Surface-mining opportunities lie in market-related commodities
Johannesburg-based mining equipment distributor Vermeer Equipment Suppliers is focusing on certain market-related commodities and associated opencast mines to market its Terrain Leveler surface excavation machines.
Currently, Vermeer continuous surface mining machines are being used in Africa at molybdenum producer China Molybdenum’s Tenke Fungurume mine, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, exploration and mining services company Société Minière de Boké’s bauxite mine, in Guinea, at diversified miner Exxaro Resources’ Grootegeluk opencast coal mine, in Limpopo, and at alluvial diamond mining company Namdeb in Namibia.
Vermeer plans to pursue other commodities that will be in demand within the next few years. The company is approaching mining companies that are mining certain market-related commodities. The Vermeer Terrain Leveler provides users with consistent material size, reducing the need for primary crushers, large loaders, large haul trucks and the associated permits to transport material to crushers. No permits for blasting are required either. This mining method also facilitates selective loading, allowing for the ore to be more easily separated from waste.
Other advantages include access to areas of surface mines where drilling and blasting cannot be done because of physical or permit limitations, as well as a reduction in noise for dust and vibration, compared with drilling and blasting operations. The machine can mine at an incline of between 20° and 30°.
Greenfield mines
This capability enables the machine to start mining directly after vegetation has been cleared, even on hills and slopes. Further, the equipment can remove overburden, and once the ore bodies are exposed, mining can continue. With drill and blast, a lot of mobilisation and demobilisation of equipment is needed to get to the targeted orebody.
Vermeer has identified opportunities at greenfield mines in sub-Saharan Africa. When a greenfield mine is being developed and can eliminate the primary crushing process to get the material into the market much quicker, then continuous surface mining with a Vermeer machine becomes a very viable option.
Implementing surface excavation machines at greenfield mines can save time and may reduce the initial capital investment, as well as generate revenue much faster than traditional methods. Vermeer Equipment Suppliers has the tools and data to estimate how the different Vermeer machine models can perform at a mine. The estimation uses actual data from a mine operation to provide a realistic estimate of how Vermeer’s technology may benefit a mine.
The company can do field testing using a Point Load Tester or a Rock Schmid Hammer to test material on site. If the material is within a range deemed acceptable, further testing will be required. Vermeer has its own dedicated rock laboratory in the US, to which interested mines’ rock samples are sent to determine whether the company’s surface excavation machines could be suitable for the mine. These samples are then subjected to various tests and the laboratory results are being shared with the mining clients.
If it has been determined that Vermeer’s surface excavation machines are suited to a mine’s operations and the client is interested, the client is given the option to either trial the equipment or to visit a comparable mining operation where the company’s equipment is being used in a similar application. When trialling the equipment, Vermeer does a complete efficiency analysis of the mine and provides this data for the client. Trialling can take from two weeks to three months.
