24
MODERN MINING
June 2014
PLATINUM
Main Shaft winder house
showing the double drum
men and materials winder
(left) and the Koepe rock
winder (photo: Arthur
Tassell).
safety performance “looking good” with only a
few minor incidents having been reported since
the end of February this year. “The team has
embarked upon various campaigns to sensitise
employees to work safely and this is contribut-
ing positively to current trends,” he said.
The latest milestone at BPM is just one of a
number of targets achieved this year, with con-
tinual progress being made in the shaft sinking
(being undertaken by Aveng Mining Shafts &
Underground), the installation of fire suppres-
sion systems and the pre-commissioning of the
ventilation shaft winder. The focus of project
work between now and the end of the year
will be on improved shaft-sinking rates, station
breakaways, station and level development and
further optimisation work regarding ventilation
and compressors.
Looking further ahead, 2016 will see bulk
water and electricity services being commis-
sioned and 2017 the conclusion of shaft sinking
and the start of construction on the first mod-
ule of the 260 000 tonnes/month concentrator
plant. The Main Shaft will be fully completed
in 2018 and the production ramp-up will then
start, with full production expected by 2020.
A revised feasibility study on the plant –
which will have a standard MF2 design – is
currently being finalised by WorleyParsons
(which is also the EPCM contractor for the
overall project). However, some continued bulk
sampling is planned when the Ventilation Shaft
passes through the reef. This work will be used
to further confirm the mill sizing.
Earlier this year, Wesizwe – which is effec-
tively controlled by Chinese interests led by
the Jinchuan Group – announced that it had
completed and approved an Optimisation
Study which has significantly improved the
business case for the mine. As we reported in
our March 2014 issue, the initial 230 kt/month
production level is now planned for October
2020 as opposed to December 2022, there is
an 8,7 % increase in mine capacity to 250 kt/
month of ROM at full capacity and steady state
monthly production increases to 35 280 ounces
(4E) per month or 420 000 ounces (4E) a year,
a 20 % increase in the originally envisaged
annual production rate. The average employee
complement at steady state is expected to be
reduced by 235 people to 3 135.
On the technical side, all mining will be
fully or semi-mechanised (with the introduc-
tion of the UG2 mechanised method envisaged
in the BFS to the Merensky Reef horizon as
well) and there will now be substantial use of
conveyor belts for ore transport and chairlifts
for people transport. New level positions and
mining layouts have been introduced, the Main
and Ventilation Shafts have been reduced in
depth and a revised shaft pillar strategy put in
place (the shaft pillar will now be mined at the
end of mine life).
The shortening of the shafts has been
accommodated by the removal of the large
underground primary crusher chamber
originally planned and by bringing level
development onto reef horizons (on-reef devel-
opment), resulting in a substantial reduction
(around 402 000 m
3
) in the amount of off-reef
development required.
The figures for the improved logistics result-
ing from the optimisation are impressive.
Horizontal and vertical rock handling capacity
