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JULY 2023 • VOL 224 • NUMBER 7

FEATURES
Innovation Gives New-level Results, Big Wins
Five hoist-and-shaft solution and service suppliers tell how they
innovated to achieve critical goals and needed results ..............................16

Keeping Critical Crushers Up and Running


As the global skills shortage hits home, mine operators are increasingly
relying on service providers and digital technologies to support crusher
maintenance activities. E&MJ investigates… .............................................22

Fleet Management 2.0


Today’s fleet management systems are increasingly intelligent,
integrated and agile. E&MJ looks at the latest advancements. .................28
Maximizing Motor Performance
Electric motors and drives are expected to play an increasingly
larger role in mining and other heavy industries. OEMs are upgrading
design, fabrication and support capabilities to ensure their product
lines are up to the challenge.......................................................................32

LEADING DEVELOPMENTS This month, E&MJ reports on shaft sinking and


Rio Tinto Plans a Major Investment for Kennecott Utah Copper .................. 4 hoisting equipment and technology. On the cov-
Boliden Idles Tara, Rönnskär Suffers Fire .................................................... 4 er, the headframe for the Palabora copper mine’s
ventilation shaft, which is currently under con-
KCGM Mill Expansion Approved, Work Underway ....................................... 5 struction in South Africa’s Limpopo Province. It’s
Anglo, Jiangxi to Collaborate on Responsible Copper ................................. 5 now within 250 m of reaching its target depth of
1,200 m. (Photo: Murray & Roberts Cementation)
De Beers, Botswana Reach an Agreement in Principle ............................... 6
Newmont Defers Investment Decision for Yanacocha Sulfides .................... 6 DEPARTMENTS
Calendar ...................................................... 15
AROUND THE WORLD Classified Advertisements ........................... 46
U.S. & Canada: Hudbay Completes Copper Mountain Acquisition ......... 8 Equipment Gallery ....................................... 44
Latin America: Newmont Suspends Operations at Peñasquito............ 11 From the Editor ...............................................2
Australia/Oceania: Evolution Extends Mungari Mine Life by 15 Years .... 12 Markets ........................................................ 48
Africa: Appian Buys Rosh Pinah Zinc Mine in Namibia......................... 13 Operating Strategies.................................... 38
People ......................................................... 10
Processing Solutions ................................... 42
Suppliers Report .......................................... 40
This Month in Coal....................................... 14

Crusher Maintenance....22 Fleet Management....28 Motors and Drives....32

www.e-mj.com JULY 2023 • E&MJ 1

EMJ_pg01.indd 1 7/7/23 2:07 PM


FROM THE EDITOR

A Developer Shares
AI
His Thoughts www.e-mj.com
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The key to this change was the use of algorithms. The most advanced algos Engineering & Mining Journal, Volume 224, Issue 7, (ISSN 0095-8948)
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2 E&MJ • JULY 2023 and Mining Equipment International. ALL RIGHTS
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NEWS-LEADING DEVELOPMENTS

Rio Tinto Plans a Major Investment


for Kennecott Utah Copper
Rio Tinto announced plans to invest in its
Kennecott operation near Salt Lake City,
Utah, USA, to strengthen its supply of
copper in the United States by increas-
ing production from underground mining
and improving the health of key assets.
The company approved $498 million
for the underground development and
supporting infrastructure for the North
Rim Skarn (NRS) area. Production from
the NRS area will commence in 2024 and
is expected to ramp up over two years, to
deliver around 250,000 metric tons (mt)
of additional mined copper over the next
10 years alongside open cut operations.
In September 2022, Rio Tinto ap-
proved development capital totaling
$55 million to start underground mining
in the Lower Commercial Skarn (LCS)
area. Underground production within
the LCS area started in February 2023,
and is expected to deliver a total of
around 30,000 mt of additional mined
copper through 2027.
This image shows the North Rim Skarn orebody from the north with Rio Tinto’s plans for development.
The company said these two invest- (Image: Rio Tinto)
ments will support Kennecott in build-
ing a world class underground mine strong contribution it has made as part Ireland under care and maintenance.
that will leverage battery electric vehi- of the Salt Lake Valley community for The company said the business is
cle (BEV) technology, following a suc- 120 years, injecting about $1.5 billion currently cash flow negative, due to a
cessful trial in 2022. annually to the local Utah economy.” combination of factors including opera-
A $300 million rebuild is also un- Studies to inform decisions on the tional challenges, a decline in the price
derway at the Kennecott smelter. The next phases of expanding underground of zinc, high energy prices and general
rebuild is the largest in Kennecott’s production continue in parallel with work cost inflation.
history and commenced in May 2023. A that is being advanced to extend open This announcement follows on the
further $120 million is being invested to pit mining at Kennecott beyond 2032. heels of a mid-June announcement that
upgrade the refinery tank house struc- The NRS has updated Indicated a fire broke out at Boliden’s Rönnskär
ture and update Kennecott’s molybde- Mineral Resources of 10.8 million mt smelter in Norway. No injuries oc-
num flotation circuit with a state-of-the at 2.93% copper, 1.20 g/mt gold, 65.97 curred, but the cell house has burned
art, fully automated system. As the g/mt silver, 0.008 % molybdenum, and down. All production at Rönnskär has
second largest copper producer in the Inferred Mineral Resources of 7.7 mil- stopped and it’s costing the company
U.S., Rio Tinto said the investment will lion mt at 3.13% copper, 0.96 g/mt gold, $7.9 million per week in lost production
allow Kennecott to continue to deliver a 18.41 g/mt silver, and 0.005% molyb- not to mention the replacement costs
high-quality product to customers. denum identified based on additional for the equipment.
“We are investing to build a world drilling and an initial Probable Ore Re- The company also reported that
class underground mine at Kennecott serve of 3 million mt at 2.39% copper, the Kevitsa copper and nickel mine in
and strengthen our processing facilities, 1.77 g/mt gold, 18.59 g/mt silver, and northern Finland is mining from areas
to meet the growing demand for copper 0.010 % molybdenum. with lower grades. During the second
in the United States, a key material for quarter, the copper grade was estimat-
domestic manufacturing and the ener- Boliden Idles Tara, ed at 0.21% and the nickel grade at
gy transition,” Rio Tinto Copper COO Rönnskär Suffers Fire 0.16%, which is significantly below the
Clayton Walker said. “This investment Positioning it as a high-cost mine, Bo- reserve grades in Kevitsa of 0.34% and
will position Kennecott to continue the liden said it will place the Tara mine in 0.23%, respectively.

4 E&MJ • JULY 2023 www.e-mj.com

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NEWS-LEADING DEVELOPMENTS

Anglo, Jiangxi to Collaborate KCGM Mill Expansion Approved, Work Underway


on Responsible Copper Northern Star Resources’ board ap- million metric tons per year (mt/y) to 27
Anglo American and Jiangxi Copper proved the development of the A$1.5 million mt/y. Leveraging off the known
Co., one of China’s largest copper pro- billion ($1 billion) KCGM Mill Expansion metallurgical performance of the oper-
ducers, have signed a memorandum of Project, to extend the life of the Super ation significantly lowers the project’s
understanding to work together to pro- Pit. “Today is exciting for Northern technical risk. Proven processes will
vide greater assurance on the way cop- Star and a historic new chapter for this be retained (~20% of the existing
per is mined, processed, and brought world-class asset,” Northern Star Man- plant) and the largest process equip-
to market.
aging Director Stuart Tonkin said. “The ment will be sourced from leading tier-1
Anglo American said this is part of
board’s decision to approve the KCGM manufacturers.
the company’s work with customers to
mill expansion and optimization rep- Core design principles were to de-
create sustainable value chains beyond
resents the next stage to revitalize our liver a facility that has maintainabil-
its own mining operations, recognizing
consumers’ increasing expectations largest asset as well as the surrounding ity, operability and maximized plant
for sustainably sourced and supplied district for decades to come.” availability. As such, the new plant will
raw materials. “Our confidence in the economics of have a high level of process automa-
“We are developing a series of part- KCGM to remain a long-life, low-cost tion, control and condition monitoring.
nerships to shape a more sustainable gold mine has been further reinforced Increasing the plant throughput com-
and customer-centric value chain — through the feasibility study phase. bined with simplifying the existing flow
one that meets consumer-driven de- Expanding the processing capacity of sheet should lead to an increase in
mand for copper with demonstrably KCGM will strengthen Northern Star’s gold production capacity with improved
strong provenance credentials,” Peter portfolio, materially increase our free gold recovery rates (~1%). It will also
Whitcutt, CEO of Anglo American Mar- cash flow generation and progress our provide a sustainable reduction in unit
keting, said. “That value chain begins long-term strategy to be within the 2nd rate processing costs with large-scale
with our portfolio of high-quality and quartile of the global cost curve. efficiencies and reduced reagent con-
long-life assets, now also including our Located in Kalgoorlie, Western Aus- sumption rates. The company also
world-class Quellaveco mine in Peru, tralia, the KCGM Operation (aka Super expects a reduction in fixed operating
which began production in 2022. Pit) is one of the world’s largest and cost per ton of ore processed.
“In line with our Sustainable Min- most significant gold mines with a min- Northern Star Resources has placed
ing Plan goal to establish ethical value
eral resource of 28.3 million oz and an a $222 million order with FLSmidth for
chains for our products, this collabora-
ore reserve of 12.2 million oz. The growth a wide range of mineral processing
tion aims to support Jiangxi Copper’s
optionality that comes with owning an as- technologies for the expansion project,
efforts to contribute to the Chinese
set as large as KCGM is significant and including a SAG mill, a ball mill, a pri-
industry’s long-term decarbonization
goals and transition to a greener econ- arguably unmatched across Australia.” mary crusher, pebble crushers, flota-
omy, as we work to provide materials Northern Star acquired 50% of tion cells and a pre-leach thickener. In
solutions that are responsibly pro- KCGM in 2020 and assumed 100% con- addition to these technologies, the or-
duced, sourced and delivered.” trol of KCGM as a result of the merger der also includes spare and wear parts.
China is the world’s largest copper with Saracen Mineral Holdings Ltd. The 20-megawatt grinding mills will be
consuming nation, representing more The capacity of KCGM’s process- the highest power, gear-driven mills in
than half of global demand for refined ing circuit, centered on the Fimiston the world, and the ball mill will be the
copper, fueled by traditional applica- processing plant, will increase from 13 first gear-driven 28-ft dia ball mill.
tions in construction, appliances and
machinery as well as the fast-growing
renewable energy and electric vehicle
sectors, with copper expected to play
a pivotal role in enabling the country’s
own decarbonization progress.
“Jiangxi Copper is committed to
green, sustainable and high-quality de-
velopment,” said Chen Yunian, Deputy
General Manager of Jiangxi Copper.
“Through this cooperation with Anglo
American, we will focus on advanced
technologies and innovative applica-
tions of mining, processing and smelt-
ing, and promote the development of
a sustainable and responsible copper Only about 20% of the Fimiston processing plant’s technology will be retained during the $1 billion upgrade.
supply chain with a focus on renewable (Image: Northern Star)

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NEWS-LEADING DEVELOPMENTS

energy utilization, energy conservation “For De Beers it is a privilege to re- mining agreements, the terms of the
and emissions reduction.” new our half-century partnership with most recent sales agreement, which ex-
Anglo American’s managed copper the people of Botswana,” Al Cook, CEO, pired on June 30, will remain in place.
operations in Chile — the Los Bronces De Beers Group, said. “It is a partner- Anglo American owns De Beers.
and El Soldado mining operations and ship that is highly regarded around Given that both Anglo and the Gov-
the Chagres smelter — were awarded the world for the enduring role it has ernment of Botswana have a stake in
the Copper Mark, the assurance stan- played in creating economic develop- Debswana, the final agreement will be
dard for responsible production practic- ment and growth.” subject to approval by Anglo Ameri-
es, in 2022. The new agreement, according to can’s shareholders.
De Beers, will also progress the long-
De Beers, Botswana Reach term capital investment required to Newmont Defers Investment
an Agreement in Principle secure Debswana’s position as one of Decision for Yanacocha
De Beers Group and the Government the world’s leading diamond producers, Sulfides
of the Republic of Botswana have and Botswana’s largest private employ- Newmont announced it will defer the
reached an agreement in principle on er, for decades to come. full-funds investment decision for the
a new 10-year sales agreement for To accelerate Botswana’s econom- Yanacocha Sulfides project in Peru for
Debswana’s rough diamond produc- ic diversification, a $75 million Dia- at least two years to advance its portfo-
tion through 2033 and a 25-year exten- monds for Development fund will be lio optimization strategy.
sion of the Debswana mining licenses created with an upfront investment In light if the recent Newcrest ac-
through 2054. by De Beers with further contributions quisition, Tom Palmer, president and
Debswana operates four diamond over the next 10 years that could total CEO of Newmont, said the company
mines in Botswana and is a 50:50 joint up to $750 million, which will aim to is targeting at least $2 billion in near-
venture between De Beers and the create substantial additional value for term cash flow improvements through
Government of Botswana. the Botswana economy. portfolio optimization within the first two
The new terms expand Botswana’s The new agreement secures ex- years. “The deferral of the Yanacocha
footprint and leadership position signifi- isting jobs and could create tens of Sulfides project represents the first
cantly across the diamond value chain. thousands of new jobs, both within an step in delivering on this target, as we
From the start of the new contract peri- expanded Botswana-based diamond evaluate further opportunities to re-se-
od, Okavango Diamond Co. (ODC) will industry and emerging sectors, with quence project capital and rationalize
receive 30% of Debswana’s produc- a focus on supporting the growth of a the combined portfolio,” Palmer said.
tion, progressively increasing to 50% knowledge-based economy. The deferral reduces Newmont’s de-
by the final year of the contract. The While the two JV partners progress velopment capex by an estimated $300
Government of Botswana owns ODC. and implement the formal sales and million. The decision to defer the proj-
ect was based on an analysis led by
Dean Gehring, chief development offi-
cer for Peru, over the last nine months
to further maximize the project’s eco-
nomics. This analysis will be integral
to preparing for an investment decision
and will continue to support the project
when construction resumes.
The company said Gehring will now
shift his focus from leading the Yanaco-
cha operation and the Sulfides project
to leading integration planning for New-
mont’s proposed acquisition of Newcrest
in his new role as chief integration officer.
The Yanacocha Sulfides project
aims to develop the first phase of sul-
fide deposits at Yanacocha through an
integrated processing circuit, including
an autoclave to produce 45% gold, 45%
copper and 10% silver. The first phase
focuses on developing the Yanacocha
Verde and Chaquicocha deposits to ex-
tend Yanacocha’s operations beyond
2040, with second and third phases
having the potential to extend the oper-
Al Cook, CEO, De Beers (left) shakes hands with Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi. (Photo: De Beers) ation’s life for multiple decades.

6 E&MJ • JULY 2023 www.e-mj.com

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REGIONAL NEWS - U.S. & CANADA

Hudbay Completes Copper Mountain


Acquisition
Hudbay Minerals has completed its pre-
viously announced acquisition of Copper
Mountain Mining. The company is now
a wholly owned subsidiary of Hudbay.
Copper Mountain shareholders received
0.381 of a Hudbay share for each Cop-
per Mountain share previously held.
The transaction creates a premier
Americas-focused copper mining company,
according to Hudbay, that is well-positioned
to deliver sustainable cash flows from an
operating portfolio of three long-life mines,
as well as compelling organic growth from
a world-class pipeline of copper expan-
sion and development projects. All assets
in the combined portfolio are located in
the tier-one mining-friendly jurisdictions of
Canada, Peru and the United States. The
combined company represents the third
Adding the Copper Mountain mine (above) in British Columbia to Hudbay’s portfolio makes the company
largest copper producer in Canada based the third largest Canadian copper miner. (Photo: Copper Mountain Mining)
on 2023 estimated copper production.
“We look forward to the formal inte- current federal standards to reduce ex- Mine Act’s clear instruction to prioritize
gration of Copper Mountain into our com- posure to respirable crystalline silica, or miners’ health.”
plementary portfolio of operating assets,” silica dust, for metal-nonmetal and coal In addition to reducing the existing
said Peter Kukielski, president and CEO mines. The agency said the proposed PEL, the proposal also includes other
of Hudbay. “By applying our technical ex- rule change will ensure miners have at requirements to protect miners’ health —
pertise, we expect to unlock significant least the same level of protection as such as exposure sampling — and med-
annual operating efficiencies and syner- workers in other industries. ical surveillance.
gies at the mine.” The proposed rule would lower the The proposed rule change is 466 pag-
The transaction grows Hudbay’s Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) to es and compliance could be a challenge.
management team with the addition of silica dust from 100 micrograms per As an example, mine operators would
Letitia Wong, who will lead integration, cubic meter (μg/m3) to 50 μg/m3 of air be required to install, use, and maintain
and Richard Klue as vice president, en- for a full shift, calculated as an 8-hour “feasible” engineering and administra-
gineering studies, in addition to benefit- time weighted average. If a miner’s ex- tive controls to reduce the PEL. Under
ing from other members of the Copper posure exceeds the limit, the proposed the proposed rule, respiratory protection
Mountain team that are continuing with rule would require operators to take would only be allowed for temporary,
the combined company. As previously immediate corrective actions to come non-routine use.
planned, Gil Clausen, Copper Mountain’s into compliance. There are some areas where the pro-
president and CEO, has retired and will “The purpose of this proposed rule posal needs to be improved, explained
transition to an advisory role for the com- is simple: prevent more miners from Michael Johnson, president and CEO for
bined company for the next year. suffering from debilitating and deadly the National Stone, Sand and Gravel As-
In connection with the closing of occupational illnesses by reducing their sociation. “We are disappointed to see that
the transaction, Hudbay has appointed exposure to silica dust,” said MSHA the rule does not include a ‘Table 1,’ similar
Jeane Hull and Paula Rogers to its board Administrator Chris Williamson. “Silica to OSHA’s silica standard for construction,”
of directors. Hull was the COO for Ken- overexposures have a real-life impact on Johnson said. “We also disagree with the
necott Utah Copper. Rogers was affiliat- a miner’s health. Miners like a crusher inclusion of an action level of 25 [μg/m3].”
ed with Goldcorp and Wheaton River. operator at a California sand and grav- Following the proposed rule’s pub-
el mine or a roof bolter in a West Virgin- lication in the Federal Register, MSHA
MSHA Proposes New ia coal mine should never be forced to will announce dates for upcoming public
Silica Rule choose between preserving their health hearings in Arlington, Virginia, and Den-
The U.S. Mine Safety and Health Ad- and providing for themselves and their ver, Colorado. The hearings will be open
ministration (MSHA) wants to amend families. This proposed rule furthers the for in-person or online participation.

