REPROCESSING & RETREATMENT
well as electric pumps , which use electricity from renewable sources rather than fossil fuels such as diesel . Thus , over 10 years , the project will cut emissions amounting to 484,000 t of CO 2 , Vale says .
Four Cutter Suction Dredges have been supplied by Netherlands-based company Royal IHC , which are 46-m long and weigh 364 t . The first of these was commissioned in October 2022 . The project ’ s Operations Manager , Roberto Francisco , said : “ In addition to desilting the dam , we are reducing the amount of tailings in the structure and transforming them into a new product , avoiding the necessity of future [ dam ] raisings . We do this by focusing on reducing CO 2 emissions .”
The TAD approach to tailings
In other collaborations , OZ Minerals , Boliden and Rio Tinto are working to unlock new and innovative technologies for managing tailings , helping the mining industry further reduce risk while extracting the materials the world needs for the energy transition from what was previously regarded as ‘ waste ’, they say .
Under the umbrella of OZ Minerals ’ Think & Act Differently ( TAD ) incubator initiative , the three companies will fund and support innovators working to reimagine mining and processing to eliminate , minimise , reuse or find value in mine tailings . The three companies will also collaborate on other selected innovations to pursue improved productivity while delivering benefits such as lower emissions and reduced waste .
The TAD program works towards building an ecosystem of partners who will explore and accelerate themes that prioritise social and environmental responsibility for the development of the modern mine , OZ Minerals says .
The collaboration will support innovators by providing materials , funding , technical guidance and the potential for field trials at mine operations , the companies said .
Mark Davies , Chief Technical Officer for Rio Tinto , said : “ It isn ’ t very often that competitors come together to collaborate on industry-critical work . One such area historically has been health , safety and environment , where we learned that sharing leading practices boosts our collective performance . We think collaborating on tailings management capability improvement could have a similar , industry-wide impact .”
Aimed at devising innovative and sustainable repurposing , re-commercialising and remediation solutions to create the greatest value for future custodians , enviroMETS is a joint METS Ignited and Queensland Government partnership that , the partners say , will provide a conduit of innovative industry-led solutions for government and mining companies .
This cluster initiative will deploy skills , research and experience in : n Mine lifecycle planning ; n Geochemical and mine-affected water management ; n Mine waste reprocessing ; n Geotechnical and tailings storage facilities ; n Mine closure management ; and n Governance / policy / regulatory framework . enviroMETS will enable commercial collaborations to research and deploy new technologies such as reprocessing mine waste for essential mineral extraction or repurposing the landform for another commercial use , the partners say .
Sedgman recently said it would partner with enviroMETS , supporting its mission to find innovative and sustainable repurposing , recommercialising and remediation solutions to mining-impacted land .
A CIMIC Group company , Sedgman is a specialist in mineral processing and has experience designing and executing solutions for reducing tailings volumes in projects involving tailings reprocessing and dewatering .
The Sedgman team has expertise in mine rehabilitation and will bring its experience to this opportunity to collaborate with government , researchers , mine owners and METS ( mining equipment technology and service ) companies to find solutions for abandoned mines that provide not only a rehabilitated landscape but also positive community and cultural legacies , it said .
Sedgman said : “ A low-emissions future isn ’ t possible without mining the key minerals to support renewable technologies . enviroMETS Qld and Sedgman will work to attract the best and brightest to join the industry to help deliver sustainable mining solutions in Queensland and globally .”
Re-commercialising Mount Morgan
Still in Queensland , Heritage Minerals is set to benefit from a A $ 66 million ($ 44 million ) loan from the Australian Government ’ s Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility ( NAIF ) to help capitalise the Mount Morgan Tailings Processing and Rehabilitation Project . This follows confirmation in late 2022 of grant funding support from the Queensland Government via its Invested in Queensland Program .
The project is now moving rapidly to financial close and all necessary approvals are in hand , according to Heritage . The company recently started to plan an array of early works and began preparations for the forthcoming construction phase .
The proposed project at Mount Morgan will treat 2 Mt / y of tailings . A new water treatment plant will also be built to reduce the site ’ s contaminated water burden .
Heritage Minerals Managing Director , Malcolm Paterson , said its plans for the environmental rehabilitation of the old site , which operated as a mine from 1882 to 1990 , funded by recovery of gold and copper from the mine tailings , is expected to support jobs for many years to come .
“ The Mount Morgan mine created so much wealth and prosperity and had wide-ranging impacts , including providing the impetus for the establishment of BP and the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute , Australia ’ s oldest medical research institute ,” he said .
Heritage Minerals is working with government and industry partners to re-commercialise the Mount Morgan Mine and simultaneously reduce ongoing impacts from the mine site which flow into water courses ultimately discharging into the Great Barrier Reef .
Heritage previously appointed GreenGold Engineering to carry out the definitive feasibility study ( DFS ) on Mount Morgan .
GreenGold and its ReCYN resin-based technology have been shown on other projects to reduce cyanide consumption by up to 50 % through capturing free cyanide from plant tailings and recycling it back into the leach circuit .
Establishing enviroMETS
In Queensland , Australia , meanwhile , mining companies are now tapping into the collaborative innovation of experienced organisations to deliver maximum value and enhanced future uses of post-mining land with the launch of industry-led , not-for-profit enviroMETS .
The proposed project at Mount Morgan will treat 2 Mt / y of tailings , with a new water treatment plant also built to reduce the site ’ s contaminated water burden
62 International Mining | APRIL 2023