns to our shareholders.”

Tharisa Minerals is 74% owned by Tharisa and is uniquely positioned as the world’s only co-producer of both PGM and chrome concentrates, the company says. Tharisa Minerals’ core asset is the Tharisa Mine, which is situated on South Africa’s Western Limb of the Bushveld Complex – home to more than 70% of the world’s platinum and chrome resources.

Total Eren, Chariot and Tharisa to build solar PV plant at PGM mine

Environmental, Mine operation news, Mining services, Power supply for mines, Sustainable mining, , , , , , , , ,

Total Eren, a renewable energy independent power producer, and Chariot, an Africa-focused transitional energy company, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Tharisa plc to develop, finance, construct, own, operate and maintain a solar photovoltaic project for the supply of electricity to the Tharisa PGM mine, in the North West province, South Africa.

The solar PV project is initially anticipated to be 40 MW peak with demand expected to increase over the life of the Tharisa Mine. This MoU is the first step towards implementation of the project and signing of a long-term Power Purchase Agreement for the supply of electricity on a take-or-pay basis, the companies said.

Fabienne Demol, Executive Vice-President & Global Head of Business Development of Total Eren, said: “We are very pleased to be entering into this MoU with Tharisa. Through our partnership with Chariot, we are keen to assist mining companies in Africa to reduce their carbon intensity and energy costs, via implementing renewable power solutions into their operations. We are eager to bring our global expertise in solar generation to Tharisa mine and we look forward to delivering further renewable projects for our mining customers in Africa and worldwide.”

Benoit Garrivier, Chariot Transitional Power CEO, added: “This is a great outcome for Chariot’s Transitional Power division and demonstrates the financial and sustainable benefits that our offering can bring to mining companies operating in Africa. The Tharisa team are very forward looking and understand that the addition of a solar PV project at their mine in South Africa will bring significant benefits to the business. Together with Total Eren, we are excited to start working on the financing and development of the project and we will update the market further on this and other opportunities that we are progressing in due course.”

Tebogo Matsimela, Head of ESG at Tharisa, said: “Tharisa plays a significant part in the global energy transition movement, and we are committed to producing these key metals in a sustainable manner. The solar power solution provided by Total Eren is but one of several steps we are taking to ensure our flagship Tharisa Mine, which has a life of mine of over 50 years, has a reduced carbon footprint.

“Our goal is to reduce our carbon emissions by 30% by 2030 and ultimately become net carbon neutral by 2050.”

Tharisa Minerals produces PGM concentrate and metallurgical- and specialty-grade chrome concentrates from a shallow open-pit mine near Rustenburg, North West province. The Genesis and Voyager plants at the operation have a combined nameplate capacity of 4.8 Mt/y of run of mine.

Tharisa kicks off Vulcan ultra-fine chrome recovery and beneficiation plant commissioning

Environmental, Mineral processing, Mineral project development, Precious metals, Sustainable mining, , , , , , ,

Tharisa, the platinum group metals (PGMs) and chrome co-producer, has announced that cold commissioning of its Vulcan ultra-fine chrome recovery and beneficiation plant has commenced.

The timetable to completion of the new $55 million plant remains firmly on track with initial saleable production due before year end, it says.

Once fully commissioned, the plant is expected to see Tharisa Mine, in South Africa, materially increase its chrome recoveries from circa-62% to circa-82% resulting in increased chrome production of some 20% at low incremental unit operating costs.

The plant, which will process live tailings produced by the independent Voyager (pictured) and Genesis plants, will ensure further beneficiation of the company’s chrome production at the Tharisa Mine, while reducing unit output of carbon emissions, aligned with Tharisa’s recently announced decarbonisation plan, the company says.

The Vulcan plant has a nameplate capacity of 340,000 t/mth of tailings and involves “proprietary ground-breaking use of existing technologies in fine chrome recovery”, the company says. The board initially signed off its construction in 2019, appointing Wood as the engineering, procurement and construction management contractor in the process, with hot commissioning targeted for the December quarter of 2020. This timeline was impacted by COVID-19.

Some final elements of the construction process remain to be completed, yet Tharisa’s engineering team has commenced cold commissioning, with comprehensive testing of the entire circuit, to be completed prior to chrome tailings material entering the plant. Of the total capital expenditure, over 90% was procured locally in South Africa, with up to 1,000 contractors locally sourced and over 100 new permanent jobs created.

Vulcan is, Tharisa says, the first large-scale plant to produce chrome concentrates from chrome ultra-fines. The concept of Vulcan was developed by Arxo Metals Proprietary Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of the company and housing Tharisa’s in-house R&D team, to extract the ultra-fine chrome from tailings.

With Tharisa Mine near Rustenburg having a 14-year open-pit life remaining, and a further 40 years underground, Vulcan will ensure maximum value extraction and beneficiation of the chrome ore, Tharisa says. The Tharisa Mine has 860 Mt in mineral resource containing 172 Mt in contained Cr2O3 and 42.8 Moz platinum group metals.

Internally funded by Tharisa, Vulcan recommenced construction in October 2020 after the lifting of restrictions by the South African government during the height of the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Phoevos Pouroulis, CEO of Tharisa, says: “Commissioning of the Vulcan plant perfectly exemplifies two Tharisa philosophies: challenging convention through innovation and delivering on our promise of maximising value through beneficiation of every cube mined.

“Vulcan provides the company with the ability to further beneficiate our product whilst staying on track to meet our decarbonisation targets, thanks to the dedicated work from Arxo Metals, that has not only delivered the Vulcan process but has also delivered further beneficiation opportunities, including metal alloys and PGM products using non-conventional methodologies.

“Vulcan is an important part of our sustainable growth strategy and ensures that Tharisa continues to drive sustainable returns for all of our stakeholders, while simultaneously pushing us even lower on the cost curve.”