8 E&MJ • JULY 2023 www.e-mj.com

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REGIONAL NEWS - U.S. & CANADA

Talon Begins EIS Scoping dard-grade potash shipments through to


Process for Tamarack December 31, 2023, at a price of $307 per
Talon Nickel (USA) LLC, a subsidiary of metric ton (mt) on a CFR basis.
Talon Metals, submitted its Environmen- “China is an important market for
tal Assessment Worksheet to the Minne- Canpotex, and we’re pleased to reach
sota Department of Natural Resources to an agreement with China’s potash buy-
begin the state’s Environmental Impact ing committee,” said Gordon McKenzie,
Statement (EIS) scoping process for the Canpotex president and CEO. “We look
Tamarack nickel-copper-cobalt project, forward to continuing our support of food
located near Tamarack, Minnesota, USA. security in China by providing our cus-
“Our team in Tamarack is excited to tomers there with a reliable and stable
have reached the milestone of submitting supply of potash as China’s agriculture
the initial worksheet form to begin Min- sector continues to grow.”
nesota’s Environmental Review process, Canpotex is Saskatchewan’s largest
the starting point for any project seeking overseas exporter and among the top
a permit in the state,” said Henri van Canadian exporters. It exports more than
Rooyen, CEO of Talon. “We have worked 13 million mt of Canadian potash annual-
ly to more than 40 countries. Magino mine, located in Dubreuilville, Ontario,
very hard and invested millions of dollars poured first gold on June 14, 2023. (Photo:
to understand the environment and cul- Argonaut Gold)
tural resources in the area.” Magino Pours First Gold
The Tamarack project is envisioned Argonaut Gold’s Magino mine, located in review of mill optimization and expansion
as a small aboveground campus, ap- Dubreuilville, Ontario, poured first gold opportunities will commence in the third
proximately 60 acres (not including the on June 14, 2023. The company said quarter, to potentially raise throughput
rail spur). Ore will not be crushed or pro- the process plant ramp-up remains on rates and increase annual production.
cessed at the mine site. Instead, ore will schedule with commercial production ex-
be extracted underground, transported to pected in Q3 2023. Rio Tinto to Expand
the surface, and loaded onto covered and “We are proud of the Argonaut team Low-carbon Aluminum
enclosed railcars inside a building to con- for delivering Canada’s newest gold Rio Tinto said it plans to invest $1.1 bil-
trol dust emissions and water discharge. mine,” said Richard Young, president lion to expand its state-of-the-art AP60
Talon plans to use a tunnel boring and CEO, Argonaut Gold. “The Magino aluminum smelter equipped with low-car-
machine (TBM) to create a lined tunnel mine is key to achieving our vision to be- bon technology at Complexe Jonquière
loop through the glacial till zone to the come a low-cost, mid-tier North America in Canada. The total investment includes
deep bedrock, ensuring dual means of gold producer that creates significant val- up to $113 million of financial support
safe access. Water that seeps from the ue for all our stakeholders and proudly from the Quebec government. This ex-
bedrock into the underground mine will demonstrates responsible mining.” pansion, which will coincide with the
be collected and pumped to the surface “We are now focused on completing gradual closure of potrooms at the Arvida
for processing. Talon said it is exploring commissioning and ramping up the mill smelter on the same site, will enable Rio
the highest level of membrane-based to steady state,” said Marc Leduc, COO, Tinto to continue meeting customers’ de-
water treatment technology appropriate Argonaut Gold. “We are looking to fur- mand for low-carbon, high-quality alumi-
for the site with both private sector and ther grow our flagship gold mine as we num for use in transportation, construc-
state and federal research institutions. commence a reserve development drill- tion, electrical and consumer goods.
Talon has an agreement with Tesla ing program, intending to increase re- “This investment is aligned with our
to supply it with 75,000 metric tons (165 serves in combination with studies to ex- strategy to decarbonize our value chains
million lbs) of nickel in concentrate (and pand and optimize mill throughput, both and grow in materials essential for the ener-
certain by-products, including cobalt and scheduled to begin later this summer.” gy transition,” Rio Tinto CEO Jakob Staush-
iron) from the Tamarack nickel project Magino is expected to produce be- olm said. “Our AP60 technology is already
over an estimated 6-year period once tween 72,000 to 81,000 ounces (oz) of proven and producing some of the low-
commercial production is achieved. Tal- gold in 2023 at cash costs of between est-carbon aluminum in the world, thanks
on’s Battery Minerals Processing Facili- $850/oz and $950/oz and approximately to the expertise of our highly qualified work-
ty to be located in Mercer County, North 148,000 oz of gold at a cash cost of $868/ force and access to renewable hydropow-
Dakota, was selected by the Department oz in 2024, its first full year of production. er. This is the most significant investment
of Energy on October 19, 2022 for $114 Argonaut is scheduled to begin a 12- in our aluminum business for more than a
million in grant funding provided by the to 15-month exploration and reserve de- decade and it will further strengthen Rio
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL). velopment program, in the third quarter, Tinto’s high-quality and low-carbon offering
to convert open pit resources to reserves to our customers as they also work to re-
Canpotex Reaches within the current resource pit cone, test duce their own carbon footprint.”
Agreement in China deep underground high-grade targets, The investment will add 96 new AP60
Canpotex has reached an agreement with and test open pit targets along strike pots, increasing capacity by approximate-
China’s potash buying committee for stan- west of the current deposit. In parallel, a (Continued on p. 15)

www.e-mj.com JULY 2023 • E&MJ 9

EMJ_pg04-15.indd 9 7/7/23 4:06 PM


NEWS - PEOPLE IN THE NEWS

André Sougarret has resigned Rod Thomas has retired from his position as a director for
from the executive presidency of Generation Mining Ltd. Thomas enjoyed an extensive 40-
the Corporación Nacional del Co- year career in the mineral exploration sector, which includ-
bre de Chile (Codelco) for person- ed working as the exploration manager for BHP Minerals
al reasons. He began his career at in eastern Canada and general manager of VM Canada.
Codelco in the El Teniente Division He was also a past president of Prospectors & Developers
in 1993, where he became assis- Association of Canada (PDAC) from 2014-2016. Most re-
André Sougarret Claudia Cabrera Correa tant general manager. In 2012, Rod Thomas cently he served as vice president exploration during Gen-
he joined Antofagasta Minerals as Mining’s founding in 2018 before transitioning to a director.
general manager of Minera Esperanza and, later, Minera Centinela.
He was executive vice president of Chile’s National Mining Co. (Ena- Arizona Sonoran Copper Co. has appointed Harold “Bernie” Loyer as
mi), before accepting a position as director of operations for Minera senior vice president projects, replacing Ian McMullan as COO and the
Fresnillo in Mexico. He returned to Codelco at the end of 2020 to take company also named Christopher White as chief geologist.
over as vice president of the company’s northern operations and was
appointed executive president a year ago. Akobo Minerals AB, a Scandinavian-based junior exploring for gold in Ethiopia,
Before leaving, Sougarret presided over a ceremony where Codelco announced that Helge Rushfeldt will join its executive management group.
appointed Claudia Cabrera Correa as general manager of the compa-
ny’s Gabriela Mistral division. She becomes the first woman to lead a Aspiring lithium
division since Codelco was founded in 1971. Starting at Chuquicamata, producer Avalon
she held different roles in that division and at the headquarters. In 2018, Advanced Materi-
Cabrera accepted a position as manager of planning and process control als Inc. appointed
at Minera Escondida for BHP Billiton. She joined Antofagasta Minerals three executives
as corporate safety risk manager in 2021 before returning to Codelco. to its leadership
team: Scott Mon-
After announcing that it would de- teith will assume Scott Monteith Jim Jaques Jan Holland

fer a decision on the Yanacocha control as interim CEO; Jim Jaques will serve as the
Sulphides project in Peru, New- company’s inaugural chief administrative officer; and
mont said Dean Gehring would Jan Holland will join the company’s board. The com-
shift his focus to leading integra- pany’s former president and CEO, Donald Bubar, has
tion planning for Newmont’s pro- decided to step down.
posed acquisition of Newcrest in
Dean Gehring Gonzalo Eyzaguirre
his new role as chief integration Bosch Rexroth announced its president and CEO Grego-
officer. The company named Gonzalo Eyzaguirre as the new general ry Gumbs has left the company. Gumbs, who joined the
manager for Yanacocha. organization in late 2020, was credited with leading in-
creased growth for the company’s North American region. Gregory Gumbs
Teck Resources Ltd. appointed Ian
Anderson as senior vice presi- John N. Murphy passed on June 13, 2023. He was
dent and chief commercial officer. the executive director of the McGowan Institute and a
He succeeds Réal Foley, who research professor in the Department of Chemical and
will retire in late November 2023. Petroleum Engineering at the University of Pittsburgh
Anderson has more than 20 years (Pitt). Prior to joining Pitt, Murphy served as the Re-
of experience with Teck across nu- search Director of the U.S. Bureau of Mines’ Pittsburgh
Ian Anderson André Stark
merous logistics and operational Research Center (PRC) from 1978 until 1997, which is
John N. Murphy
functions, including general manager for both Line now a branch of the National Institute for Occupational
Creek and Fording River operations; general manag- Safety and Health (NIOSH).
er, coal logistics; and most recently, vice president, In addition to his academic achievements, Murphy was a kind man
logistics, with responsibility for coordinating Teck’s who donated much of his time to the many societies and associations with
overall logistics strategy and implementing a cost-ef- which he was affiliated. He was very active in Society for Mining, Metallur-
ficient supply chain. The company also appointed gy and Exploration (SME), the SME Foundation and the Pittsburgh section
André Stark as vice president, marketing and logis- of SME, always advocating for continuing education. He also served as the
Michael O’Shaughnessy tics, base metals, with responsibility for base metals chairman of the Coal Age’s Longwall USA executive committee. Murphy
marketing and logistics functions. Stark joined Teck also supported the Boy Scouts of America and was instrumental in devel-
in 2012 and most recently held the role of vice president, marketing. Mi- oping the merit badge for mining.
chael O’Shaughnessy has been appointed vice president, marketing SME presented Murphy with the AIME Erskine Ramsay Medal in 2016
and logistics, coal, with responsibility for the coal business unit’s mar- for his unselfish, tireless contributions to the coal industry, safety and
keting and logistics functions. He joined Teck in 2006 and most recently health research, public outreach, professional development, mentoring,
held the role of director, logistics strategy and planning. and, of course, the society.
He served as the 2011 president of SME, and is also the past presi-
Impala Platinum announces a dent of the SME Foundation, director and past chairman of the Pittsburgh
number of senior leadership Section of SME, Past President of the National Mine Rescue Association,
changes. After 13 years at Im- member and past president of the Mine Rescue Veterans of Pittsburgh
plats and a distinguished 40-year District, senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics En-
career in the South African mining gineers, member of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, and
sector, Gerhard Potgieter is retir- member of the Mining and Metallurgy Society of America.
ing in July 2023. Patrick Morutl- A registered professional engineer, Murphy held an undergraduate
Mark Munroe Moses Motlhageng
wa succeeds him as group COO. degree from Pitt and a master’s degree from Duquesne University. During
Mark Munroe, currently the CEO for Impala Rustenburg, has been his tenure at the PRC, he served in various technical and supervisory po-
appointed group chief technical officer, and is succeeded by Moses sitions. He held two patents and authored more than 90 technical publica-
Motlhageng who moves from his current position as mining executive tions. He received the Department of Interior Distinguished Service Award
of the group’s Marula operations. Themba Ngobeni has been appoint- in 1985, the Presidential Rank Award for Meritorious Executive in 1986,
ed general manager at Marula. and the Presidential Award for Distinguished Executive in 1993.

10 E&MJ • JULY 2023 www.e-mj.com

EMJ_pg04-15.indd 10 7/7/23 4:06 PM


REGIONAL NEWS - LATIN AMERICA

Newmont Suspends Operations


at Peñasquito
Newmont Corp. has suspended operations
at the Peñasquito mine in Mexico in re-
sponse to a strike action received from the
National Union of Mine and Metal Workers
of the Mexican Republic. The company
said that operations at Minera Peñasqui-
to were suspended in a safe and orderly
manner and essential activities related to
safety, security and environmental moni-
toring and protection continue. A timeline
for resuming operations was not provided.
Newmont said it had urged the union
to abide by the mutually agreed collec-
tive bargaining agreement (CBA) negoti-
The Gabriela Mistral copper mine in Chile has hauled more than 1 billion tons autonomously without a
ated and signed by both parties in June serious injury. (Photo: Codelco)
of 2022. On June 7, 2023, however, the
union notified the company of a strike haul trucks. The Chilean mining compa- “This investment is a strong endorse-
action demanding an increase in the un- ny said the mine is the first to operate a ment of the quality of the Marimaca proj-
capped profit sharing benefit provided for 100% autonomous fleet, made up of 20 ect from an exceptionally well-respected
in the CBA from 10% to 20%. haul trucks, guided by Komatsu’s Front- and established stakeholder in the Chil-
Prior to the strike action, the compa- Runner dispatch and scheduling system. ean copper industry,” said Hayden Locke,
ny said it attempted, in good faith, to re- The system manages safe interactions president and CEO, Marimaca Copper.
solve disputes regarding the provisions in between autonomous and manned vehi- Mitsubishi’s investment will de-risk the
the CBA, which expires in June 2024. It cles and optimizes production with effec- next phase of development and provide
said in a statement that it remains willing tive fleet management. funding to accelerate progress toward a
to participate in conciliation meetings to “This is part of a production chain definitive feasibility study and permitting.
reach a resolution in accordance with the that has teams of excellence, of work- The Marimaca project has the poten-
CBA, and will continue to adhere to legal ers committed to the division from start tial to deliver a meaningful new supply of
procedures, respecting the rights of all its to finish, extending from the mine to the copper in the near term, explained Taro
employees, inviting the union to engage in ports,” said Carla Vargas, mine opera- Abe, general manager, base metals for
a constructive dialogue, and providing the tions manager for Gabriela Mistral. Mitsubishi Corp. “Of particular impor-
authorities with all requested information. Simón Contreras, mine manage- tance to us are the sustainability creden-
According to Newmont, last year Peñas- ment operations and engineering su- tials of the project, which we believe will
quito contributed $1.9 billion in economic perintendent, emphasizes that the 1 be a source of very low-carbon-intensity
value to Mexico, including $643 million billion tons were transported safely, copper,” Abe said.
in employee wages and benefits, tax and which highlights the importance of the During May, Marimaca updated its min-
royalty payments to federal, state and local work that is being done in this area and eral resource estimate for the Marimaca
governments, and investments in commu- “how [Gabriela Mistral] will continue to oxide deposit, which incorporates 28,374
nity infrastructure and water projects. be a benchmark for this industry. The m of new drilling data. The company has
Minera Peñasquito is the largest em- mine achieved this milestone without a completed 139,164 m of drilling since dis-
ployer in Zacatecas, Mexico with a direct fatality or a serious accident.” covery in 2016. Total measured and indi-
workforce of more than 5,000. The mine cated resources currently stand at 200.3
supports another 28,000 people and their Mitsubishi Buys Stake million metric tons (mt) at 0.45% copper for
families in neighboring communities and in Chile’s Marimaca Copper 900,000 mt of contained copper. Of that,
across the country who are part of the Marimaca Copper Corp. reported a C$20 0.24% or 488,000 mt is acid soluble.
mine’s local and national supply chain. million ($15.1 million) equity investment The company also recently appointed
by Mitsubishi Corp. by way of a non-bro- José Antonio Merino as managing direc-
Gabriela Mistral Achieves kered private placement. The company tor, Chile, and interim CFO. Prior to join-
Autonomous Milestone said the proceeds will be used to ad- ing Marimaca, Merino served as general
Codelco’s Gabriela Mistral division re- vance and accelerate the development manager of business development for
cently achieved an important milestone, 1 of the company’s Marimaca copper pro- SQM, one of the world’s largest lithium
billion tons transported with autonomous ject located in Chile’s Antofagasta region. producers, which is also based in Chile.

www.e-mj.com JULY 2023 • E&MJ 11

EMJ_pg04-15.indd 11 7/7/23 4:06 PM


REGIONAL NEWS - AUSTRALIA/OCEANIA

Evolution Extends Mungari Mine Life


by 15 Years
first feed of lanthanide concentrate to
the kiln and completing the heat up pro-
cess cycle for the kiln.
During June chemical and wet cir-
cuits, including neutralization, filtration
and carbonation circuits, were fed with
rare earth carbonate from Lynas Malay-
sia which will allow completion of Stage
4 commissioning of those circuits. Major
earthworks including ponds required for
production and on-site services includ-
ing power, water and laboratory facilities
Evolution plans to more than double the Mungari processing plant’s capacity. (Photo: Evolution) will be completed during this time and all
materials (concentrate and chemicals)
Evolution Mining has committed $168 lian Government’s Modern Manufactur- required for production will be received
million investment for a process plant ing Initiative – Manufacturing Integration to on-site storage facilities.
expansion for its Mungari gold mine in Stream. The company said the grant will Stage 4 commissioning was expect-
Western Australia. The expansion will in- contribute to the development of a new ed to be completed by the end of June,
crease throughput from 2 million metric capability to process apatite-rich ores, with the exception of two critical path
tons per year (mt/y) to 4.2 million mt/y, the Apatite Leach Circuit, from the Mt items, the waste gas treatment plant
and extend Mungari’s mine life by 15 Weld orebody, located near Laverton, and on site gas supply. Commissioning
years to 2038. The company expects Western Australia. of other productive equipment will con-
the investment to reduce all-in sustain- The process was developed in collab- tinue unimpeded while these two items
ing cost (AISC) or A$340/oz ($228/oz) to oration with the Australian Nuclear Sci- are completed. The first production of
A$1,750/oz ($1,175/oz). ence and Technology Organization (ANS- Mixed Rare Earth Carbonate (MREC)
“Mungari has demonstrated its capac- TO) and Mt Weld Mining Pty Ltd, a Lynas from the Kalgoorlie Facility is now ex-
ity to consistently and reliably deliver ap- subsidiary. The new circuits are expected pected in August.
proximately 135,000 oz/y in recent years,” to increase recoveries of praseodymium,
Evolution’s Managing Director and CEO, neodymium and dysprosium. Northern Star Buys
Lawrie Conway said. “This plant expansion “Lynas is delighted to receive this Millrose Project
will unlock the very large regional resource support from the Australian Govern- Strickland Metals Ltd. confirmed that it
base, and grow production to more than ment for the development of the Apa- is selling its Millrose Project to North-
200,000 oz/y post commissioning. tite Leach Circuit project at Mt Weld,” ern Star Resources Ltd in a deal valued
“The expansion was always envis- said Amanda Lacaze, Lynas Rare at A$61 million ($41 million), including
aged and formed part of our due dili- Earths CEO and managing director. a A$2 million initial cash deposit, and
gence when we acquired the Kundana “In addition to supporting the devel- A$1.5 million in Northern Star shares.
and East Kundana properties in 2021,” opment of industry capability, the pro- “The Millrose Project was purchased
Conway said. “Having successfully in- cessing of apatite-rich ore will help to for A$10 million in mid-2021,” said An-
tegrated the operations, this is now the unlock additional value from the Mt drew Bray, CEO, Strickland Metals. “Af-
next logical phase of making Mungari a Weld ore body with the goal of extend- ter a highly successful 11-month drill-
cornerstone asset of Evolution.” ing the operating life of both the mine ing campaign throughout 2022 costing
The expansion project will ramp up at Mt Weld and the Lynas rare earths approximately $16 million, we are now
during the September 2023 quarter with processing facility in Kalgoorlie.” selling the project for approximately $61
a 30-month construction period, includ- In related news, Lynas said final million, generating an approximate $35
ing long-lead items and approvals, for stage 4 commissioning had com- million profit for the company.”
commissioning by the end of the March menced on its new Kalgoorlie rare Located in the Yandal Greenstone Belt
2026 quarter. earths processing facility. Under the in Western Australia, the Millrose Project
first three stages, key production equip- has a mineral resource comprising 6 mil-
Lynas Explores Apatite ment was prepared, tested and certi- lion metric tons (mt) with 1.80 g/mt of gold
Leaching fied ready for production. Stage 4 com- (or 346,000 oz) and an inferred mineral
Lynas Rare Earths Ltd has been awarded missioning involves the introduction of resource comprising 5.77 million mt at
a $20 million grant as part of the Austra- reagents and feedstock, including the 1.40 g/mt of gold (or 257,000 oz).

12 E&MJ • JULY 2023 www.e-mj.com

EMJ_pg04-15.indd 12 7/7/23 4:06 PM


REGIONAL NEWS - AFRICA

Appian Buys Rosh Pinah Zinc Mine


in Namibia

Appian plans to restore the zinc mining operation (above), and invest to expand the operation’s processing capacity. (Photo: Trevali)

Appian Capital Advisory LLP, has ac- pian’s third acquisition in the zinc market. ment structures in the ownership of the
quired Trevali Mining’s 89.96% interest It has been in continuous operation since Implats and RBPlat operations, increas-
in the Rosh Pinah zinc mine, located in 1969, producing zinc and lead sulphide ing economic participation and owner-
the Kharas region of southern Namibia. concentrates, as well as smaller amounts ship of key assets in the South African
The underground zinc-lead mine is op- of copper, silver, and gold. PGM sector. Our partnership with Si-
erational and it has a 2,000-metric-ton- yanda Resources, a pre-eminent strate-
per-day (mt/d) milling operation. Appian Implats Consolidates gic empowerment partner with a strong
said it plans to restart the Rosh Pinah 2.0 Control of South African track record of delivering sustainable
mine expansion project which will nearly Platinum and enduring broad-based ownership, is
double the mine’s annual ore throughput Impala Platinum Holdings Limited (Im- an exciting development.” The proposed
to 1.3 million mt and improve safety and plats) purchased Public Investment Corp.’s empowerment, the company said, re-
environmental performance. 9.26% in Royal Bafokeng Platinum (RB- mains subject to securing the necessary
“This acquisition marks a significant Plat). This, together with additional acqui- approvals, to the extent required.
milestone for Appian as we continue to sitions, results in Implats gaining majority Implats has also undertaken to co-
develop our world-class portfolio of high- control of RBPlat with a current sharehold- fund projects over five years related to
ly attractive zinc assets, a critical metal ing of 55.46% and secures Implats’ com- hydrogen technology and its commer-
that will help facilitate the upcoming en- mitment to implementing broad-based cialization in South Africa, in collabo-
ergy transition,” said Michael W. Scherb, equity ownership in the South African plat- ration with the Industrial Development
founder and CEO of Appian. “We look inum group metals (PGM) sector through Corp. These projects will seek to benefit
forward to welcoming the 450 employees a proposed empowerment transaction at local communities around Implats’ oper-
at Rosh Pinah to Appian as we use our Implats’ subsidiary, Impala Platinum Ltd. ations, with Implats providing additional
extensive operational and project devel- (Impala), and Royal Bafokeng Resources funding for proof-of-concept activities.
opment expertise to support the existing (RBR), the RBPlat subsidiary, which holds The level of localisation post-transac-
management team with delivering the the RBPlat operating assets. tion will be maintained and improved in
Rosh Pinah 2.0 expansion project.” “The Public Investment Corp. is a terms of the local supply of capital ma-
The Rosh Pinah 2.0 expansion proj- strategic shareholder and key stakehold- chinery. Implats has committed to work-
ect includes the construction of new er in the South African PGM industry, and ing with local businesses to support and
processing facilities, paste fill and water its decision to sell to us strongly affirms enhance the quality of their products to
treatment plants, as well as a dedicated the rationale of the Implats transaction, meet the required specifications.
portal and decline to extended deposits. which is key to the long-term economic Securing control of RBPlat, Muller
The project will increase mill throughput stability of the Rustenburg region,” said explained, will contribute to job security
from 700,000 mt/y to 1.3 million mt/y of Implats CEO Nico Muller. “This level of for more than 42,000 Impala Rusten-
ore, increasing zinc equivalent produc- ownership triggers a series of significant burg employees and contractors, and
tion to 170 million lb/y, on average. public interest benefits for South Africa. stability for the more than 495,000 peo-
Following Vedra Metals in Italy and Implats will facilitate the introduction of ple who depend on its mining activities
Pine Point in Canada, Rosh Pinah is Ap- broad-based black economic empower- and social contributions.

