Category: Features

All Images: Alliance Mineral Assets     BY EMMA DAVIES   DECEMBER was a big month for the owners of the Bald Hill lithium Joint Venture –Tawana Resources and Alliance Mineral Assets Limited – with a merger finalised between the two companies that is set to take the mine into its next phase of growth.   Bald Hill – 50km south east of Kambalda in the Eastern Goldfields region WA – entered commercial lithium concentrate production in mid-2018. To date, the mine has been operated under a 50:50 Joint Venture between Tawana Resources and Singapore-based Alliance. However a merger has been in the works since April that will simplify the mine’s ownership and management, as well as place the merged...

A diesel-powered bogger at Newcrest’s Cadia East mine. Image: Newcrest Mining.   BY AMY BLOM   EMERGING technologies may be set to change the way Australian mines are powered, but diesel fuel and large-scale fuel farms are likely to remain key to many operations for years to come.   Renewable energy and the concept of the electric mine have been touted as among the biggest changes ahead in mining, and while many miners have begun to adopt these technologies, researchers were also looking to diesel-powered automation that could change traditional fuel farms. The remote nature of most mines meant access to reliable power was a challenge for most, making up a large portion of overheads on a mine. To overcome this...

Carrapateena airstrip. All images: OZ Minerals   BY JESSICA CUMMINS   ON the back of a productive year, OZ Minerals remains focussed on developing one of Australia’s largest copper gold resources, Carrapateena, with first concentrate scheduled in 2019.   As the Adelaide-based miner moves its Carrapateena project towards production, a number of key activities remain on the table. After injecting $85 million into the project during the September quarter, the miner saw the completion of its first ventilation raisebore and commenced development on the crusher level. OZ Minerals chief executive Andrew Cole said flights to the site had begun and construction of all 556 rooms at the Tjungu accommodation village were also completed. “The mineral processing plant and non-processing infrastructure construction is continuing...

MP Mick Murray at Premier Coal mining operations in Collie. Image: West Australian Government.   BY JESSICA CUMMINS   SURROUNDED by an abundance of national parks, forests and man-made waterways, WA’s only coal mining town, Collie, has a long history, and continues to generate a large proportion of WA’s energy needs.    Like many mining towns, Collie has had its fair share of booms and busts dating back to the first development of its coal fields in the late 1800s. Shire of Collie chief executive David Blurton said before the commodity was discovered in Collie, the State was relying heavily on imported coal, and the Government offered incentives for the discovery of a local energy source. “The period between 1930 and 1960...

Fortnum gold project had its fifth consecutive quarter of gold output in the September quarter. All Images: Westgold Resources.   BY AMY BLOM   WESTGOLD has remained undeterred by lower than expected production and higher costs, instead looking to big opportunities still on the horizon.   Despite suffering some setbacks, Westgold Resources was on the way to achieving its goal of becoming a long-life gold producer, having confirmed Big Bell underground was on track for first production before the end of 2018. According to Westgold’s September quarter report, Big Bell had advanced significantly towards production with drilling defining a new ore position to the south, which would enable modest, but early production from the mine in the December quarter. In its annual report...

Millenniums Nullagine Gold Project is in the heart of the Pilbara.   BY JESSICA CUMMINS   MILLENNIUM Minerals chief executive Peter Cash speaks with The Australian Mining Review about reaching its long-awaited 100,000 ounce per annum run rate and what else lies on the horizon.   Millennium Minerals’ flagship Nullagine gold project in the heart of the Pilbara comprises six mining centres along a 40km corridor. Hosting a total resource base of 1.1 million ounces of gold in the under-explored Mosquito Creek Belt, the project has produced 400,000oz since operations commenced in 2012. Gold production has averaged at between 75,000 and 80,000 ounces per year within the 264km mining tenements. During the September quarter the company reached its 100,000ozpa run-rate...

Truck full of ore coming out of the portal from the underground Nova-Bollinger mine. All images: Independence Group.   BY AMY BLOM   AFTER celebrating one year since its Nova mine entered commercial production in September, Independence Group has its sights firmly set on key metals used in renewable energy technologies and electric vehicles, with further expansion and exploration projects across WA and the Northern Territory on the horizon.   Independence Group (IGO) would continue to prioritise exploration work at its Nova operation and the surrounding Fraser Range, following a strong start to FY19. According to its September quarterly activities report released on 29 October, IGO increased net cash to $62 million and achieved metal production guidance at Nova, about 160km...

Evolution Mining executive chairman Jake Klein speaking at IMARC. Image: IMARC.   BY ELIZABETH FABRI   EVOLUTION Mining executive chairman Jake Klein had a clear message for delegates at the recent International Mining and Resources Conference (IMARC) in Melbourne: the industry was experiencing a “cognitive bias” towards gold prices, with lack of sufficient returns rolling in for gold investors.   Evolution's Mr Klein – who has steered the mid-tier miner’s growth since its inception seven years ago—questioned how many gold projects across the country delivered on what was promised in feasibility studies, shedding light on the industry-wide issue of narrow returns for investors. “I started in the gold industry 25 years ago and gold prices were around $US250 an ounce and...

Box cut and mine portal. All images: Heron Resources.   BY JESSICA CUMMINS   HERON Resources has a lot to celebrate, with underground mining now underway at its flagship Woodlawn zinc-copper project, and commissioning on track to begin by the end of this year.   Heron's high-grade Woodlawn project in NSW is a highly prospective zinc-copper deposit, 50km northeast of Canberra. Following the completion of its Feasibility Study in mid-2016, underground mining began at the project in September, with commissioning expected to commence within the next couple of months and first shipment marked for the first quarter of 2019. The high-grade, long-life mine is well placed to participate in a zinc market facing a significant supply shortfall, producing on average 40,000 tonnes...

By October 2018, the water level at the main pit was down about 20m from where it was when Mt Gibson began dewatering. Image: Mount Gibson Iron.   THE rebuild at Koolan Island is now 90 per cent complete and on track for completion in March next year, less than five years after Mount Gibson Iron was forced to close it following extensive flooding. Amy Blom spoke with incoming Mount Gibson Iron chief executive Peter Kerr about the rebuild and what else lies on the horizon for the miner.   Q. Koolan Island closed in 2014 following extensive flooding. What led to the decision to rebuild the seawall?   Mount Gibson approved the rebuild of the seawall in April 2017...

BHP conducted the first blast at its South Flank project in September. Image: BHP.     BY AMY BLOM   MINING giant BHP is on time and on budget to deliver its multibillion dollar South Flank project, having taken off with a flying start in July.   South Flank has made a rapid start in its first three months of construction, according to project director Simon Thomas. Speaking at a WA Mining Club lunch in Perth on 25 October, Mr Thomas said BHP already had more than 600 people working on the project, with local contractors such as NRW, Clough, CPB and Decmil mobilised to site. He said September quarter highlights included an expansion of the Mulla Mulla village facilities...