OPERATION FOCUS
Ridder’s riches
A development drill at the new Dolinny operation
Zhairem is either smelted at Ust-Kamenogorsk
or sold to the Chinese market.
The RMCC organisation covers the three
mines and concentrator, with some 3,000
employees and including also an automated
systems control department, power facilities,
materials procurement and analytical/technical
control.
Modern mining at RMCC
Paul Moore had the opportunity to visit the Kazzinc-
owned Ridder Mining and Concentrating Complex in East
Kazakhstan in 2019, including the new Dolinny operation.
The polymetallic complex is already one of the world’s
most productive and modern mines but is taking a step
further with greater automation and application of more
continuous haulage processes
he company was established in 1997
through the merger of East Kazakhstan's
three main non-ferrous metal companies:
Ust-Kamenogorsk Lead and Zinc Complex,
Leninogorsk Polymetallic Complex (now known
as RMCC) and the Zyryanovsk Lead Complex. All
three producers were majority-owned by the
Government of Kazakhstan. The controlling
block of shares in Kazzinc was then sold to the
private sector and Glencore International AG
became the company's main investor.
In the years since its creation, Kazzinc has
significantly increased production capacity and
output. The company continues to develop,
seeking to gain a stable position among the
world's top five zinc producers with the lowest
production cost. The company established an
integrated management system in accordance
with ISO 9001, ISO 14001, and ISO 50001
international standards capturing the entire
non-ferrous metals production cycle: from ore
mining to ore treatment with production of
refined metals; ancillary facilities supporting the
production and providing infrastructure,
transportation, resources, as well as waste
disposal capabilities.
In 2004 Kazzinc was first certified under DIN
EN ISO 9001 (Quality Management System).
Currently the management system is
successfully operated and undergoes periodic
verification audits of quality and environmental
management system for compliance with DIN
T
International Mining | FEBRUARY 2020
EN ISO 9001 and DIN EN ISO 14001.
The huge RMCC operation is some 120 km
from Ust-Kamenogorsk and some 1,000 km from
Nur-Sultan. The complex has had an impressive
safety record in recent years, boosted by a new
safety performance programme that began in
2013 to reduce the number of industrial
incidents. For the whole of RMCC between 2013-
2018, TRIFR has fallen from 4.60 to 1.38; LTIFR
from 2.73 to 1.27 and DISR from 205.6 to 70. It
covers everything from mining operations
themselves to maintenance processes eg
upgrading equipment and processes to
behavioural and cultural issues and applies
both to RMCC employees as well as contractors.
The mines in general operate 24/7 with two 10
hour shifts and maintenance/development
blasting between shifts and the number of
production blasts per month depending on the
mine.
RMCC consists of three main mines – Ridder
Sokolny, Dolinny and Tishinsky, which deliver
ore to the main RMCC concentrator. The
operation also processes part of the company’s
Zhairem MCC mine pre-concentrate. Zinc
concentrate goes from the RMCC concentrator
to the RMC smelter plant for production of zinc
ingots at site, while gold, copper and lead
concentrates are shipped to the smelter in Ust-
Kamenogorsk for metal production at the lead
and copper smelters and precious metals
refinery located there. Lead concentrate from
The original Ridder mining operation is one of
the most historic mines in the world still
operating – the mining company was founded in
1786, two years after British engineer and
businessman Philip Ridder discovered the
polymetallic deposits in the foothills of Rudny
Altay. Mining started in 1791. The city of Ridder
was renamed Leninogorsk in 1941, but it
reverted back to its original name in 2002.
In 1914 – the deposit development rights
passed to the English firm of Leslie Urquhart but
in 1918 the Urquhart concession was terminated
and the mines were flooded. Then in 1925
reconstruction and systematic exploration of the
Ridder deposits commenced. In 1994 the Ridder
mine and Leninogorsk mine were merged into a
single Ridder-Sokolny mine and in 2001-2002
more consolidation came when the Ridder-
Sokolny mine and 40th Anniversary of VLKSM
mine were merged.
Looking at the mines individually, Ridder-
Sokolny has mined 198 Mt between 1789 and
2019 including 3.15 Mt Zn, 1.6 Mt Pb and 1.6 Mt
Cu along with 580 t of gold and 5,500 t of silver.
It has some 1,000 workers.
The Tishinskoye deposit was discovered in
1958 and in 1965 the Tishinsky open pit was put
into operation. The year 1968 saw the start of
Tishinsky underground mining and in 1978 the
termination of open pit operations. It has about
800 employees and since the start of operations
60 Mt have been mined (11 Mt of which from the
open pit) including 3.985 Mt Zn, 745,000 t Pb,
315,000 Cu, 53 t Au and 957 t Ag. As is clear from
these figures, zinc production is the main driver
at Tishinsky and this mine was the main reason a
zinc smelter was built in Ridder in the first place.
Production is now winding down but in-mine
exploration drilling continues to extend the
minelife further. The mine NSR for 2018 stood at
72% Zn, 15% Cu, Pb 7%, 5% Au and 1% Ag.
The new and advanced development Dolinny
mine (with some 100 workers currently) is the
operation IM visited. The deposit was
discovered in 1987 and between 1991-2013
exploration drilling of 83,000 m was carried out
and 11,120 core samples were analysed. In 2013
the Dolinny deposit was accessed for
underground mining with the in-house Kazzinc-