www.e-mj.com JULY 2023 • E&MJ 13

EMJ_pg04-15.indd 13 7/7/23 4:06 PM


NEWS - THIS MONTH IN COAL

South Africa’s Thungela Recognized


for Safe Operations
Multiple Parties Talking to
Teck About EVR
Canada’s Teck Resources Ltd. con-
firmed that it has received interest from
several parties regarding various forms
of potential transactions involving its
coking coal business.
As previously reported, Teck is pursu-
ing a separation of its base metals and
metallurgical coal businesses, as Teck
Metals and Elk Valley Resources (EVR),
respectively. The company said it contin-
ues to consider and evaluate all action-
able, value-accretive proposals received
relating to its steelmaking coal business.
“Teck’s Board will appropriately con-
sider and evaluate any proposal that
can unlock the tremendous potential of
Teck’s premium businesses and portfolio
of high-quality assets as part of our ongo-
The Thungela team accepts an award at the Colliery Managers’ Association conference. (Photo: Thungela) ing work to continue building a great min-
ing business and realize value for share-
Thungela received six awards at the safety, health, and environment for Thun- holders,” said Sheila Murray, chairman,
2023 CoalSAFE conference hosted by gela. “There is a clear need for safe min- Teck Resources. “We are also resolved
the South African Colliery Managers’ As- ing, and it is great to see how the coal to identify a path that ensures continued
sociation in Johannesburg. “These acco- industry in Mpumalanga is stepping up to responsible operations in the Elk Valley
lades serve as a testament to our unwav- this challenge.” and supports a sustainable future for the
ering commitment to the well-being and benefit of employees, local communities
security of our employees, as well as the Peabody Resumes and Indigenous Peoples.
communities in which we operate,” the Development at Shoal Creek “There is widespread recognition
company said in a press release. Peabody Energy announced that the in the market today of the value of our
Thungela was recognized for operat- Shoal Creek mine, working in coordina- high-margin, long-life steelmaking coal
ing fatality-free in 2022. The Khwezela tion with the U.S. Mine Safety and Health assets, which has, in turn, generated
Colliery has had 12,000 fatality-free pro- Administration (MSHA), has safely com- considerable interest from various par-
duction shifts and a lost-time frequen- pleted localized sealing of two longwall ties,” said Jonathan Price, CEO.
cy rate of zero for 2022. The Isibonelo panels in the J panel area of the mine
Colliery has had 12,802 fatality-free pro- impacted by a fire in March involving void Russia Increases Seaborne
duction shifts. fill material. Peabody has begun the pro- Coal Exports in 2023
To achieve these results, Thungela cess of resuming development coal pro- Russia has exported almost 20% more
introduced a transformation process to duction in the new L panel area where coal by sea so far this year than during
strengthen its safety culture and reduce better mining conditions are anticipated. the run-up and early months of its inva-
risk in the workplace. This included train- The company said Shoal Creek is in sion of Ukraine, the Kommersant busi-
ing, coaching, and education to embed a ramp-up period throughout 2023 and ness daily reported, citing an unnamed
risk awareness into daily routines. It also expecting delivery of new longwall equip- source familiar with the data.
implemented a work management mod- ment at the end of the year. As a result, Russia shipped 69.9 million metric tons
el at four operations, improving planning Peabody does not expect the current in- (mt) for January-April 2023, or 18.3% more
and resource allocation, and reducing cident to have a material impact on the than during the same period last year. Ac-
pressure on frontline leaders. company’s 2023 financial results. cording to Kommersant, seaborne coal
“Thungela’s awards at the CoalSAFE Located near Birmingham, Alabama, shipments increased after Russia rerouted
Conference showcase our commitment USA, Shoal Creek mines metallurgical 140 million mt of coal to Asia in response
to responsible coal mining stewardship,” grade coal from the Mary Lee and Blue to the European Union’s embargo on Rus-
said Carina Venter, executive head of Creek seams at depths of 1,000 to 1,300 ft. sian coal, which started in August 2022.

14 E&MJ • JULY 2023 www.e-mj.com

EMJ_pg04-15.indd 14 7/7/23 4:06 PM


NEWS - CONTINUED

(Regional News-U.S. & Canada - from p. 9)

ly 160,000 metric tons per year (mt/y) of


primary aluminum. There will now be a to-
tal of 134 AP60 pots and a capacity of ap-
proximately 220,000 mt/y. Construction
will run over two and a half years, with
commissioning of the new pots expected
to start in the first half of 2026.

Hermosa Receives
Proposed Permitting
Timetable from Fast-41
The Federal Permitting Improvement
Steering Council (FPISC), an indepen-
dent federal agency, published proposed
a comprehensive, integrated permitting
timetable for South32’s Hermosa project.
This update comes 60 days after Hermosa
South32 breaks ground on one of two exploration shafts at Hermosa project located in southern Arizona.
was announced as the first mining project (Photo: Redpath)
to be covered by FAST-41 in May 2023.
Hermosa is located on private lands process — from notice of intent (NOI), Located in Southern Arizona, the
and requires only a handful of state per- public comment periods, and final EIS Hermosa project is currently the only ad-
mits from the Arizona Department of publishing - will occur over the course of vanced mine development project in the
Environmental Quality for initial develop- 2024 and 2025, and federal authorization U.S. that could produce two USGS-des-
ment. The company, however, does an- for full development will occur in 2026. ignated critical minerals – manganese
ticipate it will need federal environmental “The process to authorize full devel- and zinc. It is also the only advanced
reviews, including a National Environ- opment reflects that stakeholders will be project in the U.S. that has a viable path-
mental Policy Act (NEPA) process, for full coordinated at the outset of project devel- way to produce battery-grade manga-
project development. opment,” Hermosa President Pat Risner nese to help the rapidly growing North
The permitting timetable from FPISC said. “We welcome FAST-41 building on American electric vehicle supply chain.
includes intermediate and final comple- the NEPA process of providing stakehold- In related news, South32 broke
tion dates for all federal environmental ers with increased transparency, real-time ground on one of two exploration shafts
reviews and authorizations for full project information that is publicly available on the at the Hermosa project recently. This
development, as well as a list of cooper- Permitting Dashboard, and multiple op- milestone achievement commemorates
ating agencies. It projects Hermosa will portunities over the next few years to give the initial surface excavation that will be
happen in three phases: Hermosa’s Mine feedback. Since our inception, the Hermo- continued by Redpath USA to a planned
Plan of Operations will be submitted and sa project has actively sought out, and has depth of 2,947 ft (900 m). The shafts will
approved by December 2023; Hermosa’s already incorporated, community feedback enable underground access for contin-
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on the project’s planning and design.” ued exploration.

NEWS - CALENDAR OF EVENTS

SEPTEMBER 25-29, 2023: Perumin, Cerro Juli, Arequipa, Peru. DECEMBER 4-8, 2023: The American Exploration & Mining
Contact: Web: www.perumin.com. Association’s annual meeting, Nugget Casino, Sparks, Nevada,
USA. Contact: Web: miningamerica.org.
OCTOBER 23-25, 2023: Coal Association of Canada, Vancouver,
Canada. Contact: Web: www.coal.ca. FEBRUARY 5-8, 2024: Mining Indaba, Cape Town, South Africa.
Contact: Web: www.miningindaba.com.
OCTOBER 23-27, 2023: XXXV Convención Internacional
Minería be México 2023, Acapulco, México. Contact: Web: FEBRUARY 25-28, 2024: Society for Mining, Metallurgy and
www.convencionmineriamexico.mx. Exploration (SME), Phoenix, Arizona, USA. Contact: Web:
www.smenet.org.
OCTOBER 31 – NOVEMBER 2, 2023: International Mining and
Resources Conference (IMARC), Sydney, Australia. Contact: Web: MARCH 3-6, 2024: Prospectors & Developers Association of
www.imarcglobal.com. Canada (PDAC), Toronto, Canada. Contact: Web: www.pdac.ca.

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HOISTS AND SHAFTS

Innovation Gives New-level Results,


Big Wins
Five hoist-and-shaft solution and service suppliers tell how they innovated
to achieve critical goals and needed results
By Jesse Morton, Technical Writer

Early in the project, PMC prioritized


safety. “By taking the PMC way, we ac-
cepted that the pace of sinking would
have to be compromised,” said Sechaba
Letaba, package manager, PMC. “This
has proved to be a positive approach, as
we have a fatality-free safety record on
the project,” he said. “This is in stark con-
trast to the history of shaft sinking, which
would often claim lives and injuries.”
Murray & Roberts Cementation adapt-
ed its Canadian shaft sinking method to
the PMC way shortly after it was awarded
the contract in 2019 to sink a new ventila-
tion shaft to service the Lift 2 block cave.
The Lift 2 expansion, a twin decline sys-
tem to access ore below the Lift 1 block
cave, launched in 2008 and is expected
to extend the mine’s life to 2038.
The PMC Lift 2 expansion project is expected to extend the life of mine to at least 2038. (Photo: Murray
& Roberts Cementation) Feasibility studies for the 8.5-m-dia.
ventilation shaft “indicated that a blind
At a key meeting early in a project to ed by drum hoists simply can’t meet the sink was the optimal method, despite its
sink a shaft in poor ground conditions, standards of the new era in safety, steel higher cost and longer timeframe,” said
project and mine leadership agreed to guides and a new safety brake would be Jas Malherbe, project manager, Murray &
sacrifice speed for safety. It was a criti- invented. As batch-haulage costs spike Roberts Cementation. “Ground conditions
cal decision. The move would come at a as mines move deeper underground, a were among the reasons why raiseboring
cost. Extra steps were taken. A non-tra- continuous hydraulic ore-hoisting system was not an option, as the side walls need-
ditional process was applied. Deadlines is preparing to enter the market. ed immediate support to prevent scaling.”
were pushed out. And ultimately, the In each case, the challenge present- Two twin-boom Komatsu electro-hy-
project tallied an almost sterling safety ed was complicated by entrenched tra- draulic jumbo drill rigs do the drilling.
record doing what historically was highly ditions and expectations. In each, it was “These are slung down the shaft from sur-
dangerous work. answered by thinking outside of the box. face and nested in the four-deck stage for
The supplier achieved its goal by In each, the win was tremendous. drilling the shaft bottom, a procedure which
focusing on priorities, and by breaking is repeated for each 48-hour blast-to-blast
from protocol when protocol clashed with Safety Taken to a New Level cycle,” he said. “Waste rock is lashed using
those priorities. It is a recipe for success Murray & Roberts Cementation said the a Komatsu excavator with a 0.36-m3 buck-
found in recent news stories by at least Palabora Copper Mine (PMC) ventilation et, which is lowered from surface through
four other suppliers in the space. shaft, now within 250 m of reaching its tar- the stage to shaft bottom. An 10-mt kibble
When a hoist refurbishment project get depth of 1,200 m, shows how innova- transports the waste rock to surface.”
caved to inertia, strict project manage- tive methods and processes can solve key The main challenges faced were de-
ment discipline and the willingness to challenges and, importantly, ensure safety. fined by the ground conditions, “but the
take some steps out of order brought it “For Murray & Roberts Cementation, extent of the difficulties exceeded expec-
back on track. When a steel-lined shaft the lessons learned on this project has tations,” he said.
prohibited welding mast connections, shown the industry that we can provide Murray & Roberts Cementation re-
alternative elevator infrastructure solu- a viable alternative method of shaft sink- sponded “by taking the shaft lining right
tions had to be devised. When traditional ing that takes safety to a new level,” said down to the blasted face,” Durand said.
wood guides for personnel cages hoist- Fred Durand, senior project manager. “Traditionally, the shaft would be lined to

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HOISTS AND SHAFTS

within 12 m to 18 m of the shaft bottom, ing side, we were able to make certain ad- Ultimately, the shaft will prove to be
with the sidewalls being temporarily sup- justments with regard to blast patterns and a “success story that reflects well on the
ported with split sets and mesh,” he said. the types of explosives that we use.” strong collaboration between PMC and
“The poor ground conditions prevailing The inevitable large rocks were broken Murray & Roberts Cementation, as we
where the vent shaft is being sunk led to using a hydraulic breaker coupled to the both stood strongly by our safety com-
high levels of scaling that made this prac- excavator. “As a team, we decided that mitments to find a way through the chal-
tice unviable.” the rock breaker was the right solution for lenges,” Letaba said.
The shaft was lined with permanent the issue of oversized rocks, and it was The partnership delivered the results
support after every 3 m of advance and accepted that this would have an impact desired by both parties, “with PMC’s vi-
within 48 hours. “We use a specialized on the cycle times,” Malherbe said. sion aligning closely with ours and driv-
concrete mix for rapid setting and early It slowed progress, but “it is still the ing the project’s direction very construc-
strength that hardens to 3 MPa within 4 safer option,” Letaba said. Another saf- tively,” Durand said.
hours,” Malherbe said. The concrete is in er option is eliminating concurrent work. PMC, located near the town of Phal-
place for at least 8 hours before blasting. “For instance, no one is allowed in the aborwa in South Africa’s Limpopo prov-
“This solution requires that the blast shaft bottom while people are lining the ince, began production in 1956. It pro-
is conducted while the shutters are still in shaft from the stage.” duces 50,000 mt of copper ore per year.
place, so the shutters were strengthened The project showed that it is effective
and a toe added that would better handle to review key performance indicators from Project Management
the blast,” he said. “The exposed concrete prior projects when innovating and problem Discipline Scores Win
above the shutter is able to withstand the solving, Durand said. “It may not be pos- Alpine Consulting and Mining Engineer-
blast, as it has already cured for 48 hours.” sible to work differently while still trying to ing PLC said the successful completion
The lined sidewall reduces the risk meet the same KPIs,” he said. “A good ex- of a hoist refurbishment and installation
for personnel doing the drilling and in- ample is the use of an excavator for lash- project at a hard rock metal mine in
stallation of temporary support. The cy- ing, which is safer but takes longer, even northern Idaho is a “tremendous win” for
cle is choreographed so the shaft bot- without the occurrence of large rocks.” both the miner and the company.
tom is lashed, cleared and drilled while It also showed the importance of “We ended up coming in right on the
the concrete sets. close coordination with the customer. baseline schedule that was developed
“Lashing a shaft with an excavator is “Unexpected challenges tend to have an back in the first part of February, almost
not a new idea, but it is usually a back-up impact on scheduling, so the strong rela- to the day,” said company owner and
method to the cactus grab,” Letaba said. tionship of trust with our customer, PMC, principal engineer Bracken Spencer,
“We decided that the excavator would be was vital to solving any issues as they project manager on the installation.
the primary lashing method, to further arose,” Malherbe said. “Our approach “Pre-commissioning and commission-
enhance safety on site.” has always been to work closely with ing went off as best as could be expected,
The headgear was automated. The customers on solutions, and to ensure minus a couple little hiccups and run-ins,”
winding engine driver uses a camera they are regularly updated on progress.” he said. “For the most part, we got every-
for visibility when hooking the kibble
for tipping.
“We also opted to use electric actua-
tors in this project, rather than the tradi-
tional pneumatic and hydraulic cylinders
on equipment such as the bank doors,
swing chutes and tipping chutes,” he
said. “This has allowed us to mitigate the
risks such as hearing loss from the noise
of certain actuators, and contamination
from oil leaks.”
Rope twisting sometimes affected
the orientation of the stage. “Other unex-
pected challenges in the project related
to keeping the winder rope performance
within the stringent safety standards we
observe, and the replacement of a wind-
er drive to ensure optimal performance,”
Malherbe said.
Suboptimal fragmentation was com-
mon. “This is a factor that is managed with-
in the project, being satisfied that our focus
on safety is well balanced against the pace Above, an excavator busy lashing at the shaft bottom with shaft lining being carried out on the face.
of production,” Durand said. “On the min- (Photo: Murray & Roberts Cementation)

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HOISTS AND SHAFTS

big and complicated, and critical to a The opportunity was floated for a third
mine seeking to expand production and party company to evaluate and drive
increase revenue. the project across the finish line. “They
The shaft dates back to the 1940s. reached out directly to me,” Spencer
“About five years ago it was taken out of said. “And understanding the importance
service due to safety concerns of both of this to their operations, I jumped in the
the safety apparatus and structural con- truck literally the next day and drove out
cerns on the head frame and the sheave there, had a 4-hour sit-down and talk-
wheels,” Spencer said. “The mine began through on what I could offer and what
the process of procuring the refurbished my vision for this would look like,” he
hoist, working with W.G. Spencer Engi- said. “And then drove back that night and
neering,” he said. “The old hoist was com- was notified the next day.”
pletely removed and the hoist that is going The consultant was tapped for project
in was a hoist from a different location.” management of construction and commis-
That unit, a 181-in.-dia. double-drum sioning. Stakeholders included in-house
single-clutch hoist, would first be rebuilt. management and project management,
It uses two 500-hp-DC motors, allowing construction and installation contractors,
a speed of 1,000 ft/min. to a depth of and an outside engineering firm “to design
6,000 ft. Initially it will be used for men, and oversee the specifics of the integration
materials, equipment, bolts, drills, and of the refurbished hoist,” Spencer said.
regular consumables. “I was brought in for this project in
“All components were returned to their January to make sure it was going to be
original specifications along with specific wrapped up on a newly defined schedule
upgrades that were determined by the and budget,” he said. At that point the fi-
engineering group,” he said. “And then nal deadlines were loose and the budget
were delivered to site, and the interior of was vague. “It was very much ‘we are
the hoist house was excavated and all just going to get things done when we
new flat work was put in, and then the get it done,’” he said.
hoisting unit was set in place.” The hoist “That was one of the first things I did
house was rebuilt, and a digital communi- when I was on the project was to define
cations solution for the system installed. what the outstanding work was and the
The solution could support automation, path to complete everything,” Spencer
“more process integration, remote access said. “And then understanding what the
At the Woodsmith mine, each Alimak elevator for data acquisition, and would help the expenditure rate had been, and based
measured 1.56 m wide by 1.04 m long by 2.17 m miner design mine plans around the ca- on the work yet to be done, build an es-
high. Above, the elevator is installed into the shaft
(Photo: Alimak) pacity of the shaft,” Spencer said. “Actually timate for completion that is with the ap-
understanding what the hoist itself is pro- propriate applied contingency that we will
thing done. The system is now function- ducing, the uptime and availability, is going be coming in right on track.”
ing. Shaft rehabilitation is underway.” to help support planning and accounting.” The challenges presented stemmed
The successful completion of the proj- Historically, any data related to the old from the sheer size of the hoist, the need
ect resulted from disciplined planning, hoist system was generated and stored to minimize downtime, and the pecu-
coordination and communication and manually. The new system would log and liarities of the stakeholders. “One of the
demonstrates the value of strict project organize data from multiple points within difficulties is dealing with vendors and
management protocols. “Using a fairly col- the system, and then generate historical contractors from all over the continent,
laborative effort by the engineers, leaning information when requested. “The data different time zones, different countries,
on the expertise of the various contractors, can, with an emphasis on can, be used and trying to coordinate materials to be
and through multiple coordinating meetings for both predictive and future prescriptive here when needed, and personnel to be
throughout the week, we truly experienced maintenance,” he said. “That will require here from all over the country, or all over
very minimal downtime in the schedules, the use of either CMMS software systems the continent, for their various parts and
and minimized risks from delays,” Spencer or other machine learning systems to an- pieces, particularly on the commission-
said. “And since we set a baseline sched- alyze and evaluate the data generated.” ing front,” he said. “And managing that so
ule back in February, those target dates The project progressed but not with- that we are minimizing downtime without
that were communicated on that original out setbacks that threatened the goals of having undue standby time.”
baseline schedule held true through even the miner. By January, the shaft had been One solution was the application of
the final phase of commissioning.” without a functional hoist for a half de- strict project management discipline. “We
Alpine Consulting and Mining Engi- cade. For the last couple of those years, clearly defined and communicated what
neering was contracted after the project Alpine Consulting and Mining Engineer- the business need of the project was on the
had bogged down for what the miner had ing had been doing engineering and other front end and kept sight of that throughout,”
hoped was the last time. The project was work related to other projects at the mine. he said. “We painted that bigger picture so

