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MODERN MINING
May 2015
MINING News
In its latest quarterly report for the three
months ended March 31, 2015, First
Quantum Minerals (FQM) notes that tech-
nical commissioning of the new smelter at
its Kansanshi copper mine near Solwezi in
north-west Zambia has been successfully
completed. It says that the ramp-up of
the facility is progressing well with a sub-
sequent reduction in the mine’s copper
concentrate inventory and use of by-prod-
uct sulphuric acid in the mine’s oxide and
mixed ore circuits replacing third-party
purchases.
Also in Zambia’s Nor th-Western
Province, FQM is developing the Sentinel
First Quantum’s Zambian projects now ramping up
open-pit copper mine. It reports that
Sentinel’s Train 1 is progressing towards
steady-state operations and that ramp-up
during the peak of thewet season achieved
periods above nameplate design through-
put. Commissioning of Train 2 continued
during the quarter. Commercial produc-
tion for the mine is currently expected in
Q3 2015.
“We’re very pleased with the rapid
ramp-up of the smelter which reflects
the diligent work done throughout the
planning and construction of the proj-
ect to ensure this outcome. As a result,
Kansanshi’s concentrate inventory is being
reduced and sulphuric acid from the
smelter is being used in the mine’s process-
ing facilities in higher volumes and much
earlier than anticipated in our operating
plan,” noted Philip Pascall, First Quantum’s
Chairman and CEO.
“Likewise, the ramp-up of the Sentinel
mine is steadily improving as the wet
season in the region eases. Over the
remainder of the year, we expect the com-
pany’s total production and unit costs to
reflect the benefits of having a dedicated
smelter, Sentinel’s increasing production
and the opportunity at Kansanshi to treat
more mixed and oxide ores with free acid
from the smelter.”
He added that Kansanshi ’s Q1
performance was in line with previously-
provided guidance for 2015. “In that
guidance, we mentioned that the mine’s
output was expected to be at its lowest for
the year during Q1 because we intended
to limit sulphuric acid consumption, and
hence production, until free acid became
available as a by-product from our smelter.
The latter is now being realised.”
The Kansanshi mine is Africa’s big-
gest copper mine and in 2014 produced
263 000 tonnes of copper as well as
155 000 ounces of gold. The new smelter
is expected to process 1,2 Mt/a of con-
centrate to produce over 300 000 t of
copper metal once in full operation. It will
also produce 1 Mt/a of sulphuric acid as a
by-product. The new Sentinel mine is cost-
ing US$2 billion to develop and has the
capacity to produce 300 000 t/a of copper
concentrate. The project includes a mod-
ern, full-service town.
The new Kansanshi smelter is expected to process 1,2 Mt/a of concentrate to produce over 300 000 t of
copper metal once in full operation (photo: FQM).
DRA secures milestone project in Sierra Leone
Global engineering and project delivery
company DRA has announced that it has
been awarded Phase 1 of the Gangama
mineral sands project in south-west Sierra
Leone by Sierra Rutile Limited (SRL).
SRL is a leading producer of mineral
sands and reportedly the world’s second
largest producer of natural rutile. The com-
pany’s lease in Sierra Leone is the world’s
largest known deposit of natural rutile and
has been mined since the early 1960s.
The 500 t/h Phase 1 project has been
awarded to DRA on a lump sum turnkey
(LSTK) basis. Design, procurement, con-
struction and commissioning will be carried
out by DRA’s internal specialist LSTK Projects
Group. Beneficiation in the new process
plant will include scrubbing, screening,
desliming and gravity spirals recovery.
Concentrate will be further upgraded on
site by the existing beneficiation plant.
Paul Thomson, DRA’s global CEO, com-
ments: “This is an especially pleasing
award for DRA and represents something
of a milestone in our 30-year history. It
is a significant mineral sands project for
us, and our first project in Sierra Leone. It
adds to our growing complement of recent
projects in West Africa, which includes
the New Liberty gold project in Liberia for
Aureus Mining and theYaramoko gold proj-
ect in Burkina Faso for Roxgold.
“We’ve been working closely with the
Sierra Rutile team on studies and alterna-
tive designs for the past nine months. This
period included a joint value engineering
exercise which resulted in cost savings of
several million dollars. This demonstrates
our ability to develop optimum solutions
for projects, based on innovative thinking
by the teams of both DRA and our client.”
Site works on the project will begin
shortly with commissioning expected in
April 2016.