WORLD PROSPECTS
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hydrogen system , consisting of production , fuelling and haulage , with green hydrogen to be produced at the mine site .
Minas Gerais as a state is seeing green hydrogen movement – as an example , in April 2022 , Germany ’ s Neuman & Esser , with a Brazilian base in Belo Horizonte , signed a protocol of intent with Brazil ’ s Minas Gerais state to invest up to BRL45 million ( about $ 9 million ) in the production of green hydrogen generation equipment . In January 2023 , it was then announced that a collaboration was underway between steel makers in Minas Gerais , the Federal University of Itajuba ( Unifei ) and the H2Brasil project to develop a green hydrogen
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facility . The facility will contain a lab-scale production unit for electrolysis , storage and vehicular delivery of green hydrogen , be totally powered by renewable energy , and have a 60 cu . m / h production capacity .
And Acu , Minas-Rio ’ s export port in northern Rio de Janeiro State , is also in the green hydrogen mix . Fortescue Future Industries and the Port of Acu signed , in 2021 , a Memorandum of Understanding ( MoU ) to assess the opportunity to develop hydrogen-based green industrial projects including development studies into the feasibility of installing a 300 MW capacity green hydrogen plant at Acu . This was followed in 2022 by another MoU between Shell
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and the Port of Acu to jointly build a 10 MW green hydrogen plant , due to be completed by 2025 .
The whole nuGen project is now being driven by First Mode , which led the Mogalakwena truck conversion and delivery . In January 2023 , First Mode and Anglo American ’ s nuGen ZEHS were combined and First Mode entered into a global supply agreement to supply several nuGen systems to Anglo American , which includes the retrofit of approximately 400 ultra-class haul trucks with First Mode ’ s proprietary hybrid fuel cell battery power plant and related infrastructure . www . angloamerican . com ; https :// firstmode . com
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Collahuasi contracts Metso Outotec for flotation plant works
Chilean copper mine operator Compania Minera Dona Ines de Collahuasi ( Anglo American : 44 %/ Glencore : 44 %/ Mitsui via Japan Collahuasi Resources : 12 %) recently closed the tender process for new assets for the new concentration plant at the Cordillera site , in Chile . The implementation of its ‘ Infrastructure development and productive capacity improvement ’ project aims to see the mining operation through the next 20 years via works such as the construction of a desalination plant and associated pumping system , a fifth mill and new facilities to increase mineral recovery ,
As part of this , at the end of March 2023 , Metso Outotec was awarded the contract for six new flotation cells , set to be in operation as of the December quarter of 2024 , which , Collahuasi says , will help it maintain recovery levels , given the increased ore throughput that will result from the commissioning of the new mill , which is currently under construction . Metso Outotec told IM that these are TankCell ® e300 cells with FloatForce mixing technology , which are well proven and efficient in this type of application
and are part of its Planet Positive portfolio . Collahuasi said the technology offered by Metso Outotec showed advantages such as a positive performance in copper recovery from smaller particles , as well as a solid post-sale strategy and spare parts availability . For Collahuasi ’ s Executive Vice-President of Operations , Dalibor Dragicevic , the award of this contract is “ a great advancement in the search for strategic partners that are committed to supporting our growth , giving greater stability to our plant processes through the implementation of technology we have known and have operated for years , but which has been updated with better services ”. In turn , Eduardo Nilo , President of Metso Outotec South America , said : “ There are various noteworthy projects we have successfully completed with Collahuasi , such as the enhancement and upgrade of the ML-1012 ball grinding mill or the improvement of the mine ’ s VPA filter availability through a technological upgrade that increased it significantly . We want to look at future challenges together with our clients . We really like this cells project that seeks maximum efficiency , and we want to continue working with Collahuasi in other challenges with a focus on recycling and circularity .”
The new cells are also characterised by low energy consumption , which contributes to a decrease in greenhouse gases and the reduced use of auxiliary equipment in their operation , as well as a higher metallurgical performance with lower maintenance costs . www . collahuasi . cl ; www . mogroup . com
Pembroke heads for AHS start-up at Olive Downs
Pembroke Resources says it is fast approaching the commencement of its Olive Downs mining operations in June , working together with mining contractor Thiess and key equipment suppliers like Caterpillar and its dealer Hastings Deering as well as shovel supplier Liebherr Mining and CHPP design and construction contractors like CPB Contractors and Sedgman Pty Ltd .
Chairman and CEO , Barry Tudor , commented : “ To date , more than 500,000 hours have gone into construction and over A $ 500 million ($ 335 million ) invested in this exceptional project , while fostering local and regional employment opportunities .”
He also shared images showing delivery of the first truck tray for the fully-autonomous and electric-drive 327-ton class Cat 794 fleet , the coal handling and preparation plant construction and run of mine ( ROM ) stockpile , bridge construction on the 19-km rail corridor , one of the new Liebherr R 9800 excavators and the assembly pad .
A major milestone was reached in February with the delivery of a critical piece of infrastructure , the Sheldon Bridge . The 120-m long , dual-lane , five-span reinforced concrete bridge spans the Isaac River , connecting the operating site to the public road network . Sitting 13 m above the bed of the Isaac River , it provides a river flood immunity exceeding a one-in-100- year event . The bridge was delivered safely with no injuries or notifiable incidents , according to
Pembroke . The principal contractor , Davbridge Constructions , is a local Queensland civil construction company .
Olive Downs has created between 500 and 700 jobs during construction and will create more than 1,000 jobs once in full production , with the majority of those positions to be based within Central and North Queensland .
Olive Downs has a JORC reserve of 527 Mt of steelmaking coal strategically located in the Bowen Basin in central Queensland . It is a highquality , long-life mine estimated at 80 years and will commence mining operations in 2023 , Pembroke says . Once in production , the mine will add to Australia ’ s exports , shipping high-quality
steel-making coal to key markets including s
8 International Mining | MAY 2023