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HOISTS AND SHAFTS

that everything that is being done and be- Customized Solution said. “A WIFI router connected to the main
ing worked towards that end has a purpose Solves Challenges lift controller supports the shaft-integral
to it, has a real cost and a real value.” Alimak Group reported the 900-kg-ca- WIFI network in combination with Mobile
A defined cost, which could serve as pacity double-decker Alimak SE 900 FC GSM Networks to transfer real-time data
a penalty, was assigned to any potential elevator car at Woodsmith potash mine on operational status and diagnostics.”
delay. “That provides, dare I say, lever- in North Yorkshire, United Kingdom, is At WoodSmith, mined material from
age, to say this is why we need to have performing as designed and garnering the 1,600-m level is hauled to the 370-
this done at this time and in this manner,” positive feedback from the miner. m level and loaded onto a conveyor that
Spencer said. It also meant that the need The unit offers “smooth and reliable goes 37 km to the handling facility.
for innovation was shared by the group vertical access 24/7,” said James Hum-
and not pigeonholed. phrey, industrial division manager and pro- Innovative Design Aces
Unforeseen challenges related to sup- ject manager on the design and delivery. Testing
ply chain issues. For example, “we had a The elevator car was designed to FLSmidth introduced the Cage Guard-
manufacturing delay in one of the compo- move 18 people 370 m in a steel-lined ian Safety Brake for steel guides, the
nents for the hoisting system,” he said. The shaft of an “incredibly limited” size, Ali- skip Crank Type Dump Mechanism, and
delay could span as much as three weeks. mak said. “Alimak’s design engineers a new onboard Conveyance Battery
The solution was to do some work developed a custom double-decker rack- Charging System. “These three solutions
out of sequence. Knowing it would cause and-pinion elevator, comprised of two improve operational safety and sustain-
future rework, and while awaiting the elevator cars, interconnected one above ability within the mine shaft,” said Matt
parts, “we decoupled the hoist drum from the other,” the company reported. “Each Goddard, head of mine shaft systems.
the motors, after they had already been elevator measured 1.56 m wide by 1.04 “Innovation with a focus on lowering
aligned and coupled, to allow for test- m long by 2.17 m high, with each car able operating costs while reducing the en-
ing of the motors and the initial tuning to hold a maximum of nine passengers.” vironmental impact further supports our
of the drive that will control the motors,” The steel lining of the shaft prevented industry through objectives set out in
he said. “By doing a little bit of rework welding mast connections. “Due to hot FLSmidth’s MissionZero Program.”
to bring ahead certain portions of com- works within a small space creating a ‘con- The Cage Guardian Safety Brake has
missioning, we were able to come back fined space,’ the risks and program impli- been successfully developed, tested, and
around and maintain our schedule.” cations of welding meant a lower-risk solu- proven to meet regulations. “The Cage
The successful completion of the proj- tion needed to be found,” Humphrey said. Guardian uses traditional spring-actuat-
ect showed the importance of using pro- The challenge was without precedent ed mechanical activation to effectively
ject management. “Sometimes that can for Alimak. “Alimak worked with Hilti to clamp onto the guide while an indepen-
be done in house. Sometimes that has to develop a new solution, which involved dent braking system mounted to the cage
be farmed out to an outside firm,” Spen- the use of friction-welded studs, which dissipates the kinetic energy to stop and
cer said. “Getting an outside perspective were fired into the elevator shaft using a hold the cage,” said Henry Laarakker,
can be a great strength and asset for spring-loaded gun,” Alimak said. product manager, mine shaft systems.
people to see things or for someone to Stud design was based on preexist- The design represents an evolution-
get a perspective that they need because ing Hilti solutions, Humphrey said. “Hilti ary step beyond the traditional, conven-
they have been so ingrained in their op- had the fastening solutions for secondary tional safety catches.
eration for so long.” fixing of ducting, conduit and cable tray “For decades, many North American
The success also is the result of differ- brackets to primary steel, so this was in- mine shafts have operated using wood
entiating roles. “A mine has to know when vestigated by the design team,” he said. guides for cages transporting personnel
a project needs both a project manager “The fixing solution was four M8 X-BTs when hoisted via a drum hoist with a single
and a project engineer,” he said. “In the within each wall bracket, in S355 steel, head rope attached to the conveyance,”
mining world we like to try and do every- with recommended loads of 4.6 kN in
thing. Sometimes there is a time when you tension or 5.3 kN in shear.”
can’t do everything,” he said. “For this one I Using the spring-loaded gun “re-
wore the project manager hat and I did a lot duced the risks of fumes produced by the
of work mentoring the individual who was traditional explosive cartridge type,”
the project engineer and actually to that Humphrey said.
end that made it a very good opportunity.” Metrics on the elevator car can be
The project served as a staple for Al- tracked by the mining maintenance teams
pine Consulting and Mining Engineering by using My Alimak, a custom web-based
for H1 2023. “It has not only furthered the portal developed by Alimak Group. “Us-
relationship between this client and my- ing the My Alimak portal, Strabag AG can
self but also provided a strong foothold view operational data and statistics relat-
in the Silver Valley for work that I’m doing ing to their elevators, which allows them to
up there,” he said. “This has been just as manage their assets more efficiently.”
For use on steel guides, the Cage Guardian Safety
important a project for me as it has been Data on the car is communicated by Brake was designed and tested to meet some of
for the mine.” the WIFI system for the shaft, Humphrey the most stringent regulations. (Photo: FLSmidth)

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HOISTS AND SHAFTS

Laarakker said. “Safety in transporting Cage free-fall tests simulated the Thus, the CTDM reduces cycle time. It
personnel in a vertical mine shaft is imper- hoist reaching operating speed “under eliminates “this extra travel distance and
ative, and redundancies are set in place full equivalent personnel load,” the safety time at creep speed, improving skip effi-
to ensure safety requirements are met,” he catch deploying, and the skip slowing “to ciency by allowing shorter skip dumping
said. “North American regulations require a stop at an average rate of not less than and filling times,” he said. The reduced
such a cage to have a safety device, which 9 and not more than 20 m per second cycle time leads to “increased production
conventionally has been a dogging-type (m/s), or 0.9 to 2 gravities,” Laarakker rates of as much as 8% to 10% or more.”
mechanism relying on the resistance ob- said. “A large percentage of the develop- Simple in design, the CTDM also low-
tained from individual teeth carving out the ment tests were performed in a multi-sto- ers energy consumption over hydraulically
wood from the guides, providing the de- ry test tower using full-scale prototype operated dumping mechanisms. It “dy-
celeration forces necessary to arrest and test rigs, in addition to a scaled-down namically opens and closes the skip in a
stop the cage anywhere in the shaft.” brake stand for more detailed examina- short burst of energy, realizing only a single
Wood guides are less than ideal for tion of braking characteristics.” open-and-close cycle through each com-
the application and compete poorly Testing ranged from a two-guide em- plete skip cycle,” Laarakker said. “Hydrau-
against engineered steel guides, he said. pty-cage scenario in a drop test, or a lically controlled systems are continuously
Those defects and distortions can quick-release test, to a fully loaded four- energized and operate on standby for most
grow over time and impact performance. guide test rig at free-fall simulating a hoist of the time while actually providing any
“Any event in which a dogging-type safe- speed of 7 m/s. “The various components useful output less than 10% of the time.”
ty mechanism becomes activated re- were subjected to rigorous tests and de- With an electro-mechanical drive, the
quires the complete replacement of the tailed improvements to ensure performance design reduces system complexity, which
damaged wood guides,” Laarakker said. levels and reliability,” Laarakker said. offers multiple benefits, Laarakker said. “Of
Engineered steel guides can last longer, “The tests included investigation on special value is that the need to control ac-
and testing for the Cage Guardian Safety hollow structural steel guides contaminat- celeration and deceleration of hydraulic cyl-
Brake showed that they perform to spec- ed with water and grease as well as hot inders as they are retracted and extended in
ifications. “The Cage Guardian was de- dip galvanized coatings,” he said. So far, short bursts is replaced by the natural sinu-
signed to meet some of the most stringent roughly 300 tests have proven the system soidal curve representing the dynamic mo-
regulations, primarily Ontario Mining Reg- meets requirements. “The latest tests ver- tion of the crank,” he said. “High-pressure
ulation 854,” Laarakker said. “This means ify performance for the Cage Guardian for lines, risk of fire from hydraulic fluid, and
that it is subjected to free-fall testing.” large four-guide cages with synchronized maintenance intensity and complexity are
actuation, a cage load of up to 28,500 kg, all other factors that favor a simpler electro-
and a hoist speed of 7 m/s, effectively mechanical solution such as the CTDM.”
capturing the largest range of cage size Also offering efficiencies that can ulti-
normal for single-rope conveyances.” mately translate into cost savings, the new
Separately, the new Crank Type Dump onboard Conveyance Battery Charging
Mechanism (CTDM) is a skip discharging System uses the kinetic energy of the skip
mechanism that can increase hoisting ca- to continuously charge batteries for the
pacity through reduced cycle times verses onboard communication system. “This not
conventional scroll-type discharge. only simplifies maintenance requirements
Historically, discharge scrolls, mount- but uses inherent energy through hoisting
ed to the headframe, are widely used. instead of relying on external energy sourc-
They are reputed to “offer the lowest es to recharge batteries,” Laarakker said.
initial installed capital cost, but only if “The new system is compact and easy to
consideration isn’t given to the additional mount using FLSmidth’s own heavy-duty
headframe height requirements,” Laarak- guide rollers and is an efficient and effec-
ker said. The skip must rise significantly tive way to replenish battery charge.”
above the dump lip, thus increasing the
headframe height requirements. Revolutionary System
“Additionally, static scrolls do not use Preps for Scale-up
any operating energy to discharge the Weir Minerals completed testing of an in-
skips but will require some additional hoist- dustrial-scale prototype of its GEHO Hy-
ing effort with every dump,” he said. “Be- draulic Ore Hoisting (HOH) pump system
sides added headframe elevation, the total and is preparing the next step of scale-up
hoist cycle time increases due to creep and field qualification.
speed of the skips passing through to the In tests at its Venlo Technology Hub in
point of reaching maximum opening.” the Netherlands, the prototype “operated
The new Crank Type Dump Mechanism is a At less than 0.6 m/s, creep speed is well within the comfort zones,” raising
skip-discharging mechanism that can increase
not a misnomer. “This prolonged cycle the solution’s readiness level, said Ven-
hoisting capacity through reduced cycle times.
It can help increase production rates by as much time compromises the achievable overall lo Technology Group’s chief engineer,
as 10% or more. (Image: FLSmidth) daily production tonnage,” Laarakker said. Ralph van Rijswick.

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HOISTS AND SHAFTS

“The GEHO HOH pump system pres-


ents new possibilities in various applica-
tions,” he said. “For underground mining,
it provides an alternative to skip hoist-
ing.” For example, at some greenfield op-
erations, “the CAPEX related to sinking
a new, large-dia. shaft with the required
hoisting infrastructure would be signifi-
cantly higher than the HOH system.”
More importantly, because the GEHO
HOH pump system operates continuous-
ly, it can offer production rates superior to
those offered by batch haulage systems.
Weir Minerals launched the develop-
ment of the system in 2018 to address
the shortcomings of existing pump tech-
nologies. The resulting GEHO HOH
pump system is based on pressure ex-
change technology.
In the flowsheet, HOH is between
ROM blasting and the first ore process-
Weir Minerals GEHO hydraulic ore hoisting pump, with design improvements over predecessor pumps,
ing stage. It can handle the entire pebble completed testing; and the system is ready for scale-up. (Photo: Weir Minerals)
size range or can be scaled up to cover
the cobble range. “In all likelihood under- A valve is on each end of the pressure transportation methods operate in batch
ground primary and secondary crushing exchange chambers (PEC). “A single PEC mode and have limitations in capacity, es-
will be required before the ore slurry can is basically a pipe with actuated valves on pecially when operating at greater depths
be fed into the HOH system,” van Rijswick both ends,” he said. “Mixture inlet and mix- and high throughputs,” van Rijswick said.
said. It could also require the “separate ture outlet valves are located on the right “For instance, as an operation goes deep-
hoisting of coarse and fine fractions when hand side of the chamber, while driving er underground, the distance the material
using, for example, an existing capaci- fluid inlet and driving fluid outlet valves are needs to be transported increases and, as
ty-limited skip hoisting system in parallel.” located on the left side. A compression and a result, capacity is reduced.”
After crushing comes slurry prepara- decompression valve is located in parallel Truck haulage, while a relatively low-
tion, where the solids are mixed with the to the driving fluid inlet and outlet valves.” CAPEX solution, incurs fuel and labor
carrier fluid. “The slurry preparation stage The PECs are arranged in a series, costs, meaning higher OPEX. “More-
can be a sump or hopper into which dry and fill and empty consecutively. With- over, in a 24/7 production environment,
solids can be fed by a conveyer belt,” he in each, the slurry mixture pushes the and because of limitations related to the
said. “A centrifugal slurry pump then draws driving fluid flow out. “The driving fluid size of the shaft, skip, cable, and winding
the mixture from the hopper and feeds it displaced from the PEC is then re-used motors, trucking and hoisting systems
into the system at relatively low pressure.” as carrier fluid in the mixture preparation can’t be easily scaled up,” he said. “And,
Separately, a GEHO PD slurry pump stage,” van Rijswick said. Next, “A high in terms of sustainability, it’s an extreme-
feeds fluid into the high-pressure inlet. pressure driving fluid drives the mixture ly carbon intensive solution.”
The GEHO PD pump provides a out at high pressure into the discharge In contrast, HOH systems are “scal-
constant high-pressure flowrate regard- connection of the system.” able to any required capacity,” van Rijs-
less of the pressure acting on the pump, The action provides a continuous flow wick said. “This is achieved by increas-
“which is essential to prevent solids sed- to the outlets. A low-pressure driving flu- ing the size of PECs for the required flow
imentation and riser blockage,” van Rijs- id outlet feeds a carrier fluid supply tank. rate and more multiple PD pumps.”
wick said. “PD pumps can handle slurry A high-pressure mixture outlet feeds the Future feasibility testing of the system
with small particles, which means the mixture riser to the surface. “will be site and operation specific and
driving fluid doesn’t have to be clean and On the surface, “the carrier fluid is include examinations of downstream pro-
free from solid particles,” he said. “They separated from the hoisted ore in a de- cessing and logistics requirements,” he
also have high pressure capabilities and watering stage,” he said. “The carrier flu- said. “The accessibility of the ore body is
are energy efficient.” id is then re-used as driving fluid.” another important factor to consider: Can
In the system, “the pressure from a The ore can then be transported via a raise bored shaft be used or does a new
high-pressure driving fluid flow is trans- conveyor belts, trucks or rail, or can be shaft need to be sunk? How close can the
ferred to a low pressure pumped fluid fed directly into the comminution circuit. shaft be located to the ore body?”
flow,” van Rijswick said. “The design The system offers a continuous move- “HOH could provide easier access to
uses a horizontally oriented open pres- ment of ore to the plant, which can be pref- the ore body,” he said, “with potentially
sure exchange system with actuated erable to trucking and skip hoisting mate- huge savings in underground develop-
pumped fluid valves.” rial in batches. “Most traditional vertical ment work.”

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CRUSHER MAINTENANCE

Keeping Critical Crushers Up and Running


As the global skills shortage hits home, mine operators are increasingly relying on
service providers and digital technologies to support crusher maintenance activities.
E&MJ investigates…
By Carly Leonida, European Editor

Whether in primary, secondary or tertiary run-of-mine ore into a feed suitable for While the drivers for regular repairs,
duties, the performance of an individu- downstream processing and beneficia- upgrades and optimization initiatives are
al crusher — gyratory, cone, jaw or oth- tion. This critical role (and thus, their po- clear, supply chain challenges, and also
erwise — can have a significant impact tential to become a bottleneck) means that the availability of skilled and experienced
upon the overall productivity and profit- ongoing upkeep is required to keep them engineers to mastermind and execute
ability of a mining operation. These units in the sweet spot between investment and important shutdowns and maintenance
essentially act as a gateway, transforming attention versus throughput and efficiency. tasks has put tremendous pressure
on service providers and mines alike
over the past 2-3 years. As such, many
are now placing an enhanced focus on
maintenance planning and are looking to
digital insights and remote service provi-
sions to help bridge the gap.
In line with these trends, OEM, Weir
Minerals, is seeing an industry-wide shift
in the way that crushers and servicing
are offered and sold to miners and ag-
gregate producers.
“Increasingly, when we sell a Trio
crusher, we give the customer the option
of adding service and spare parts pack-
ages whereby Weir Minerals will perform
all the maintenance work and supply all
the required parts,” said Sebastian Ra-
koczy, Weir Minerals, Global Product
Manager for Crusher Products. “We then
have an interest in maintaining the ma-
chine to the highest standards to avoid
unnecessary costs, which ultimately ben-
efits the customer because it prevents
unplanned downtime.”
Trio crushers are built to last even in
the toughest applications, so total cost
of ownership (TCO) is a vital way of un-
derstanding and measuring their perfor-
mance and value. The focus on TCO —
as opposed to focusing solely on CAPEX
— is predominantly down to miners and
aggregate producers taking a more holis-
tic, long-term view of their equipment.
Rakoczy told E&MJ: “Today, opera-
tors typically have a much more detailed
understanding of their operations than
they did 10 or 20 years ago. They un-
derstand the wear life of their parts and
High-quality parts combined with good service and reasonable pricing have seen many mines looking beyond they plan maintenance accordingly. As
the traditional OEM offerings when it comes to crusher maintenance in recent years. (Photo: CMS Cepcor) an OEM, it’s important that we work with

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CRUSHER MAINTENANCE

them to ensure we have the required


spares available on or close to site.”
There is also greater importance placed
on maintenance strategy today, particular-
ly when the life of mine (LOM) is relatively
short. Rakoczy said that maintaining profit-
ability is a more difficult task when the LOM
is, say, 10 years rather than 150 years.
“Knowing, for instance, how much en-
ergy a crusher consumes or how often
bowl liners need to be replaced and how
much it costs each time is consequential
and, ultimately, determines whether the
mine will remain economically feasible,”
he explained. “One of the main factors
that guides our maintenance strategies
is reducing downtime, which requires
careful planning and preparation. Prior to
a shutdown, it’s important to understand
exactly what maintenance needs to be
performed to ensure the service team has
all the parts, people and tools on hand.
At the end of the day, downtime is lost
production and we want to keep that to
a minimum. Also, whatever maintenance A gyratory crusher undergoes maintenance of the liners and concaves. (Photo: FLSmidth)
needs to be performed must be carried
out safely, and this must be factored in at prove the efficiency and carbon footprint of ings and notifies the operator when certain
every stage, from planning to execution.” its Trio crushers. For instance, the Gemex maintenance needs to be carried out.
Optimizing Trio machines with ESCO belt tensioning system can now be inte- Weir Minerals’ Synertrex digital eco-
wear products continues to be integral to grated with most Trio crushers. Typically, system is the next step. The Industrial In-
Weir Minerals approach. “We look at the operators must unbolt the motor and use ternet of Things (IIoT) allows operators to
customer’s application, the rock they’re large wrenches to move the belt via jacking monitor and visualize the individual sensor
crushing, the size they need it, how their bolts before re-tensioning the belt and re- data of each machine within a broader,
plant works together, and our goal is to aligning the pulley. This is time consuming more holistic context. This shift is driving
provide them a superior product that when done with a high degree of precision. the trend towards more proactive mainte-
meets their maintenance and/or wear Comparatively, once setup, the Ge- nance, planning and execution, resulting in
requirements,” Rakoczy explained. “Un- mex system allows the operator to adjust unequalled plant optimization possibilities.
derstanding all these things allows us to the belt tension quickly by reading the “Sensors are brilliant at collecting
deliver the parts and alloys they need to manometer of the hand pump and ad- data which can be used to set mainte-
achieve their targets. And these are dif- justing the pressure. Changing the belt nance schedules and deliver warnings
ferent from mine to mine, which is why tension also no longer affects the align- when the equipment isn’t performing op-
it’s important to take a tailored approach. ment of the pulleys. The belt transmis- timally,” Rakoczy said. “Across the indus-
“Customers often come to Weir for a sion continues operating at the highest try, there’s a shortage of qualified service
reason; they have a problem that they efficiency, which can reduce energy con- teams, so digital technologies have a
want us to help them solve. So, firstly, we sumption by at least 7%. role to play in ensuring that those teams
want to understand the plant schemat- Additionally, ESCO wear liners allow are deployed when and where they’re
ic, product flow and any issues or bot- miners to optimise crusher performance, needed most. However, they are not a
tlenecks they might have because one which means they don’t need to be replacement for qualified technicians.
crusher could impact downstream crush- changed as frequently, resulting in less “COVID-related disruptions also
ers. This approach is why the Trio and wastage. forced us to innovate and harness digital
ESCO products work so well together.” Rakoczy added that digital technologies technologies in new ways. Weir Minerals
and insights are proving key to optimizing had some new Trio TP260 cone crush-
Overcoming Sustainability crusher maintenance programmes and ers go into operation in Morocco and the
and Supply Chain Issues shutdowns. The Trio cone crusher control commissioning specialists — who were
There is also a growing recognition that system monitors wear via the closed side based in Poland and unable to travel —
implementing more sustainable process- setting (CSS), and sensors detect increas- were able to remotely monitor the ma-
es and practices in maintenance is of the es in bushing or oil temperature and mon- chine’s performance and provide support
utmost importance, and there are several itor vibrations of the crusher, among other to the local service team. The customer
things that Weir Minerals is doing to im- things. The system then provides warn- was satisfied because they received two

