CONVEYING
LKAB awarded ABB a contract to install two ABB Gearless Conveyor Drives ( GCDs ) on the existing TR020 conveyor belt system at its Malmberget iron ore mine
Convey and contrast
Large capacity conveyors are unmatched in efficiency and green credentials for material movement in mining . Paul Moore looks at some projects and technologies
Large underground conveying systems face particular challenges in terms of required power and maintenance , so the high capacity examples are now using gearless drive technology . In Q3 2023 , Swedish iron ore miner LKAB awarded ABB a contract to install two ABB Gearless Conveyor Drives ( GCDs ) on the existing TR020 conveyor belt system at its Malmberget iron ore mine near Gällivare , Norrbotten County , Lapland , the most northern province in Sweden .
The existing setup already carries up to 15 Mt of iron ore every year , using a 2,800 kW wound rotor induction motor ( WRIM ) with gearbox to drive the conveyor . It is being replaced with ABB ’ s latest GCD technology equipped with permanent magnet motors ( PMM ), to enable an increase in annual production while reducing energy consumption per tonne .
ABB ’ s installation engineers and project management team faced the challenge of working in a tight space at around 1,250 m underground to remove the large equipment and replace it with the new units . Once the upgrade is complete this year , LKAB will be able to achieve overall energy savings of between 6 and 10 %, which will translate to considerable OPEX savings per year .
ABB GCDs have a motor power of between 0.2 MW and 8 MW , removing the need for a gearbox and thereby lowering maintenance costs while improving overall reliability and leading to greater uptime . A unique ABB innovation , it says they are known to be the most energy-efficient conveyor drive solution .
“ We are managing the largest iron ore mines in Europe where productivity must remain high while energy efficiency increases ,” said Pär Sundqvist , Automation and Electrification Engineer , LKAB . “ This important upgrade will improve the throughput on the conveyor and help us to meet our energy targets . ABB ’ s technology will also reduce both OPEX per ton and ongoing lifecycle costs .”
“ The new ABB equipment will allow for an improved working environment in the mine – cleaner and safer ,” said Ulf Richter , Product Manager Conveyor Solutions , ABB . “ Gearless Conveyor Drives are known to be the most energy-efficient solution for conveyors , enabling reliable transportation of ore . The upgrade also means reduced noise and heat in the conveyor drive area .”
The GCD ’ s PMM are directly coupled to the existing conveyor ’ s drive pulley and can also adapted to meet the particular demands of this underground installation . The main advantages are energy savings , health and safety improvements , reduced maintenance costs and steady , solid production due to higher reliability . Commissioning is set for May 2025 with the components either already in Sweden or enroute . In December 2024 , a delegation from LKAB including Automation and Electrification Engineer Pär Sundqvist visited the VEM GmbH motor factory in Dresden together with ABB for a successful FAT on the new driveline for TR020 . It is a low voltage ABB ACS880 driven gearless 2 x 1,650 kW permanent magnet motor drive for the conveyor which is 1,700 m long and has a capacity of over 3,000 t / h .
Oyu Tolgoi ’ s C2S comes together
Copper and gold mine Oyu Tolgoi early last year marked the beginning of its C2S underground conveyor belt commissioning in Mongolia with the posting on February 24 of an informational video on the project to coincide with the first belt pull . Delgerdalai Lkhamsuren , Senior Manager Construction at MCS Property LLC , which has been carrying out underground facilities development for Oyu Tolgoi since 2016 commented : “ Today is a big day for us . MCSP started working on the construction of the conveyor to surface ( C2S ) project in 2022 . It is a
big project that involves a lot of people . It is a huge conveyor system that is 6.7 km in length from a depth of 1,300 m , capable of transporting 95,000 t / d of material .”
He added : “ Behind me you can see that the belt is being prepared for a pull up and flaked at the surface facility . Then the belt is pulled down the decline conveyor for about 2.2 km . The decline is at an 18 degree incline angle which can be compared to pulling from the regular inclination of a mountain . Just 1 m of belt weighs about 112 kg , the belt at its overall length weighs about 320 t . This is a high risk task that is performed by many people based on engineering calculations , with pre-determined methodology and risk assessments . After all the risk mitigation controls are in place , the task is being performed … right now we are pulling the first ever belt and in total we will go through 6.7 km of belt ups . It should be noted that the task if being performed in cold weather , therefore the preparation works from an ambient temperature point of view are extra challenging . However , our team has made all possible preparations for this moment .”
The C2S system is a key component of the Oyu Tolgoi underground Material Handling System ( MHS ) and will be the main means of transporting ore from underground as well as providing direct access to the mine from the surface . The first phase , often called MHS1 entails production shaft 2 which has a production capacity of 25,000 t / d through the hoisting system . With the second phase , often referred to as MHS2 , the conveyor to surface ( C2S ) system will take the mine to approximately 95,000 t / d of ore . The C2S system comprises three identical 2,202 m long , 1.6 m wide steel cord conveyors that will operate at 6 m / s .
Andrew Weir , Worley Commissioning Manager talked specifically about MHS2 and C2S project : “ So the belt up of CVB2022 represents 14 months of planning and execution . That equates to 2,291 FICs or 176 CVC packs . Overall that equates to 23 % of total completion for MHS2 .” He said it has taken the collaboration of a number of companies to get to this this point – these include MCSP , Worley , FLS , Bubenzer , Siemens , Ampcontrol , ABB , Belle Banne , Tavan Ord , Energy International , Sempertrans , Syntron Material Handling and of course OT . He adds : “ It ’ s been a fantastic effort to date – we still have a long way to go to get overall completion for MHS2 , but this represents a significant milestone in our journey towards first ore for MHS2 .”
These companies have supplied a range of technologies , services and products . Worley ’ s
38 International Mining | FEBRUARY 2025