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CRUSHER MAINTENANCE

Nicholas Vanderlinde, Sales and Prod- suited the feed conditions, Metso was able
uct Offering Specialist for Crushing Prod- to deliver a 50% increase in liner wear life.
ucts at Metso, said that the company’s A similar program saw equal success in
customers are struggling to find qualified the mine’s tertiary crushers and, through
and experienced technicians to maintain switching the mantles used in its two Su-
their crushers, which means an emphasis perior primary gyratory crushers to Met-
has been put on simplifying maintenance so’s hybrid composite MX mantles, the
and increasing safety when it comes to mine also saw more than a 50% reduction
gyratory crusher repair and upkeep. in changeouts, resulting in greater avail-
“We have been pushed to create new ability, more production and less waste.
longer lasting wear components and up- Despite growing demands on pro-
grade packages that accommodate in- duction, mine maintenance budgets are
creases in safety for maintenance crews rarely increased, so whatever can be
onsite,” he told E&MJ. “In addition, we’re done to make dollars go further is a plus
seeing customers constantly looking to at any site. Vanderlinde said that addi-
increase their tonnage rates as orebodies tional monitoring solutions allow better
change throughout the LOM. With lower planning of downtime and repairs, as
percentage ores becoming the norm, de- well as tracking of parts onsite which,
mands on uptime and throughput are ever again, can help to reduce inventories.
increasing on customer sites. This just “Additional data allows mines to have
means more demand on primary crushers, the right parts onsite at the right time for
Schematic illustration of a gyratory crusher.
The spider lifting hook ensures faster and safer so any improvements that can be made at their needs, helping to maximize the re-
maintenance. (Image: FLSmidth) that stage of the process are paramount to sources they already have,” he said. “In-
customer profitability and success.” creased data at the crusher also allows
new, operational Trio TP260 cone crush- These days, there’s a huge demand teams to respond better to changes in feed
ers and, from our perspective, we’ve got for TCO and aftermarket services. or ore, helping to increase downstream
a local team that’s gained a huge amount Vanderlinde said that, with operations process efficiencies at the plant too.”
of knowledge and experience.” having more data available each year, Of course, the shrinking base of ex-
The mining industry currently faces a performance analyses are giving opera- pertise on crusher maintenance has not
myriad of supply chain challenges which tors the insights they need to better un- only impacted mine operators but also
OEMs, like Weir Minerals, are working to derstand their operational expenditures. OEMs and service providers. “The skills
resolve. Rakoczy said that the next 5-10 “This has given our customers the abili- needed are becoming less common, so
years will continue to be about getting parts ty to understand where their biggest main- there is a premium placed on solutions
and spares to customers on time. Again, tenance hangups and costs are, and act that can fill that gap,” Vanderlinde ex-
digital technologies can help in streamlin- to solve them,” he said. “It’s why we have plained. “This means new innovations in
ing this process — data on wear life and moved to working closer with our custom- crusher monitoring and data gathering
wear characteristics will help eliminate un- ers to better understand their needs and are going to become essential to making
knowns and unplanned maintenance. But, provide solutions designed to solve those sure crushers perform at their maximum
just as importantly, it’s vital that equipment exact issues. Targeted upgrades and sup- potential. By adding in remote technol-
suppliers are close to their customers — port for our customers means they are ogies in operation of the machine and
both in terms of proximity, as well as in un- spending their money where it will have additional monitoring, we can help elim-
derstanding their operations inside-out. the largest impact on their profitability. inate potential issues down the line and
“This is why Weir Minerals’ global net- “Sustainability is another huge target give mine sites even more information to
work of 150 service and support centres going forward. Increasing the life of our streamline their processes.”
is central to our commitment to our cus- spare and wear parts means customers Mikko Koivunen, Director for Process
tomers,” he said. “We see our customers use fewer parts and can maintain lower Optimization and Remote Services Sales
as partners, and we provide solutions stocks onsite. Less scrap means lower Support at Metso, added: “Greater avail-
based on their specific challenges.” environmental impact, which is always a ability of data online also enables Met-
target for Metso as well as our customers.” so’s Performance Centres to react faster
Data Enables Continuous La Caridad copper mine in Sonora, to arising issues and offer proactive sup-
Improvements Mexico, signed up to Metso’s Chamber port through data analysis.”
Nowhere is the skills shortage in crush- Optimization Program in 2011 and, since Vanderlinde said that, as the skills
ing being felt harder than in the mainte- then, the companies have worked togeth- shortage is unlikely to end anytime soon,
nance of primary gyratories. As the first er on a series of continuous improvements going forward, there will be a huge push
step in any comminution circuit, the co- to optimize the yield of the operation’s to simplify crusher components and
lossal size and relatively low number of crusher circuit and reduce its maintenance maintenance practices.
these units on any site (low redundancy) costs. For example, by switching out the “As more knowledge is lost through
makes their role and availability more im- competitor liners used in its six Nordberg retirement, there are fewer people step-
portant than most others. MP800 cone crushers for ones that better ping up to take the place of those who

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CRUSHER MAINTENANCE

are leaving the industry,” he said. “This we once would have taken on a smaller big picture in view and the overall main-
means that more of the demand for re- scope, like requests for component repairs tenance plan is addressed,” he said.
pair and replacement is going to come and incorporating recycling of used com- Like his peers, Kupstas has noticed a
into the world of services and support. ponents to reduce environmental impact,” greater focus on reliability-centred main-
New training technologies and repair Trevor Kupstas, Global Product Manager tenance and TCO programs over the
strategies are going to be paramount – Crusher Liners at FLSmidth, told E&MJ. past decade. The initial capital invest-
to keeping crushers running as well as “We see our customers working to im- ment of the equipment is only a small
additional manufacturer support for cus- prove their operational run time, so they portion of the overall costs, so it makes
tomers. Using monitoring technologies to are focusing their maintenance strategies sense that the aftermarket expenditures
help fill that gap is going to be an import- on areas that provide these returns, like are getting more attention.
ant step for the mining industry.” reliability of equipment and the mainte- “I think that our customers are doing
Koivunen added: “This is where da- nance of key parts,” he added. “Most large this because they are more and more im-
ta-driven, digitally enabled field service sites have already shifted to preventative pacted by pressure from pricing and find-
experts with access to real time data and maintenance, rather than reactive because ing skilled workers and need a solution,”
the support of Metso Performance Centres the benefits far outweigh potential costs. he explained. “In the past, maintenance
can really excel, helping customers to fo- Therefore, things that we did earlier, like revolved around repairs and not as much
cus in on the right issues at the right time.” designing wear parts for specific shutdown planning. That was not necessarily be-
schedules, are moving even further.” cause of want, but because of lack of in-
Planning and Reliability- Kupstas explained that many sites formation (data) to make more informed
centered Maintenance have also shifted their purchase require- decisions. Today, we use data and tech-
Today, nearly all mines have their own sus- ments to incorporate features that will al- nology that is available on our equipment
tainability programs and commitments, low maintenance to be performed more to plan and schedule maintenance a lot
and OEMs are no different. Through FLS- efficiently (i.e., faster, easier, and safer) better and earlier than before. Without
midth’s MissionZero strategy, the compa- to keep total downtime to a minimum. data the results that we are getting with
ny helps customers to identify crusher up- “As a result, when we discuss cham- our TCO and Optimization Programs
grades that increase efficiencies on site. ber or liner optimizations with our cus- would be a lot less impactful.”
“We are also shifting and expanding our tomers, the meetings incorporate more Reliability-centered maintenance
operating space, to help in the areas where individuals to ensure that we keep the plans are a good example of where digital

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CRUSHER MAINTENANCE

this year,” said Kupstas. “I think in the fu-


ture, we will continue to see the trends of
improving efficiencies and needing to do
more with less, meaning we will continue
to create digital offerings that are more au-
tomated, predictive, and safer to use be-
cause of continued shortage of qualified
personnel. We’ll also see a bigger shift to
more sustainable maintenance, including
expanded refurbishment programs and
reduction of waste during maintenance.”

The Growing Role of Third-


party Service Providers
In the past, aftermarket services for
crushers, particularly gyratories, have
largely been the domain of OEMs. How-
ever, established non-OEM suppliers are
Weir Minerals Trio TC cone crusher with the Gemex belt tensioning system integration. (Image: Weir Minerals) gaining traction where skills shortages or
capacity limitations are forcing operators
technologies can be harnessed for max- ways looking at ways to become more to look elsewhere.
imum impact in crusher maintenance. efficient,” he told E&MJ. “For the moment “Once the opportunity to prove the
For example, 3D scanning technology is it’s difficult to replace experienced per- combination of high-quality parts, good
commonly used in crusher liner assess- sonnel with digital technologies and it’s service and lower pricing is a real option
ments, and the results can be used to not possible to do all jobs in a digital way, we are seen as a genuine alternative,”
better plan maintenance activities, even but technologies are getting better. said James Shelley, Group Sales Direc-
months in advance. “One example of these technologies tor at CMS Cepcor.
“It helps us to spot changes in wear successfully helping is the communi- CMS Cepcor has been carrying out
patterns that can negatively affect the op- cation capabilities that we have today: service visits, repair work and wear liner
eration of crushers and allows us to make virtual meetings, video calls, or our aug- changes on primary crushers for many
adjustments before unplanned downtime mented field engineer tools. These ca- years. This has centred around the use of
occurs,” explained Kupstas. “Digital solu- pabilities, complemented by data-driven aftermarket parts that are interchangeable
tions, like condition monitoring, can have information, support us in fast and effi- with OEM parts. Through its recent acqui-
a big effect on proactive maintenance. cient decision making (in several places sition of the Columbia Steel crushing busi-
One example of this is a condition mon- at the same time), and can also help to ness, CMS has expanded this to offer far
itoring service that we have with one of compensate for the shortage of skilled greater possibilities in terms of optimiza-
our mining customers. Through this pro- workers in a short time.” tion of primary gyratory crushing chambers
gram we were able to find a small oil leak With the acquisition of thyssenkrupp with the aim of exceeding the standard per-
in the hydraulic cylinder seal of a crusher Mining Technologies last year, FLSmidth formance benchmarks set by OEMs.
and detect operational problems with the has bundled the companies’ combined “Columbia Steel was far more devel-
countershaft bearings. The site was then knowledge to offer a stronger position oped in its engineering of wear profiles
able to plan the maintenance changeout in the market. This includes an active than CMS Cepcor and much of this ex-
on the next schedule instead of it becom- R&D pipeline to develop new products perience was directed to primary crush-
ing an emergency situation. and upgrades to improve crusher opera- ers,” said Shelley. “The combination of
“We saved this customer 10 hours tions. An example is the new Metal Matrix both companies’ offerings is of signifi-
of unplanned downtime and also saved Composite (MMC) concaves for gyrato- cant benefit to the client, and we’re now
other components from failure, since ry crushers which were developed and able to take whichever route (standard
the bearings did not catastrophically fail, introduced in 2021. These have shown or bespoke) the client wants or needs.
which would have sent hardened rollers improved wear behavior compared to Considering the vast experience of the
throughout the machine.” standard wear parts, even under the personnel that have joined us from Co-
Kupstas added that when performing toughest conditions. The MMC technolo- lumbia I think it would be difficult to find a
maintenance or troubleshooting, a site gy is based on the combination of hard better partner for wear liners.”
can’t just deploy a new technician and particles in a softer casted base material The skills shortage has seen many
expect them to deliver the same results (e.g., carbides embedded in steel alloys) mines turn to third-party service provid-
as an experienced person, or even with and offers the advantage of extreme wear ers in a bid to keep their crushers up and
the same speed. and impact resistance at the same time. running. Shelley told E&MJ that mines
“We’re having the same trouble as our “I’m very excited about some of the of- are increasingly relying on service pro-
customers when it comes to finding skilled ferings that are actively being field tested viders whose teams often possess great-
and experienced engineers, so we’re al- and that are scheduled for launch later er skills and experience than their own.

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CRUSHER MAINTENANCE

“An example would be the annual Shelley said that, as such, operations are intended design life of 25 years. With
service contracts that CMS offers,” he increasingly pursuing proactive planning the combination of an aging machine
explained. “Together with the operator, and preventative maintenance strategies. and pushing equipment to its limits then
our sales and service team will develop “As the demand for crucial compo- breakdowns are inevitable.”
a maintenance plan for the year encom- nents like new main shafts or shells con- As operators continue to push the en-
passing all the likely parts and service re- tinues to rise, the lead times for these velope in production and rely increasing-
quirements. We then assemble a quote items are also getting longer as the num- ly on third parties to help them with plant
around that and a financial solution to ber of qualified suppliers is remaining rel- maintenance and supply chain manage-
make their budgeting and maintenance atively constant,” he added. ment, it’s likely that the role companies
spending more predictable and easier Although TCO is an issue with prima- like CMS Cepcor plays will continue to
to manage. This approach combines the ry gyratory crushers, relative to other ma- grow in importance.
strengths of both parties, where the oper- jor equipment types on site, these units “It’s our opinion that aftermarket offer-
ator has experience of running the plant are not major consumers of wear parts ings of the OEMs are fundamentally com-
and we have the experience of main- and spares. “It may well be a serious promised because their business models
taining all types of crushers around the consideration when evaluating the initial are not fully dependent on being truly
world; it’s a great combination. selection of capital equipment between competitive in that sector,” Shelley said.
“For the longer term we are offering suppliers, but once installed we often find “All of the OEMS have a broad portfolio
students from local colleges the oppor- production factors outweigh long-term of processing equipment of which crush-
tunity to come and start their career as spend,” Shelley told E&MJ. ing is only a minority part. Even within the
apprentices. We hope this gives them “Where we see a real challenge to sector, the attraction of the large capital
the opportunity to acquire the skills and this is where there’s the need to push orders they can achieve means their af-
experience needed to plug the skills gap throughput as far as possible. This termarket business is always fighting for
in the years to come.” means the machines can be operating at attention internally because the values
Because the repercussions of un- or above their advised limits, increasing are so much smaller. CMS Cepcor is fo-
planned downtime can be very expen- the risk of major breakdowns. This chal- cused solely on crushing; it’s what our
sive in mining, it’s becoming ever more lenge becomes more pronounced when whole business is geared towards and it’s
impractical to rely on last minute planning considering the presence of older ma- why we commit such a large proportion of
or reactive maintenance approaches. chines still in operation, surpassing their our resources to stock and availability.”

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FLEET MANAGEMENT

Fleet Management 2.0


Today’s fleet management systems are increasingly intelligent, integrated and agile.
E&MJ looks at the latest advancements.
By Carly Leonida, European Editor

of personnel by removing their physical


presence from the mine site, lower op-
erating costs due to less overhead costs
(camp, flights etc.) and fewer mine con-
trollers (instead of one team per mine,
combining resources.)
“Depending on the commodity and
point in the cycle, we also see a lower total
cost of ownership (TCO) for FMS solutions
being topical,” said Kowalchuk. “Some
mines are looking for a ‘lighter’ FMS to digi-
tize their production records without adding
too much cost. A big part of the FMS own-
ership cost is labor, both in mine control
and system maintenance functions.”
Underpinning these trends, is the
need to reduce carbon emissions and
minimize fuel consumption. According to
Fleet management systems provide the heartbeat for open-pit mining fleets. (Image: Hexagon) research by McKinsey & Co, 40%-50%
of mine CO2 emissions come from diesel
Gone are the days when the role of a and expanded functionality for existing used in mobile equipment, so optimizing
fleet management system (FMS) was FMS/AHS capabilities. utilization and fuel usage is key.
simply to dispatch trucks to where they “More and more, we see operators “We have customers who have suc-
needed to be, when they needed to be who want their FMS integrated with other cessfully reduced their total carbon
there. Today, these systems are increas- systems to leverage more data and im- emissions through our FMS system and
ingly seen as optimization and integra- prove productivity and safety,” Jarym Kow- include these savings in their annual re-
tion tools; enablers that allow corporate alchuk, Head of Product, MineOperate, porting,” Kowalchuk added.
commitments surrounding production Hexagon’s Mining division, told E&MJ. “In-
targets, and environmental, social and tegrated systems bring the hardware, soft- One for All…
governance (ESG) issues — carbon ware, seamless data flow, and automated Hexagon is leading the way in reducing
emissions reductions being the prime processes together, leading to improved the FMS hardware footprint: its collision
example — to be embedded in day-to- fleet management efficiency for real-time avoidance systems (CAS), operator
day operations. monitoring and data exchange.” alertness systems (OAS), machine guid-
In addition to ensuring the best pos- Kowalchuk explained that there is an ance system and FMS all share a com-
sible utilization and availability of equip- increasing need for real-time fleet mon- mon hardware platform and software
ment as well as maximum tonnages to be itoring and data. Ideally, mines would ecosystem which makes the complete
moved, operators now expect FMSs to like their control and maintenance teams system easier to maintain and reduces
work seamlessly with different safety and to have instant information on the per- the total cost of ownership (TCO).
maintenance technologies, autonomous formance and condition of each asset, “This means that mines can use the
haulage systems (AHS), and machine which allows for optimized haul routes, same core componentry across their
guidance and health products, as well as and better synchronization and hand-offs haul trucks, light vehicles, and other as-
providing inputs for mine planning and between maintenance and operations for sets,” Kowalchuk explained. “The latest
scheduling functions. Data handling, ex- tasks, such as refuelling and predicted release of OP Pro Fleet Management
change and integration capabilities play maintenance needs. (OP Pro 3.1) also includes integration
a key part in all of this supported by ultra- Multi-site mine control/monitoring with Hexagon’s Reverse Assist product.
fast, reliable communication networks. centers for mining companies with two The solution operates on the Power of
The demands are high, but vendors or more operations is another trend. The One Platform; an integrated hardware
are rising to the challenge, providing advantages of this for the mining com- platform that delivers a seamless user
greater control and optionality, new tools pany include reducing the risk exposure experience on a single user interface.

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FLEET MANAGEMENT

Additionally, OP Pro Fleet Management Development at ASI Mining. “Autono- ments in dispatch algorithms and energy
provides vertical integration with Hexa- mous mining machines are dependent management. These trends will open op-
gon’s interoperable autonomous stack. upon a software layer, generically re- portunities for innovation within FMSs as
Going forward, Hexagon continues to ferred to as a traffic management system well as other optimization solutions which
focus on its data and analytics strategy. (TMS), which conveys missions, maps, could add value in the whole technology
“We are currently building up our Power of traffic rules, and other particulars to au- stack, particularly when AHSs and ener-
One analytics platform which aims to bring tonomous vehicles. While this TMS layer gy management are involved.”
data from across the mine into a unified is the core of an autonomous haulage op- Early adopters of AHSs have been
platform with well-defined data definitions, eration, they generally rely on an FMS to primarily tier one mining companies with
customer-facing application programming provide mission assignments, tied to the large, complex operations. However, ASI
interfaces (APIs), and modern data visual- mine plan, that the TMS can execute.” Mining has recently seen smaller mines,
ization tools,” explained Kowalchuk. FMSs at open-pit mining operations which do not operate under an FMS,
“In the meantime, we have just com- have traditionally used software algo- consider the adoption of autonomy. Lars-
pleted Fleet Analytics 2.0, which is a rithms focused on optimizing traditional en said that, in such cases, it’s possible
program to improve our existing fleet mine operations, with human operators in to deploy ASI Mining’s Mobius AHS solu-
management reporting tools with a newly equipment and in the control room. These tion without a traditional FMS.
upgraded application and 40 new reports have performed well over time. However, Mobius is capable of dispatching
that are focused on providing improved de- Larsen said that as more fleets explore trucks, providing visualization of asset lo-
cision-making support for our customers.” autonomy and the industry starts to inject cations, monitoring asset health informa-
Reducing the TCO and further integra- zero-emission solutions, such as bat- tion, and generating production reports;
tion between OP Pro and the HxGN Mine- tery-electric equipment, additional logic all basic functionalities of a FMS. How-
Protect fatigue management and CAS, as around energy management is required. ever, for larger and more complex min-
well as the HxGN MinePlan portfolio is an- “Artificial intelligence (AI) and incor- ing operations that need more real-time,
other objective for future developments. porating self-learning algorithms is a optimizing FMS dispatch algorithms, the
Sean Perry, Senior Vice President, Ma- development we believe will have a pro- company recommends choosing an FMS
terial Movement, Hexagon’s Mining divi- found impact on fleet management,” he that meets the needs of the site, then in-
sion told E&MJ: “Providing interoperability said. “There are already start-up com- tegrating an OEM-agnostic AHS solution,
by unlocking data on a single platform is panies exploring self-learning FMSs that such as Mobius.
a key focus. Sharing planning and safety provide more autonomous dispatching “Again, while Mobius was designed
data with operations provides insights for functionality, making optimization deci- as a TMS, we’ve found that many mines
faster and more accurate assisted decision sions that traditionally were made by the operating highly functional FMSs, are of-
making. We are continuing to expand this controllers themselves. ten underutilizing their capabilities — ei-
same consistent experience across all an- “Autonomous systems are great at ther because of the rapidly changing na-
cillary equipment and office applications.” precisely executing missions from an ture of their operations and/or because
He added: “Autonomous mining equip- FMS. Therefore, we believe FMSs will they feel these more complex functions
ment is a trend that will continue to grow need to adapt and innovate to keep up are not delivering the value,” said Lars-
over the next 5-10 years. For mines with with new complexities and orchestration en. “Also, many mining operations are
mixed fleets, or for those who perhaps requirements stemming from improve- small or simple enough that large FMSs
aren’t comfortable with locking in with
a particular OEM and autonomous sys-
tem, Hexagon will continue to deliver
OEM-agnostic fleet management and au-
tonomous solutions. We also believe the
connections between geoscience, mine
planning, and mine operations will con-
tinue grow and become more integrated
through data to better leverage the maxi-
mum economic value of a mine resource.”

Value Through Autonomy


As mentioned, the advent of autonomous
mining equipment operation as well as
the rapid rise of zero emission initiatives
is having a significant impact on how the
mining industry thinks about traditional
FMSs. ASI Mining is a supplier of OEM
agnostic, autonomous mining solutions.
“AHS is our primary offering,” ex-
plained Drew Larsen, Director, Business A view from ASI Mining’s Mobius traffic management system. (Image: ASI Mining)

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FLEET MANAGEMENT

are simply not required. In such cases, a sion truck emerges as the best overall ers can monitor multiple operations, track
system like Mobius could become a via- solution for their operation. vehicle locations, allocate resources, and
ble alternative to operate an AHS fleet, Larsen explained: “This interoperability respond to contingencies more effectively.
without a traditional FMS. It’s also worth with other third-party FMSs has enabled us Wenco systems utilize machine guid-
mentioning that the modularity of Mobius to offer clients the ability to leverage their ance and simulation tools to optimize
means that an FMS could always be in- existing investments in legacy FMSs, in- fleet performance and resource allo-
tegrated later once these more complex stead of requiring FMS replacement, as is cation. These consider various factors,
functionalities are required.” common on most other AHS offerings. In such as equipment availability, produc-
The underlying driver for most of ASI ASI Mining’s history, integrations with dif- tion targets, and operational constraints
Mining’s research and development is ferent FMS systems have been performed. to generate optimal schedules, routes,
enhancing the value proposition of au- Most notable is with the Wenco FMS, and task assignments. Customers can
tonomy in mining. Since the business which is currently being used by Roy Hill, identify bottlenecks, optimize efficiency,
case for AHSs is largely driven by an integrated with Mobius for Haulage.” and improve overall productivity by simu-
increase in utilization, productivity and lating different scenarios.
reliability, all factors that enhance that Open and Integrated “Our customers are also utilizing
realization are ASI’s top priorities. FMSs are increasingly incorporating In- FMSs for closer alignment with their ESG
“At the same time, we’re investing in ternet of Things (IoT) enabled devices objectives and sustainability initiatives,”
expanding the automation platform to and connectivity solutions. Jason Dos said Dos Santos. “Wencomine provides
allow integration with other autonomous Santos, Product Marketing Manager at technologies that monitor and aid in re-
equipment, for example, water trucks, Wenco International Mining Systems, ex- ducing emissions by tracking and reduc-
light vehicles and drills,” Larsen added. plained: “IoT connectivity facilitates data ing fuel consumption, thus supporting
“We’re also closely monitoring emerg- exchange between site equipment and customers’ environmentally conscious
ing opportunities around zero emission different areas of the network, enabling practices. Fleet managers can use these
initiatives. These will no doubt drive the seamless communication and coordina- systems to enforce sustainable fleet op-
continued need for autonomous sys- tion across sites. The integration of au- erations and comply with ESG standards.
tems that can support a variety of energy tonomous vehicles, such as haul trucks “These advancements in FMSs and
solutions and systems. They will need and drills, is also revolutionizing fleet mine networks support improved effi-
to provide the traffic patterns and vehi- management in mining. These vehicles ciency, safety, and sustainability in min-
cle behaviours that may be required with can operate with minimal human inter- ing operations. They enable real-time
trolley assist, battery electric, and other vention, following pre-determined routes monitoring, data-driven decision-mak-
recharging strategies to operate mines.” and performing tasks efficiently. FMSs ing, optimized resource allocation, and
are evolving to support the integration integration of autonomous vehicles, ulti-
Supporting Future Energy and coordination of autonomous vehicles, mately driving productivity and minimiz-
Choices ensuring smooth operation and optimized ing environmental impact.”
Nearly all haul truck OEMs are working utilization within the mine’s network.” According to Dos Santos, flexibility
frantically on the next generation of ener- Many Wenco customers utilize central- and integration are core capabilities of
gy-efficient haul trucks. Larsen said that, ized controls to monitor and manage fleet Wencomine. “One of the key pillars of the
because of the complexities between operations. These leverage advanced Wenco mindset is ‘open’,” he explained.
mining methods across different miner- technologies, like real-time data visual- “This is an openness to collaboration, in-
als, environmental factors, and availabili- ization and geospatial analysis, leading to teroperability, advancement, integration,
ty of low-cost energy, there will likely be a predictive modelling to provide a holistic and iteration; every new development
plethora of different energy options mov- view of fleet performance. Fleet manag- and acquisition has Wencomine compat-
ing forward. These could include trolley ibility at the forefront.”
operations, battery electric, hydrogen, This emphasis extends all the way to
and other hybrid solutions. system architecture, allowing for interoper-
“Additionally, truck sizes could be re- ability with emerging technologies such as
thought, as a greater number of smaller fragmentation tracking, digital blast move-
trucks could emerge as a potential via- ment modelling, and material sensing.
ble alternative to ultra class fleets,” he Wenco is also persuing open auton-
said. “Each of these potential scenarios omy through ISO 23725: FMS interface
will have significant impact on FMS op- to autonomous haulage. This standard
erations and the injection of a potential aims to bring new entrant autonomy pro-
new software module into the stack; en- viders into mining, mixed fleet operation,
ergy management system (EMS). The new mining strategies, and enable the
autonomous systems from ASI Mining, application of new technologies.
based on the Mobius TMS, are agnostic “Ensuring our long-term customers
with regards to FMS, and also truck se- can take advantage of our latest func-
Wenco recently acquired the SmartCap fatigue
lection; which gives operations the ability management system which has been integrated
tionalities and solutions is always top of
to adapt to whichever FMS or zero-emis- into the Wencomine FMS. (Image: Wenco) mind throughout development,” said Dos

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Santos. “Our philosophy is to make the


transition to our next-generation archi-
tecture and applications seamless. We
know the impact a hardware replacement
can have on our customers, so we’re
very careful about designing our technol-
ogy to avoid cases requiring a hardware
upgrade to derive optimal value. We ob-
viously strive to avoid the change man-
agement requirements that come when
a new solution is implemented. As such,
our pathway to a new platform is much
more evolutionary than revolutionary.”

New Optimization OEMs, like Komatsu, are doing a huge amount of work to develop different hardware platforms that
Opportunities support zero-emissions mining. (Photo: Komatsu/Modular Mining)
“The trends that we see having the big-
gest influence on fleet management prac- valuable information that can be gained and compare the outcomes to the mine
tices today are carbon emissions reduc- from data sharing and we’re evolving our plan. The value is that it allows operators
tions and autonomy,” George Mavros, offering accordingly.” to make more informed decisions, and to
Product Manager — Load and Haul at He said that requests for third-party pivot quickly if unforeseen events or cir-
Modular Mining, told E&MJ. “The two are integrations have thus far involved safety cumstances arise, for instance, a shovel
somewhat affiliated, but they also bring and tire monitoring products, but that Mod- breakdown or a road closure due to ex-
their own challenges. On the autonomy ular will work with customers to accommo- treme weather. Usually, users take actions
side, Komatsu has a number of well-es- date integration requests where possible. based on previous experiences, but this
tablished products, and we see a need The team is currently working on two functionality allows them to check if those
for further integration and interoperability new FMS deployments replacing com- decisions would be best based on the
between autonomous solutions and other petitor products for tier one miners — one business’ objectives and to quantify them.”
systems, such as our DISPATCH FMS. operation is in Australia and one in Latin The refuel function can be used for
“With respect to carbon emissions, America. DISPATCH is now fully integrat- any mobile equipment that needs to be
OEMs, like Komatsu, are doing a huge ed with Komatsu’s ProVision machine refuelled or recharged (diesel, petrol,
amount of work to develop different guidance solution and Mavros said that battery powered etc.). Mavros explained
hardware platforms — for instance, bat- this capability, combined with the ability that it aims to optimize the refuelling or
tery-electric trucks — that support this. to connect with third-party systems, was recharging schedule for the fleet, and
But, of course, they also require software a deciding factor in both deployments. also the utilization of refuel/recharge
that can optimize their integration into There are also some new products in stations. It can be used as a standalone
mining operations.” the development pipeline. “We’re work- module or can function as an input to the
DISPATCH may be one of the longest ing on a series of new applications that short-term simulation feature to check
(if not the longest) standing FMS on the will enhance DISPATCH’s capabilities,” different scenarios and find the best pos-
market, but that doesn’t mean that its de- said Mavros. “The first two relate to sible outcome against the mine plan.
velopment has stood still… Far from it. short-term simulation and refuelling and Mavros told E&MJ. “We’re not mov-
“We’re working on a number of new those are currently in beta testing with ing away from DISPATCH in any way —
features, and also to expand DISPATCH’s key customers. We have additional apps the optimization tools built into that have
current functionality in line with market in the works, but you’ll have to wait for done a fantastic job for the past 40 years
demands,” Mavros explained. “The latest more details on those!” — but, given the challenges mines face
version includes a new speed monitoring This new series of apps is designed today, it’s time to build on those capabil-
module, and also extended functionality to enable mines to access next level opti- ities and give miners greater control and
for the existing brakes, park up and shift mization opportunities. Mavros explained agility when it comes to optimization.
change modules.” that the addition of short-term simulation “We’ve broken this journey down
DISPATCH has recently transitioned will allow mines to optimize fleet move- into steps and will be introducing new
to the Linux embedded platform which ments according to the mine plan, which concepts, apps and algorithms over the
Mavros said will enable more flexibility is a relatively new concept. coming months. Having refuel function-
when it comes to integration with data “FMSs traditionally optimize for pro- ality is a good example: it allows mines
from Komatsu and also third-party sys- duction and cost, but we’ve been hear- to optimize fleet movements to improve
tems via an API. ing for a while that operators would like operational efficiency and production,
“We understand that today there is greater visibility and optionality when it but also to cut their carbon emissions.
a need for greater integration and in- comes to operational optimization,” he “Additionally, we’ll continue to expand
teroperability between different mining said. “This is a live application, so the user our range of APIs for both internal and
solutions,” Mavros explained. “There’s will be able to analyse different scenarios third-party systems.”

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MOTORS AND DRIVES

Maximizing Motor Performance


Electric motors and drives are expected to play an increasingly larger role in mining
and other heavy industries. OEMs are upgrading design, fabrication and support
capabilities to ensure their product lines are up to the challenge.
By Russell A. Carter, Contributing Editor

In the roughly 125 or so years since the cal infrastructure design, electrification motor drive supplier is making it easier
first truly useful electric motors for indus- system and battery management, ESG for customers to efficiently choose, mon-
trial purposes were introduced, their role and safety impact analysis, and cost itor and maintain their drives.
has steadily expanded to include almost modelling of both Capex and Opex. OEMs are also aware of the need to
any application that requires rotary pow- It’s safe to say that electric motor ef- conserve materials, both during original
er. One recent estimate from a major ficiency at this – or any multi-million-dol- fabrication and for end-of-life recycling,
motor supplier has electric motor-driven lar project – will be looked at closely. and are pursuing strategies aimed at
systems accounting for about 45% of the But even a high-efficiency motor has to optimized or reduced use of copper wire
world’s energy usage. be properly engineered for its intended and magnet material. For example, late
For the mining industry, all indications application. A list of the main reasons last year ABB announced plans to use
are that motor usage will continue to grow why motors fail, as shown in the ac- Boliden’s certified recycled and low-car-
as companies study, structure and exe- companying chart, indicates that many bon copper in its high-efficiency electric
cute plans to electrify operations from pit failures can be traced back to incorrect motors and other equipment. As of 2023,
to plant. A glimpse of the future was pro- initial selection. As OEMs develop new ABB said it will purchase that copper
vided by a recent announcement high- concepts for motor design, aimed at of- to cover the demand for certain IE5 Ul-
lighting a collaboration between electrifi- fering products that have higher torque tra-Premium Efficiency and other motor
cation specialist ABB and mining services density, better cooling performance and types produced in Europe. The two com-
group Perenti to provide a study for full smaller physical footprints, they’re also panies have also signed a memorandum
underground electrification of IGO’s Cos- implementing features and services that of understanding that will see ABB sup-
mos nickel project in Western Australia. enable customers to more accurately porting Boliden in identifying inefficient
The three companies will work together choose the correct product and moni- low-voltage motors across its operating
to forge a plan that includes mine design tor its performance throughout the duty units. These motors can then be replaced
optimization for electric operations, pro- cycle. Check out our interview on p. 36 with high efficiency motors within ABB’s
duction and operating philosophy, fleet with Danfoss’ global business director take back upcycling framework, with the
selection, power distribution and electri- for heavy industry to hear how this major old motors recycled to provide raw mate-
rial for Boliden’s recycled copper.
According to ABB, Boliden’s low-car-
bon copper is produced by using second-
ary raw material from recycled products.
A typical 75-kW motor weighing 650 kg
might include 80 kg of copper. Using Bo-
liden’s copper saves approximately 200
kg of CO2 emissions for every one of these
motors manufactured, said the company.
In another copper-related develop-
ment researchers at Pacific Northwest
National Laboratory (PNNL), a national
laboratory managed and operated by
Battelle for the US Department of Energy,
found a way to increase the conductivity
of copper wire by about 5% – enough to
make a significant improvement in motor
efficiency. For example, the actual num-
ber of large motors installed every year is
The latest standard electric-motor product lines offer increased modularity and flexibility to meet the relatively low, but their power ratings are
requirements of a wide range of applications. However, unique site conditions or performance demands
often call for custom designs such as these cylindrical-cased 6,600-v, 1,700-kW squirrel cage motors so high that even a small increase in effi-
engineered by Menzel Motors to power an underground mine’s ventilation system. ciency can cut losses by tens of kilowatts

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MOTORS AND DRIVES

per machine. Given that they typically


run for more than 8,000 hours per year,
a small increase in efficiency can mean
huge energy savings. Higher conductivi-
ty also means that less copper is needed
for the same efficiency.
Using a new manufacturing platform
developed at PNNL, researchers added
graphene — a highly conductive, na-
no-thin sheet of carbon atoms — to cop-
per and produced wire. The increase in
conductivity compared to pure copper,
according to PNNL, was made possible
by a first-of-its-kind machine that com-
bines and extrudes metal and composite
materials, including copper.
In cooperation with General Motors,
the lab tested the improved copper for
use in vehicle motor components. As part
of a cost-shared research project, the
team validated the increased conductivity
and found that it also has higher ductility.
In other physical properties, it behaved
just like regular copper; it can be weld-
ed and subjected to other mechanical features being a high-strength welded of general-purpose motors, any one of
stresses with no degradation of perfor- steel frame typically found only in motors which could potentially replace up to any
mance. This means that no specialized with larger frame sizes. This lowers stress one of 18 different traditional general-pur-
manufacturing methods would be neces- on the motor while mitigating vibrations pose motors, according to the company.
sary to assemble motors — just the new and resonance to ensure reliable oper- Features of the Flex-in-1 line include the
advanced PNNL copper composite. ation in harsh conditions with a design ability for the motor to operate at 60 to 50
life of 25 years or 20,000 starts. Anoth- hertz, capability for inverter duty and a re-
Finding the Best Fit er claimed advantage is a shorter bear- movable repositionable base that enables
Gets Easier ing-to-bearing span compared with previ- the conduit box to be rotated into the de-
There’s an old mining maxim that says, ous models. This improves performance sired NEMA F-2 and F-3 mounting posi-
“If you’ve seen one mine, you’ve seen… at high speeds and enables the motor to tions. The motor ships with the conduit
one mine,” alluding to the fact that almost be used as a simple drop-in replacement box in the F-1 mounting position.
no two mineral deposits, mines, process to upgrade existing equipment. The Flex-in-1 motor, said the sup-
plants or related facilities are identical According to ABB, the majority of reg- plier, is the only NEMA motor with a
due to differences in the specific condi- ular AMI 5800 designs not only meet but patent-pending repositionable base
tions or available company resources exceed North American standards for en- plus C-Face design with rolled-steel
at any given mine project. That doesn’t ergy efficiency. Further customization will construction. The combination C-Face
mean that every electric motor on-site allow some models to operate above the rolled steel and base design gives the
has to be a special-purpose model. The IE4 equivalent level of energy efficiency motor added strength and durability. Re-
latest generation of motors from leading while meeting NEMA electrical perfor- positioning the base can be done in 5-10
suppliers offer greatly expanded modu- mance standards. minutes or less vs. the approximate 60
larity and customization features to fit a The new motor is configured for opti- minutes in time that it would take to
wide range of applications. mal airflow, meaning that it will run as cool configure a standard general-purpose
ABB recently introduced its AMI 5800 as possible in an open-air installation or motor reducing downtime required for
NEMA modular induction motor, designed enclosed with a cooler. ABB said its MI- installations, repairs, and retrofits.
to provide better energy efficiency and CADUR insulation system makes the mo- Motor suppliers do, however, en-
reliability in demanding applications such tor suitable for starting high-inertia loads counter specific site conditions or cus-
as pumps, compressors, fans, conveyors direct online but also for use with variable tomer requirements that call for special-
and crushers. Rated for a power output of speed drives. (Read more about ABB’s ized designs or features. Here are few
up to 1,750 hp, the AMI 5800 line brings strategy for helping the mining industry recent examples:
a high degree of modularity and customi- meet its net-zero goals through more ef- WEG, the Brazil-based motor suppler,
zation to suit both new build and upgrade ficient motor and drive selection in this is- knows that motors for use in desalination
projects, according to the company. sue’s Operating Strategies section, p. 38.) plants must operate in severe climates
ABB describes the AMI 5800 motor as In April, Regal Rexnord’s Commer- around the clock, be extremely durable
a true NEMA design with one of its key cial Systems group launched a new line and protected against corrosion. The

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MOTORS AND DRIVES

be reduced to three hours compared with


one day for experienced engineers and
up to three days for less experienced
engineers. The system, according to
the company, also helps to simplify and
standardize design processes, since per-
formance targets can be simply adjusted
to have the AI generate appropriate new
specifications. In addition, the system is
expected to support the transfer of de-
sign skills to less experienced engineers
to help them become more proficient.
According to TMEIC, the new electrical
motor-design support system achieves
results equal to manually produced de-
signs. Engineers input performance re-
quirements and then the AI proposes the
best specifications by referring to histor-
ical design data. Engineers then check
FLSmidth selected these WEG water-cooled motors with automatic brush lifting system for a plant
the AI-proposed specifications for perfor-
expansion project in Brazil. mance, adjust targets if necessary to ob-
tain finely tuned new AI-proposed speci-
company recently supplied motors fit for mounted directly on the motor shafts, the fications. The interactive process can be
this type of duty to a crucial mine-water motors’ bearings had to able to handle ra- repeated until specifications that best
Infrastructure project in northern Chile, dial loads up to 20,700 N and axial loads satisfy the final performance targets are
where WEG’s W22 IE3-class efficiency up to 27,000 N, which required a special achieved. The results are equivalent to
motors are used in the feed and recircula- bearing setup in order to meet the target- conventional manually produced designs.
tion circuits of the desalination plant. Verti- ed bearing service life of 100,000 hours. In addition, the company said perfor-
cal application motors were also supplied mance-prediction and specification-op-
for the plant’s capture system. All were AI has Arrived timization technologies dramatically cut
treated with a special epoxy paint finish As the demand for special-purpose and design time. AI technology predicts elec-
for performance in severe marine envi- customized motors grows, manufactur- trical motor performance using design
ronments with a high salt index. ers are looking towards artificial intelli- specifications accumulated in the past by
WEG also recently provided motors gence technology to assist in expediting TMEIC. Engineers can interact with the
ordered by FLSmidth to power ball mills both motor design and production. AI by fine-tuning performance targets to
in a large Brazilian mine project. The mo- Last year, Toshiba Mitsubishi-Electric obtain precise specifications based on
tors for this application were designed Industrial Systems Corp. (TMEIC) an- past designs that the AI searches and
with a wound rotor and a control system nounced that together with Mitsubishi then optimizes. Design time is dramati-
for automatic brush lifting that allows for Electric they’ve developed an electrical cally reduced from one to three days to
rotor short-circuit after starting, consid- motor-design support system incorporat- just three hours.
erably reducing brush wear and conse- ing Mitsubishi Electric’s Maisart AI tech- Some key details about the system,
quently, the need for maintenance. In nology that is claimed to dramatically as described by TMEIC:
total, six MAW motors, in 800 frame size shorten the time required to produce elec- Interactive multi-objective electrical
and rated at 6,500 kW (13,800 v), were trical motor designs that achieve the same motor-design technology produces
supplied; five will be online and one set performance as conventional design high-quality designs quickly. Using
aside as a spare. methods deployed manually by skilled en- conventional multi-objective optimization
Berlin-based Menzel Motors de- gineers. TMEIC said it planned to adopt techniques, it has been difficult to quickly
signed and built three unusual 6,600-v the system for internal operations in 2023. produce ideal design specifications that
squirrel cage motors for an underground The new system, it was reported, can satisfy all performance targets covering
mine’s ventilation system. The customer be used to design electrical motors for every category, such as motor size, pow-
specified cylindrical motor casings – a pumps, compressors and fans. Formerly, er efficiency and heat generation, some
challenge, according to Menzel, to imple- engineers had to iteratively adjust design of which are inversely related.
ment the required rated power of 1,700 specifications to balance performance New technology, however, enables
kW in the most compact cylindrical cas- versus design, such as power efficiency performance specifications to be de-
ings possible. Menzel said it met design versus motor size. signed within a remarkably short time by
requirements by fabricating fin-cooled Using the new system experimentally using both meta-heuristics, a method for
squirrel cage motors in frame size 630, to perform design tasks normally com- efficiently searching combinations of pa-
an extremely unusual design for motors pleted in the past by engineers, Mitsub- rameters, and a back-and-forth process
this large. Because the driven fans are ishi Electric found that design time can in which engineers interact with the AI.

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MOTORS AND DRIVES

This interactive procedure can be re- line strategy, particularly in their larg- approach for excavators that is intended
peated until the engineers are satisfied est-capacity machines. In 2021, Komat- to facilitate upgrades or retrofits as new
with a design that best satisfies the final su said it would be offering all of its P&H drive technology becomes available.
performance targets. electric rope shovels as AC-powered ma- Caterpillar, which was an early
chines going forward, citing production adopter in introducing AC technology to
High-speed performance prediction improvement gains that were measured mining equipment – starting with ana-
technology and efficient presentation by comparing machine performance data log GTO control technology then intro-
technology. The AI technology creates and input from customers reporting that ducing IGBT digital control – has had a
specifications by referring to past designs, they could regularly achieve higher pro- long-term partnership arrangement with
searching for the best specifications and ductivity with the company’s AC models. Siemens to develop custom-designed
then presenting multiple combinations of Liebherr has offered AC power throughout AC drive systems for rope shovels. The
possible specifications optimized to perfor- its range of mining excavators for many latest motor-related improvements are
mance targets. Engineers can choose the years and has adopted a modular design featured on the company’s new-produc-
specifications that best suit overall needs
and quickly determine a final design that
matches their final performance targets.
The TMEIC AI initiative certainly isn’t
the only large-scale program under way
to apply AI tools to motor design and pro-
THREE WORDS.
duction. For instance, last year Bosch an-
nounced a major expansion of its North ONE PROMISE.
ALWAYS IN STOCK.
American facilities for manufacturing
electric motors; the company said it would
begin production at its Charleston, South
Carolina site – ironically, at a facility pre-
viously devoted to production of compo-
nents for diesel engines – and planned to
spend more than $260 million in the future
to expand capacity there even further. The
new facility reportedly will use AI to design
production lines that will be highly config-
urable for various customer requirements.
It’s part of a larger corporate effort, ac-
cording to recent remarks from Bosch ex-
ecutives. “In recent years, Bosch has made
good progress in the development of AI in
its divisions and at its locations worldwide,”
said Tanja Rückert, member of the board
of management and chief digital officer of
Bosch GmbH. “We are bringing AI into our
applications quickly and successfully.”
The company stated that before the
end of this year, all of its products and solu-
tions will either contain AI or have been de-
veloped or manufactured with its help.

Switching to AC
Another aspect of expanding electric mo-
tor usage – in this case, one that goes
hand-in-hand with the mining industry’s
pursuit of higher equipment efficiency,
sustainability and circularity – is the op-
tion to upgrade older equipment, such
904-3 56-6840
as DC-powered mining shovels, to AC
sales@schurcoslurr y.co m
power for better performance, safety and
9410 Florida Mining Boulevard East,
lower maintenance requirements.
Jacksonville, Florida, 32257
This trend has been gaining industry
interest, with the benefits offered by AC
power strongly influencing OEM product

www.e-mj.com JULY 2023 • E&MJ 35

EMJ_pg32-37.indd 35 7/7/23 10:57 AM


MOTORS AND DRIVES

Driving Motors to Peak Effectiveness


Intelligent control of electric motors is an increasingly im- Using VFDs in applications such as ventilation fans,
portant factor in achieving energy efficiency and optimal pumping applications, and blowers, for example, offers sub-
performance. We asked Chad White, Global Business Di- stantial energy savings potential due to centrifugal load af-
rector, Heavy Industries, Danfoss Drives, to outline some finity loads, where the power varies by the speed cubed – a
of the primary considerations users need to be aware of 20% reduction in speed theoretically offers approximately a
when making decisions regarding drive selection, applica- 51% reduction in energy consumption. So how will we man-
tion and operation. age the additional heat losses and the cumulative effect they
can have on larger systems?
E&MJ: What are some of the features that might differentiate Back-channel cooling, offered by Danfoss Drives, is a
Danfoss electrical drives, software or support functions from concept that utilizes the integrated extract fan to remove up
the competition for applications in the mining sector? to 90% of the heat losses, which can be channeled outside
White: Danfoss Drives offer the unique option to monitor the of the control room. This heat extraction is isolated from the
condition of critical assets without needing to connect to the drive control circuitry, resulting in extended drive life and high-
cloud. Although Danfoss remote monitoring via cloud con- er reliability. Drives can be mounted directly against a wall,
nectivity is available, not every customer wants this for many free standing, connected to external ducting, or in many cases
reasons, including lack of infrastructure, additional expense to incorporated into a larger Motor Control Center (MCC). Tradi-
implement, and fear of cyber-attacks. Danfoss EDGE technol- tionally the MCC design incorporates multiple door-mounted
ogy allows for localized condition-based monitoring (CBM) not force vent electrical fans to pull cooled air into the enclosure to
only of the drive itself, but also of external assets within the keep the VFD operating within its temperature limits and limit
mining processes. heat buildup in the e-House / switch-room. These fans and
By continuous monitoring of the condition of these critical external air conditioning systems add to the inefficiency and
assets, the Danfoss drive will give early notice of impend- energy consumption of the system and increase capital costs.
ing system failures, allowing for proactive planning of main- Danfoss’ unique back-channel cooling can reduce the MCC
tenance teams and equipment to rectify the issue at a time costs and system energy consumption considerably, as only
that works around the mine production schedule. The Dan- 10% rather than 100% of the heat losses needs to be man-
foss drive will display warnings and will communicate these aged by external cooling fans. The external air-conditioning
messages via the customer’s preferred local communication system can also be reduced substantially and even in some
platform to the mine operational center. The drive operates as cases eliminated.
a sensor, and through signature analysis of the current wave- With a change in industry mindset, there will always be
form to the electric motor, it can detect very accurately early tradeoffs we must consider, however by careful assessment of
indication of a copper winding turn-to-turn breakdown (short applications, and through supply chain collaboration, the bene-
circuit) before it further develops into a complete motor failure fits as explained in the example above can be substantial.
and loss of production.
The connected load envelope is also continuously moni- E&MJ: As a provider of both hydraulic and electric power
tored, where deviations to the baseline are set, to report on solutions, and control systems for both types, can you point to
events such as pump blockages, over/underloaded conveyors competitive advantages in efficiency, performance or reliability
and ventilation fan filtration blockages. With Danfoss CBM, vi- from the in-house integration of these systems in heavy-duty
bration analysis of mining processes is also achievable (with applications?
externally connected sensors), where the Danfoss drive will White: Danfoss VFDs are designed for operation with all AC
monitor and report on critical situations such as excessive vi- motor technologies and all manufacturers of electric motors.
bration, shaft misalignment, and potential early bearing wear. To ensure the highest efficiency and peak motor shaft per-
Danfoss CBM is integrated into the drive and requires no addi- formance, it is vital that the preferred electric motor and Dan-
tional software, hardware or cloud connectivity. foss VFD are ‘matched’ once they are both installed within
the unique parameters of each customer application. Factory
E&MJ: The mining industry is highly interested in reducing based ‘string testing’ cannot consider conditions on site, such
its carbon footprint and energy consumption in all phases of as fluctuating loads, varying operating temperatures and length
production. When it comes to electric motor-powered equip- of motor cables.
ment, are there significant tradeoffs that must be made be- To overcome this, Danfoss introduced Automatic Motor
tween performance and energy usage to satisfy these cus- Adaption (AMA). During commissioning, this stationary test
tomer preferences? Are there ways in which these tradeoffs measures and records everything connected downstream of the
can be mitigated? VFD, including the motor cable and individual characteristics of
White: Unfortunately, with every upside, there can often be a the electric motor. Once the application is up and running, the
downside. Variable Frequency Drives (VFD) are one of the key Danfoss VFD will continuously carry out these measurements
energy-saving devices available today. The efficiency rating of and adjust settings automatically, based on changes to the
VFDs has increased over the years with the introduction of new characteristics of the cable and motor properties. This standard
technologies and intelligent operation; however, even with Dan- Danfoss feature is retrofittable to existing customer applications
foss VFDs’ 98% or greater efficiency levels, there are still heat regardless of motor type, ensuring the highest performance and
losses (energy losses) to consider. efficiency even for the most demanding of applications.

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MOTORS AND DRIVES

tion 7495 and 7495 HF shovels, which • Safer – Less motor maintenance, in- and three engineers. “We have a long-
offer a drive system design that uses spection and testing; eliminates DC term perspective when it comes to these
common motors in multiple applications. commutators. conversions,” he explained. “Given that
These motors, according to Cat, have • More reliable – Eliminates carbon industrial drives and other electronic
higher power densities, smaller frame brushes and dust. Addresses obsoles- components typically have a five to sev-
sizes and optimized footprints. cence and digitalization. en years lifespan, we address obsoles-
For older DC shovels that may be • Energy efficiency – 10+% more effi- cence concerns by producing our own
mothballed, under-utilized or still in pro- cient than DC. Active Front End (AFE) inverters and digital control cards. We
duction – but with high maintenance drive precisely controls power factor have implemented a unified control plat-
costs and risks – repowering with AC and reduces harmonics. Reduced pow- form for shovels and draglines, allowing
components offers a range of benefits. er system losses. us to support this platform in the future
Mike Onsager, director of technology • Productivity – Faster, smoother op- without depending on OEM or industri-
at power and control systems special- eration with custom control system. In- al-supply sources.”
ist Flanders, outlined those advantages creased tons per hour. Reutilization of existing machines is
for an audience at the recent Haulage The advantages of switching to AC gaining interest as mine operators seek to
& Loading Conference, held April 2-5 in power extend beyond the machine, said reduce their overall carbon footprint and
Tucson, Arizona and sponsored by Min- Onsager, starting with additional power ca- engage in sustainable, circular equip-
ing Media International. pacity becoming available to a mine while ment ownership and operational strat-
Flanders offers custom electric motor using the same distribution system. “You egies. Onsager pointed out that some
design and manufacturing, along with can operate more equipment on the same draglines were approaching 70 years of
engineering and manufacturing exper- system, have more flexibility with substa- service, and with ongoing maintenance,
tise gained through upgrading dozens of tion location, length of trail cables, along refurbishment and upgrades where ap-
P&H shovels and converting draglines with how many other machines are in the propriate, could reach the century mark.
and other equipment from DC to AC pit and how they’re affected,” he explained. Although that might not be the case with
drives and components. The “numbers” “Plus, the (AC) motors for the shovels and a typical mining rope shovel or AC motor,
– the machine-specific benefits of shov- drag lines are custom manufactured by AC motor and control upgrades can keep
el conversion to AC – are clear-cut, said Flanders to be drop-in fit replacements.” these machines operating at highly pro-
Onsager, and can be summarized in a A typical conversion takes about a ductive levels for many years – and avoid
few bullet points: month and is handled by six technicians “making new steel to replace old iron.”

www.e-mj.com JULY 2023 • E&MJ 37

EMJ_pg32-37.indd 37 7/7/23 10:57 AM


OPERATING STRATEGIES

Improving Efficiency, Reliability and


Sustainability of Constant-torque
Mining Applications
By Shelley Gager and Matthew Rodebush

operating speed or require adjusting to


maximize production, inverter duty mo-
tors are designed and manufactured to
operate at reduced speeds and not over-
heat when run with a drive.
In addition to providing optimum per-
formance for constant-torque applica-
tions, pairing an inverter duty motor with
a drive offers additional benefits, such as
soft-starting capabilities and generally
smoother operation to protect belts and
other equipment, which lead to reduced
maintenance costs and downtime and
longer motor and equipment life.
Obviously, improving motor-driven
equipment performance, reliability, safety
and efficiency are top priorities for mining
operations, but there is also a need to pre-
dict potential issues before they happen
Hundreds of applications throughout mining depend on motors that are reliable, durable, safe and efficient. to prevent unplanned downtime. Modern
monitoring solutions harness the power
As society continues to become more ing equipment control, one of which is pair- of digitalization to put real-time data at
urbanized, and as it progresses in a shift ing motors with variable speed drives. the operator’s fingertips. These systems
toward electric transportation, it will even- The basic function of a drive is to con- combine connectivity and data analytics
tually come to rely on minerals and metals trol the flow of energy from the power with expert advice from real people to
more than ever before. Industrial electric supply to the motor, thus controlling the provide deeper insight into the health of
motors provide the motion that keeps motor’s speed, power and torque output. the entire process enabling safer, smarter
those vital materials moving – about 70% It does this by converting the incoming and more sustainable operations.
of the electricity used in industrial applica- fixed AC voltage and frequency into DC The global mining industry must navi-
tions is used to power the millions of in- voltage and then back to an AC voltage gate a multitude of megatrends. Minerals
dustrial electric motor systems around the at a specific voltage and frequency. A and metals are essential in the transition
world. In the mining industry alone, there drive allows for smooth starting, acceler- towards net zero as clean energy technol-
are hundreds of motor-driven applications ation and deceleration of the motor which ogies increasingly require more significant
that depend on motors that are reliable, is highly beneficial to the constant-torque quantities of minerals than fuel-based solu-
durable, safe and efficient. applications prevalent in the mining, ag- tions. The mining industry can take steps
Mining and aggregate production plac- gregate and cement industries. to improve energy efficiency, productivity
es demand on all equipment; motors used Much of the function of motors in use and reduce emissions by using well-estab-
in these applications must be built to with- in the mining industry is that of moving lished technology, such as variable speed
stand the harshest conditions imaginable. material, often done by conveyors – a drives paired with high-efficiency industrial
While durability and ease of maintenance constant-torque application. Other exam- electric motors, which can optimize pro-
continue to be of concern for motor opera- ples of constant-torque applications are ductivity, reduce unnecessary costs, and
tors, specifying engineers are increasingly cranes, hoists, extruders, mixers, posi- maximize equipment availability to ensure
turning their focus towards energy efficien- tive-displacement pumps, reciprocating we have a bright and sustainable future.
cy and cost savings. Newer, modern mo- air compressors and rotary screw air
tors are more efficient than motors manu- compressors. Constant-torque applica- Shelley Gager is director, integrated
factured even a few years ago. However, tions require the same amount of torque motor drives for ABB; and Matthew
there are additional approaches to increas- throughout a specific speed range. Rodebush is the global segment manag-
ing whole-system efficiency while optimiz- Whether these conveyors run at a single er for NEMA motors, at ABB.

38 E&MJ • JULY 2023 www.e-mj.com

EMJ_pg38-39.indd 38 7/7/23 9:31 AM


OPERATING STRATEGIES

Miners, Suppliers Strategize


to Achieve Sustainability
While the mining industry plots its course
toward a more sustainable future, compa-
nies are finding that increased circularity
throughout an entire value chain is crucial
to achieving success in this endeavor.
Two recent announcements illustrate ex-
amples of the strategies mine operators,
OEMs and other business partners are
employing to meet their ESG goals.
For example, cemented carbide is a key
component in high-quality drill bits, and an
important ingredient in carbide insert fabri-
cation is tungsten, one of the rarest mate-
rials on Earth. Texas, USA-based Terelion
says that through its Circularity program, it
is now possible to recycle cemented car-
bide inserts back to virgin material – pure
tungsten – which can then be used in man-
ufacturing new cemented carbide inserts.
Worn-out drill bits at Rio Tinto’s Kennecott Bingham Canyon mine are collected for shipment to a facility
Terelion highlighted Rio Tinto Kennecott’s that removes the carbide inserts, which are then processed into powder for re-manufacturing of new inserts.
recent decision to join the program.
At Kennecott’s Bingham Canyon Earlier this year, Epiroc and SSAB to be plugged and sealed after produc-
mine, used carbide bit inserts are col- announced a further expansion of their tion. When using additive manufacturing,
lected on site and shipped to a facility partnership to secure fossil-free steel six potential points of leakage can be
where the inserts are separated from the for use in the production of Epiroc’s eliminated. It is also possible to improve
steel. The inserts are then sent to a plant mining equipment. Since then, the two hydraulic oil flow since sharp edges can
in Austria where they are processed into companies have expanded their col- be avoided when the channels are print-
powder, and then made into new tung- laboration into exploring possibilities to ed in the part.
sten carbide inserts. use fossil-free steel when manufactur- While traditional manufacturing uses
Terelion said the Circularity program ing spare parts and components with a block of steel weighing approximate-
for tungsten carbide drill bits at Rio Tin- additive technology. ly 50 kg (110 lb), the optimized design
to Kennecott is estimated to reduce CO2 The initial step in the process has for additive manufacturing uses 7.5 kg
emissions associated with carbide drill bit been to create a prototype of a hydraulic of steel for producing this part. This re-
manufacturing by 64%. Energy consump- block for a mining rock drill using additive duces the amount of material needed for
tion will be reduced by 70% compared with technology with conventional steel pow- production with 85% in this case, which
sourcing tungsten via conventional mining der. Traditional manufacturing with mill- leads to more efficient use of raw materi-
methods, according to the company. ing and drilling requires this type of part als. The weight of the end-product is also
significantly lower: In traditional manufac-
turing the part weighs 15 kg after manu-
facturing; the optimized design together
with additive manufacturing makes the
part weigh 6.6 kg after production. This
reduces the weight by 55%.
As rock drills are positioned far out
on the feed of the drill rig, their weight
has a substantial impact and new tech-
nology opens the possibility to create
stronger components without affecting
the balance of the machine. Reduced
weight on the feed could also improve
the lifetime of other components due to
the reduction of stress and load, accord-
ing to Epiroc.
With the prototype successfully pro-
Epiroc and SSAB are exploring new alternatives to conventional manufacturing of OEM parts and
duced with additive manufacturing, the
spares that offer the potential of shorter lead times, better availability, reduced transportation costs and next step in the process is to experiment
a smaller environmental footprint. with fossil-free steel powder.

www.e-mj.com JULY 2023 • E&MJ 39

EMJ_pg38-39.indd 39 7/7/23 9:31 AM


SUPPLIERS REPORT

Hexagon Releases Integrated


Sensor-software Portfolio for UG
Flanders, MES Sign MOU
on Dual-fuel
Flanders and MES signed a memoran-
dum of understanding (MOU) to col-
laborate on aftermarket dual-fuel tech-
nology for diesel haul trucks to reduce
carbon emissions. The MOU was an-
nounced in anticipation of The Electric
Mine Conference in Tucson, Arizona, in
late May.
The development advances Flan-
ders’s Agnostic, Interoperable Fleet
Decarbonization Offering Strategy, the
HxGN Underground Mining, an integrated sensor-software portfolio, effectively creates a seamless tech- supplier said. “Our teaming up will cat-
nology transition from open pit to underground mining, Hexagon Mining said. (Image: Hexagon Mining) alyze and scale the decarbonization of
the mining industry ‘now’ while signifi-
Hexagon announced HxGN Under- tomers answer this search by increasing cantly reducing customers’ TCO,” said
ground Mining, an integrated sen- the efficiency of machines and miners Wayne Chmiel, chief commercial officer.
sor-software portfolio featuring systems throughout the operation.” “We are thrilled to be in alliance with
for collision avoidance, drill optimization MES to provide world-class sales and
and production planning. The portfolio KOCH Solutions Acquires support to their multi-fuel decarboniza-
helps mines to achieve the best results Some FLSmidth Assets tion solutions for the mining industry.”
while protecting drivers, pedestrians FLSmidth agreed to sell some material
and equipment in the most demanding handling technology assets to KOCH Welding Alloys Acquires
environments, the company said. Solutions as part of the former’s effort Premier Technical
The safety suite uses collision avoid- to exit what it views as non-core activi- Welding Alloys Group acquired Premier
ance and operator alertness systems ties by the end of 2024. Technical Ltd, or Premtech, a wear-re-
proven in more than 40,000 vehicles KOCH Solutions acquired the intellec- sistant products manufacturer and sup-
worldwide in open pit environments. The tual property on some port and terminal plier located in Rotherham, U.K. The
portfolio’s operations suite helps mine equipment, stockyard systems, pipe con- move advances Welding Alloys Group’s
operators and supervisors to manage veyors, and various continuous surface growth strategy, expanding its footprint
underground fleet equipment and to opti- mining equipment; an order backlog val- in the U.K., and enhancing its portfolio
mize production in real time via a dynam- ued at $58.6 million; a project execution with Premtech’s specialized wear-re-
ic activity scheduler and fleet manage- service orders backlog; and facilities in sistant solutions.
ment system. The portfolio’s optimization Germany and Australia. KOCH Solutions Welding Alloys Group said the deal
software for production and development also acquired a currently unknown “num- gives easy access to Premtech’s manu-
enables mines to achieve consistent ber of FLSmidth employees.” The exact facturing facilities and workforce to opti-
blasting outcomes with high-precision number will not be known until comple- mize the supply chain, reduce lead times,
drilling and optimal set-up processes. tion of the transaction, FLSmidth said. and improve customer service. It will help
HxGN Underground Mining offers a “During 2022 we kick-started our the company offer customers “the best
range of benefits, to include production transformation journey towards becom- possible solutions to their wear-related
gains and reduced operational expens- ing a pure play company rooted on a challenges,” said Welding Alloys Group
es. Beyond benefitting business, better core focus on technologies and ser- CEO Dominic Stekly.
drilling practices are good for the planet, vices,” said CEO Mikko Keto. “A key The acquisition gives Premtech per-
reducing CO2 emissions and supporting element in this journey is to exit mining sonnel the opportunity to “become part of
sustainability goals, said Mateus Quin- activities that are not deemed to be of a larger, global organization,” said Andy
tela, Hexagon’s head of product, Un- core strategic importance to FLSmidth,” Hyde, managing director, Premtech.
derground Mining. “We know mines are he said. “With today’s announcement “Our customers will benefit from access
looking for ways to mine smarter, safer we are accelerating the pace of this to Welding Alloys’ extensive network and
and in more environmentally and socially exit, while securing customers an op- resources, while our employees will have
conscious ways,” said Quintela. “HxGN tion for continued supply of these prod- more opportunities to develop their skills
Underground Mining will help our cus- ucts and services.” and expertise.”

40 E&MJ • JULY 2023 www.e-mj.com

EMJ_pg40-41.indd 40 7/7/23 11:53 AM


SUPPLIERS REPORT

Bingham Canyon Converts loss-time impact on mining operations Pty Ltd in Australia. The addition of Cal-
to MineStar for bringing nearly 100 trucks plus more ibre’s 800 professionals brings WSP’s
Caterpillar and Wheeler Machinery, a than 40 supporting dozers, shovels and mining team to 5,200 professionals glob-
Cat dealer servicing the western U.S., drills online with MineStar Fleet. Caterpil- ally, including 1,400 in Australia.
recently completed the installation of a lar and Wheeler worked together to pro- WSP said the combined team will
Cat MineStar fleet management system vide a quick turn-around time with best- support clients with strong ESG commit-
at the Kennecott Bingham Canyon mine, in-class implementation. ments. “We have the opportunity to play
located near Salt Lake City, Utah. Rather “The close collaboration between a pivotal role at a time when mining com-
than upgrading the mine’s previous fleet the Rio Tinto Group team, Caterpillar, panies are making bold commitments to-
management system, Kennecott chose to [Wheeler] and Kennecott ensured a suc- wards decarbonizing their operations and
deploy MineStar Fleet. This has optimized cessful deployment at Kennecott and infrastructure, while providing the critical
the mine site’s equipment tracking, pro- their desire to be the flagship for future minerals required for the green transition,”
duction recording, material management MineStar sites,” said Joshua Wood, prin- said CEO Alexandre L’Heureux.
and truck assignment, and it has further cipal advisor, Surface Mining Centre of The development caps two decades
expanded the relationship between Cat Excellence at Rio Tinto. of focus on becoming the consultant of
and Rio Tinto, which owns Kennecott. “We have been impressed with the part- choice for major mining projects, Calibre
“For 15 years, Rio Tinto has used nership, and we share the same vision and said. “Joining WSP enables our talent to
MineStar Terrain and has expanded its have the correct team to get us there,” said leverage the scale, capabilities, and ex-
MineStar capabilities in recent years at Bryce Olson, mine monitoring and control pertise of a global company with 67,000
locations like Gudai Darri and Marandoo, superintendent at the Kennecott Bingham professionals,” said Executive General
autonomous mine sites in Western Aus- Canyon mine. “We flipped the switch, and Manager Adrian Chapman.
tralia,” said Ryan Howell, mining tech- we haven’t gone backwards. We immedi-
nology commercial product manager for ately started using MineStar Fleet’s open Solvay Expands Facility
Caterpillar. “The Bingham Canyon mine assignment, load-haul-dump and auto fuel to Meet Demand
is the first MineStar Fleet site in Rio Tinto advanced features.” Solvay completed expansion of the
history, and this extends the company’s MineStar Fleet automatically records company’s Mount Pleasant, Tennessee,
application of MineStar capabilities. and tracks data up and down a mine’s U.S.A., facility to meet growing demand
Even though it wasn’t the easiest value chain, providing insights that help from copper mining for its ACORGA
route for the mine, the cost-benefit analy- miners identify what is working and fix products. The facility manufactures sol-
sis showed significant long-term benefits what is not to meet production targets. vent extraction reagents.
using MineStar Fleet, including seamless The platform allows miners to view the The company said the expansion was
integration with MineStar Terrain, which entire operation at a glance on a comput- a major achievement that helps it ensure
is currently used by the mine. “A true er and gain insights into key cost drivers the security of supply for customers while
partnership with the supplier, dealer and – such as fuel, tires, service parts, and responding to their increasing production
customer allows for large-scale technolo- idle time – and improve haul fleet produc- needs. “We expect to add additional ca-
gy projects like this to be completed suc- tion and shovel utilization. pacity in the future to remain a reliable,
cessfully with minimal impact to produc- long-term partner and help our mining
tion,” said Mike Gray, general manager WSP Global Acquires Calibre customers maximize metallurgical re-
for Wheeler Machinery. Professional Services One sults and overall operational value,” said
An incremental approach was de- WSP Global Inc. completed the acquisi- Matthew Davis, global business director,
vised to minimize the system installation tion of Calibre Professional Services One mineral processing and metal extraction.

An incremental approach will be used to minimize downtime as the Bingham Canyon mine (above) converts nearly 100 haul trucks and more than 40 pieces
of supporting equipment to Cat’s MineStar system. (Photo: Rio Tinto)

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PROCESSING SOLUTIONS

Rio Tinto Pursues Decarbonization


Projects With Chinese Steelmaker
man Iron Formation with additional detri-
tal mineralization present.
The 36W–50W and 55W-66W depos-
its contain a Measured Mineral Resource
of 22 million mt at 59.1% Fe, Indicated
Mineral Resource of 102 million mt at
61.5% Fe, and an Inferred Mineral Re-
source of 108 million mt at 61.4% Fe.

Copper Project Reports


Positive Leach Results
from Nuton Tech
Arizona Sonoran Copper reported positive
preliminary column leach metallurgical ex-
traction rates for its Cactus mine project
in Arizona, as part of a Phase 1 testing
program with Nuton LLC, a Rio Tinto ven-
ture. Primary sulphide extraction ranged
Aerial view of the Western Range iron ore property in Western Australia. Rio Tinto and China Baowu from 61% to 82% based on five columns,
have formed a joint venture to commence production from two deposits by 2025 after completion of con-
struction on a crushing station and overland conveyor system that will connect to an existing processing
including two early cycle columns return-
plant. Ore will be transported via rail to Rio Tinto ports at Dampier and Cape Lambert for shipping. ing 83% and 61%, two mid-cycle columns
above 70% and one with lower extraction
China Baowu, the world’s biggest steel- ing the delivery of low-carbon solutions based on biotite content. The company
maker, and Rio Tinto, the largest iron ore for the entire steel value chain. This MoU said Nuton is currently reassessing the
producer, have signed a Memorandum aims to address one of the biggest chal- additives for this low extraction column
of Understanding (MoU) to jointly ad- lenges faced by the industry – developing to address future biotite exposure, which
vance specific decarbonization projects. a low-carbon pathway for low-to-medium accounts for approximately 1%–2% of the
The MoU follows the recently announced grade iron ores, which account for the vast Cactus West deposit in the primary zone.
$2-billion Western Range Joint Venture majority of global iron ore supply.” A total of 13 ongoing columns were ap-
in the Pilbara region of Western Austra- The company said Western Range’s proximately 75–150 days through their
lia, involving Rio Tinto and Baowu. annual production capacity of 25 million 300-day leach cycle and include samples
The projects include: metric tons (mt) of iron ore will help sus- from the sulphide, both primary and en-
• Research, build and demonstrate a tain production of the Pilbara Blend from riched (secondary sulphide) zones from
pilot-scale electric smelter at one of the company’s existing Paraburdoo mining both Cactus and Parks/Salyer deposits,
Baowu’s steel mills in China. This will hub. The project includes construction of as well as from the tailing facility.
enable low-carbon steel making utiliz- a primary crusher and an 18-km conveyor Nuton is a portfolio of proprietary cop-
ing Direct Reduced Iron (DRI) that has system linking it to the existing Paraburdoo per leach related technologies and capa-
been produced from low and medium processing plant. Construction has begun, bilities, developed by Rio Tinto to deliver
grade ores. with first production anticipated in 2025. increased copper recovery and environ-
• Optimize pelletization technology for Rio Tinto and Baowu have also agreed mental performance. Samples were sent
Australian ores as a feedstock for to enter into an iron ore sales agreement to the Nuton testing lab to begin column
low-carbon shaft furnace-based direct at market prices covering a total of up to leach testing late in 2022. The columns
reduction. 126.5 million mt of iron ore over approxi- were leached under a range of condi-
• Expand the development of China mately 13 years. This volume represents tions and additive combinations with a
Baowu’s HyCROF technology which Baowu’s 46% interest in the anticipated view towards identifying the ideal Nuton
can largely mitigate CO2 emissions 275 million mt of production from West- offering for further test work and com-
from the blast furnace process. ern Range through the joint venture. mercial deployment.
• Jointly study opportunities for producing Western Range contains two depos- The Nuton flowsheet is a convention-
low-carbon iron in Western Australia. its, 36W–50W and 55W–66W, which are al crushed and agglomerated feed, bio-
Rio Tinto’s Chief Commercial Officer Alf located within the Hamersley Basin of heap leach flow sheet for heap leaching
Barrios said, “Rio Tinto and China Baowu Western Australia. The deposits’ mineral- of copper sulphide minerals. However, it
are united in a commitment to accelerat- ization is primarily hosted by the Brock- includes the addition of catalytic and oth-

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PROCESSING SOLUTIONS

er reagents, as well as a bacterial growth processes. This ‘waste-as-carbon-sink’ technology significantly accelerates the
and inoculation facility. At a technical pre- approach has further potential for reuse natural process of carbon mineralization
sentation given late last year at Rio Tinto’s in building materials, thus significantly using mine tailings from ultramafic rocks.
Bundoora Technical Development Center reducing the amount of waste that needs This helps these companies transform
in Melbourne, Australia, company person- to be stored as compared to present day their tailings into industrial-scale direct
nel explained that the Nuton technology legacy nickel processing.” air capture and storage facilities, trans-
extracts up to >80% of copper from prima- “Arca is helping mining companies un- forming mine waste into a valuable new
ry copper sulphides compared to 25%– derstand the potential for mineralization of resource and climate solution.”
35% in traditional heap leach processes. their resources, design how that potential Arca, formerly named Carbin Miner-
Nuton modelling capabilities reduce re- should be realized, and then advance to als, is backed by Lowercarbon Capital
quirements for extensive test programs. actual project development,” said Profes- and the Grantham Foundation, both of
In addition to the Cactus project, Nu- sor Greg Dipple, co-founder and head of which are “climate investors” in the car-
ton technology is also being evaluated at science at Arca. “Our mineral activation bon dioxide removals industry.
Lion Copper & Gold’s Yerington, Nevada
project and at McEwen Copper’s Los
Azules project in Argentina.

Geoscience Company
Targets CO2 Capture in
Mine Tailings
Arca, a company founded by geoscien-
tists from the University of British Co-
lumbia, announced that it is working with
nickel producers to capture and perma-
nently store CO2 in mine tailings.
The company said it is developing
and commercializing a portfolio of tech-
nologies that help mining companies
measure, maximize and monetize the
carbon sequestration potential of their
mining byproducts. Arca’s patent-pend-
ing mineral activation technology uses
high-intensity bursts of energy to trans-
form and disrupt the mineral lattice
structure of magnesium-rich minerals,
increasing both the rate and capacity
for CO2 capture and permanent storage.
With material from its mining company
partners, Arca said it has achieved un-
precedented rates of air capture and
capacity for CO2 storage, operating at at-
mospheric air temperature and pressure.
Arca said it is currently working with
clients that include Vale and the Australia-
based juniors Poseidon Nickel, Nickel-
Search, and Blackstone Minerals.
Arca said it is also working with Tal-
on Metals which, in a joint venture with
Rio Tinto, is developing the Tamarack
nickel-copper-cobalt project located in
central Minnesota. “Talon and Arca are
working on transformational change in
mining and mineral processing,” said
Todd M. Malan, head of climate strategy,
Talon Metals. “Our partnership is focused
on showing how waste from convention-
al nickel processing can be harnessed to
store carbon that has been removed from
the atmosphere or captured in industrial

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EQUIPMENT GALLERY

Advanced Liebherr Excavator Completes


Validation, Enters Market

fastener installations and routine inspec-


tion, the supplier said. “This improved
load monitoring method allows end-us-
ers to pinpoint problems, optimize instal-
Liebherr introduced the 250-metric ton The R 9300 shares parts commonal- lation time, reduce downtime, and share
(mt) R 9300 Generation 8 excavator fol- ity with Liebherr’s current excavators to data with key stakeholders at any time.”
lowing successful validation at a mine in help minimize maintenance costs and The app is available on the Google
Indonesia. Announced at bauma 2022 streamline onsite inventory. The lifespan Play app store and can be purchased
as the replacement for the R 9250, it is of the R 9300 has been increased by with the new SPC4 technology, which can
available for purchase now and will enter 33% above the R 9250 from 45,000 to be retrofitted for a variety of applications.
serial production in 2024. 60,000 hours, Liebherr said. VFBolts.com
The excavator features the latest Li- In validation studies, the excavator
ebherr Mining technology designed to achieved a 26-second average cycle AutoMine Adds Flexible
improve performance and offer compat- time for 1,371 bank-m3 per hour, or 3,017 Safety Zone
ibility with Liebherr’s Assistance Sys- mt per hour, the supplier said. The R Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions intro-
tems, automation, digital services and 9300 also attained a fuel efficiency ratio duced AutoMine Flexible Safety Zone for
zero-emissions solutions, Liebherr said. of 9.22 bank-m3/liter of fuel burned. its AutoMine underground autonomous
The R 9300’s engine is available in FCO Liebherr.com mining solution. The new capability cre-
and US EPA Tier 4-, EU Stage V-compli- ates alternating safety zone states be-
ant versions. Liebherr Power Efficiency, an Bolt Tension Data tween autonomous and manual operation.
engine and hydraulics management sys- Logging App With the AutoMine Flexible Safety
tem that helps decrease fuel consumption, Valley Forge & Bolt Mfg. Co. launched the Zone, autonomous mining equipment
comes standard. An electric-drive version SPC4 Data Logger app, which is paired
of the R 9300 is currently being developed. with the SPC4 406A Electronic Meter.
The R 9300 has an updated attach- The combo is a user-friendly solution for
ment design that is lighter and stronger monitoring fastening load in environments
than that of the R 9250, Liebherr said. that require a Bluetooth connection.
The new attachment comes standard with The meter gives an accurate and con-
high-performance components, such as a venient method to measure the tension
new stick and boom design and aluminum in a SPC4 fastener, and the new app
covers. The design enabled an increase allows users to compile the data and or-
in bucket size in both the backhoe and ganize it. After a simple set up and cali-
face shovel configurations. The excavator bration, users can configure the app with
is an effective pass match for trucks with their specific equipment and site details
100-, 130-, and 180-mt payloads. to monitor target clamp load during both

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EQUIPMENT GALLERY

can operate continuously in the automat- Dewatering Pumps Get provide hours of cooling, while a spare set
ed area while allowing for intersections Chromium Impellers of ThermoPaks are included with each vest
with manual equipment. It allows manual Tsurumi reported it is equipping several to extend cooling time and comfort, the
equipment to cross automated equip- dewatering pump series with ultra-hard company said. A thermal barrier is built in
ment routes and share dump or load chromium impellers with no price increase. to ensure the wearer does not get too cold.
points. The feature prevents autonomous The high chromium content of up StaCoolVest.com
equipment from entering a space where to 28% makes the impellers extremely
a manned machine is operating. wear-resistant, the company said. The ma- Load Ejector System
Additionally, AutoMine access bar- terial is five times more resistant to abra- Nixes Carryback
riers are equipped with technology that sion than grey cast iron or stainless steel. Philippi-Hagenbuch reported the Load
informs operators of the shared area sta- Tsurumi uses semi-vortex impellers. Ejector System virtually eliminates ma-
tus with visual and audible indicators. With purpose-designed adjustable wear terial carryback, helping to increase load
RockTechnology.Sandvik plates, the pumps achieve hydraulic effi- capacity and operational efficiency. Load
ciency levels similar to those using closed Ejectors are professionally engineered
Collision Avoidance System impellers, but without the disadvantages, to fit any rigid off-highway haul truck, the
Handles Complexity the company said. By adjusting the wear company said.
Wabtec Digital Mine released the Gen- plate, the optimal pressure point of the The Load Ejector System consists of
eration 3 Collision Avoidance System pump can be set, and the impeller can run an overlapping jointed plate lattice de-
(CAS). The system uses an intelligence significantly longer. “This reduces the costs sign that rests flat against the front slope
engine that provides the flexibility to deal and maintenance times of the pump.” and floor inside of the truck body. When
with the most complex vehicle interaction TsurumiPump.com the body is raised, the Load Ejector sep-
scenarios, the company said. arates from the truck bed by gravity, re-
Core functionality, such as real-time Safety Vest Stays Cool moving material as it hangs.
self-test, personnel detection and sec- StaCool Industries Philippi-Hagenbuch engineers Load
ondary sensing capabilities, are main- reported the Sta- Ejectors with three different mounting
tained in the Generation 3 CAS. The sys- Cool Vest Core styles. The standard mount is used for car-
tem incorporates a brand new, cleaner, Body Cooling Sys- ryback that accumulates on the front slope
simpler user interface with context-based tem, available in of the body. The built-up mount is engi-
voice alerts. It replaces analog technolo- safety colors, helps neered to address material that sticks to
gy with sophisticated discreet, direction- workers beat the the front slope as well as down and back
al, and audible warnings. The interface summer heat. Ful- toward the rear of the body floor. The ro-
enables operators to work without dis- ly adjustable mod- tating mount provides full-length coverage
traction and respond instantaneously to els are available in from the front slope to the rear of the body
audible alerts, Wabtec Digital Mine said. safety yellow, or- floor and automatically pulls away from the
The system was co-developed by ange, and green to truck body when the bed is dumped.
Glencore. It went through three years wear over normal The company offers two material op-
of live proof-of-concept and production clothing, providing tions. The standard-duty design is made
testing. It is OEM agnostic. The hardware all-day comfort with unrivaled mobility, of high-strength Grade 80 steel and is for
and software are compatible with the the company said. operations with a minimal abrasion. The
Generation 2 CAS system for a seam- Easy-to-care-for, micro-thin, highly heavy-duty design is built with Hardox
less transition, the company said breathable materials offer cooling comfort 450 Steel for highly abrasive materials.
WabTecCorp.com and mobility. ThermoPaks around the vest PHILSystems.com

www.e-mj.com JULY 2023 • E&MJ 45

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CONSULTANTS & SERVICES

YOUR
CLASSIFIED
AD HERE
1 column x 3” space
Starting at $525

CONTACT YOUR SALES REP


TO BOOK A SPACE TODAY

FOR ADVERTISING, CONTACT YOUR


INTERNATIONAL SALES REPRESENTATIVE:
Midwest/Eastern U.S. & Canada Germany, Austria & Switzerland Japan
Craig Scharf Gerd D. Strasmann Masao Ishiguro
Tel: +1 904-721-2925 ext. 106 Tel: +49 202 28 14 64 83 Tel: +81 (3) 3719-0775
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Western U.S., Canada & Australia Scandinavia, U.K. & European


Frank Strazzulla Colm Barry
Tel: +1 949-459-1767 Tel: +46 (0) 736 334670
[email protected] [email protected]

46 E&MJ • JULY 2023 www.e-mj.com

EMJ_pg46-47.indd 46 7/7/23 10:58 AM


ADVERTISING INDEX

Autonomous Solutions Inc (ASI) ......................................3


YOUR CLASSIFIED E&MJ Website ............................................................. IBC
AD HERE Matrix ............................................................................ 27
1 column x 2” space Mining Equipment Inc .................................................... 25
Starting at $350
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CONTACT YOUR SALES REP
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Mining Media Int’l - Social Media ................................... 43
Mining Media Int’l - Subscription Renewals .................... 37
Motion .......................................................................... BC
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www.e-mj.com JULY 2023 • E&MJ 47

EMJ_pg46-47.indd 47 7/7/23 10:58 AM


MARKETS

Imminent Supply Deficit Could Raise


Uranium Prices
Uranium is shining right now, sitting at tract 95% more uranium from McArthur mineral claims in the Athabasca Basin
its highest level in more than a year as River and Key Lake, expecting 20.3 in exchange for 3.33 million shares
short-term supply concerns fade and million lb in 2023 compared to 10.4 and C$12 million ($9 million) in explo-
long-term demand prospects improve. million lb in 2022. In April, Cameco ex- ration expenditures.
The uranium industry experienced a tended a long-standing arrangement to “We believe the exploration commit-
boost after the U.S. avoided the debt supply fuel through 2040 to Canada’s ment being made by Stallion is a tes-
limit crisis, which may have jeopardized only private sector nuclear generator, tament to the potential in the SW area
the provisions of the Inflation Reduc- Bruce Power. of the Athabasca Basin, where many
tion Act (IRA). The IRA pledged $700 This agreement, along with a num- of our neighbors have had tremendous
million to establish a domestic supply ber of others including supplying success,” said Mike Castanho, CEO
chain for high-assay low-enriched ura- Ukraine’s nuclear needs until 2035, of ATHA Energy. “Exploration through
nium (HALEU) in an effort to decrease will account for a significant amount partnership continues to be one pillar
dependency on Russia, which present- of Cameco’s production capacity. This of our business as we seek to leverage
ly provides about one-fifth of enrich- could make it more difficult for buyers the largest land position in the Athabas-
ment and conversion services. to find new supplies, which will help ca Basin.”
According to U.S Energy and Com- support the long-term uranium spot The company also recently bol-
merce Committee Chair Rep. Cathy price and, in turn, benefit uranium com- stered its team, adding Doug Engdahl
McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), the U.S. is panies like ATHA Energy Corp. to its board of directors and as Manag-
“dangerously reliant on Russia’s sup- ATHA Energy holds the largest ex- ing Director of the company. Engdahl
ply of nuclear fuels for our existing nu- ploration package in the Athabasca brings a wealth of uranium experience
clear power plant fleet,” and the bill’s Basin, the world’s most prominent ura- as a former senior mine geologist for
passage “sends a strong signal to the nium basin, with 3.4 million acres. The Cameco’s McArthur River mine, the
market that will help restore American company also has a 10% carried inter- world’s largest high-grade uranium
nuclear leadership and fuel infrastruc- est portfolio of claims run by Nexgen mine. Along with Engdahl, ATHA hired
ture.” Concerning Russia, a bill prohib- Energy and IsoEnergy Ltd. five technical team members in ad-
iting uranium imports from the country ATHA Energy recently inked a vance of its first exploration program
beginning in 2027 was approved by a binding letter of intent (LOI) with Stal- this summer, when the company plans
U.S. House panel in May. lion Discoveries Corp. to negotiate to use its technical skills to help define
Fortunately, higher uranium prices a definitive option and joint venture and develop prospective assets.
are a key growth driver for the industry, agreement that would allow Stallion For more information about ATHA Ener-
which is likely why Cameco plans to ex- to acquire a 70% interest in 47 ATHA gy, visit their website at: athaenergy.com.

(July 6, 2023)

Precious Metals ($/oz) Base Metals ($/mt) Minor Metals ($/mt) Exchange Rates (U.S.$ Equivalent)
Gold $1,910.80 Aluminum $2,129.00 Molybdenum $48,290 Euro (€) 1.087
Silver $22.69 Copper $8,261.50 Cobalt $32,232 U.K. (£) 1.272
Platinum $911.00 Lead $2,050.50 Lithium Hydroxide $45,840 Canada ($) 0.749
Palladium $1,263.00 Nickel $21,209.00 Australia ($) 0.662
Rhodium $4,000.00 Tin $28,530.00 Iron Ore ($/dmt) South Africa (Rand) 0.052
Ruthenium $465.00 Zinc $2,363.50 Fe CFR China $113.50 China (¥) 0.138

Gold and silver prices provided by KITCO Bullion dealers (www.kitco.com). Platinum group metals prices provided by Johnson Matthey (www.platinum.matthey.com).
Non-ferrous base and minor metal prices provided by London Metal Exchange (www.lme.co.uk). Iron ore prices provided by Platts Iron Ore Index. Currency exchange
rates were provided by www.xe.com.

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