BHP has produced the first nickel sulphate crystals from its Kwinana nickel sulphate plant south of Perth in Western Australia.
Nickel sulphate is a key material in the lithium-ion batteries that power electric vehicles (EVs), with more than 85 per cent of BHP’s current production sold to the future-battery supply chain.
The production follows an announcement in July that BHP will supply Tesla with nickel from its Nickel West assets in a collaboration which will aim to make the battery supply chain more sustainable.
According to BHP, the nickel sulphate plant is an Australian-first and will produce 100,000 tonnes of nickel sulphate per year when fully operational.
Nickel from BHP’s mines is processed at the Kalgoorlie nickel smelter, before it is transported to the Kwinana nickel refinery and refined into nickel metal in the form of powder or briquette.
The powder is then processed through the new sulphate plant to make nickel sulphate and will be exported to global battery markets from Fremantle port.
BHP Nickel West asset president Jessica Farrell said the plant is expected to produce enough premium nickel sulphate to make 700,000 EV batteries each year.
“The plant will create 80 new direct jobs and support 400 new indirect jobs, in addition to the 200 construction jobs that were created during the construction phase,” Farrell said,
“High quality and sustainable nickel is essential for our customers, and we expect demand for nickel in batteries will increase by 500 per cent in the next decade.
“Our investment to upgrade the refinery to produce high purity nickel sulphate, along with nickel powder and briquettes, will enhance Nickel West’s position as a supplier of choice for the growing global electric battery market.”
Over half of the plant was fabricated in Western Australia using local skills and suppliers including the steel work, fibreglass leach vessels and stainless steel tanks.
The plant consists of leaching tanks, purification technology, a crystalliser and dryer, and an automated packaging system.
BHP’s Nickel West employs over 2500 people and its operations include a fully integrated mine-to-metal business.
This includes open cut and underground mining operations in Western Australia; concentrators at Mt Keith, Leinster and Kambalda; a smelter at Kalgoorlie that produces nickel-in-matte; and the Kwinana refinery.
OceanaGold has recommenced operations at its Macraes and Waihi gold operations in New Zealand, after COVID-19 spikes caused the sites to shutdown from mid-August.
The mines were shut down from midnight beginning August 17 and were reopened four days later than anticipated at midnight beginning September 1.
The Macraes gold mine is the largest gold mine in New Zealand, having produced over five million ounces of gold since 1990.
Waihi was also targeting 35,000 to 45,000 ounces of gold in 2021, but OceanaGold expected the shutdown and ongoing restrictions to restrict group production by around 4000 to 5000 ounces of gold in for 2021.
OceanaGold president and chief executive officer Michael Holmes said the company would continue to respect the restrictions put in place by the New Zealand Government.
“We are pleased with the restart of operations at Macraes and Waihi following the easing of COVID-19 restrictions,” Holmes said.
“We have operated responsibly in New Zealand for over 30 years and will continue to work in partnership with the Government to contain the spread of COVID-19.
“Our operations have strict health and safety protocols in place to safeguard the wellbeing of our workforce as we continue our legacy of providing meaningful socio-economic benefit to the local communities.”
The country’s shut down was an Alert Level Four which is New Zealand’s highest level of alert and asks unessential businesses to halt operations.
Holmes said OceanaGold would strive to offset the loss in production.
“Over the course of the remaining months, we will continue to look for opportunities to make up for the decrease in production as a result of the COVID-19 impacts,” he said.
“We will continue to manage the risks associated with the COVID-19 virus with the health and safety of our workforce being paramount.”
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Australia has well positioned to benefit from the rise of critical minerals, according to the federal government’s Outlook for Selected Critical Minerals Australia 2021 report.
Released by the Office of the Chief Economist in the Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources, the report detailed the prospect for market growth in metals such as lithium, cobalt, graphite, vanadium, and rare earth elements like neodymium, praseodymium and dysprosium.
Minister for Resources, Water and Northern Australia Keith Pitt said Australia must take advantage of its privileged position in the market.
“Australia is blessed with abundant resources and a highly-skilled workforce which is ready to transform these minerals and elements into the kinds of products the world needs,” Pitt said.
The report credited Lynas Rare Earths – an Australian mid-tier mining company – for being the largest non-Chinese supplier of rare earth products.
“Australia’s mined production of rare earths is forecast to grow by 9.1 per cent per annum over the outlook period (2020-2030), largely as a result of investment by Lynas at their Mount Weld operation,” the report stated.
Highly considered by the report was the market conditions surrounding electric vehicles and associated battery storage technology.
The global fleet size of electric vehicles is expected to grow by 30 per cent by 2050, leaving the battery storage market to lag behind.
This has occurred due to heightened investment by auto manufacturers, according to the report.
“Auto manufacturers have invested heavily in the transition from internal combustion engines (ICE) to electric vehicles (EV), and therefore it is in their interests to recoup their investment as quickly as possible,” the report stated.
“Currently, auto manufacturer’s planned capacity increases to 2025 exceed the requirements of announced government policies.”
Pitt said the Australian Government is supporting the development of the necessary minerals for electrification.
“Australia is already the world’s top producer of lithium, and the Government’s Critical Minerals Facilitation Office is supporting the development of other resources, downstream processing, and helping to diversify global supply chains,” Pitt said.
“Australia also has a stable investment environment and stable governance arrangements that make Australia an attractive location for critical minerals investment and development.”
Australian gold production fell by nine tonnes for a total of 74 for the March quarter, down 11 per cent on the previous period, according to gold consultants Surbiton Associates.
The output was worth $5.5 billion at the quarter’s average gold price and Surbiton director Sandra Close said the drop was nothing to worry about.
“While gold output for the quarter was down considerably, this is no cause for concern,” Close said.
“Production was about three tonnes or four per cent less than the corresponding March 2020 quarter and such variations are not uncommon.”
Surbiton said while the period was usually victim to cyclonic weather in northern Australia, this had less of an impact than other years.
Close said China’s gold production was more noteworthy, as the world leader produced 74.44 tonnes of gold for the March quarter.
“Chinese production figures need to be treated with caution,” Close said.
“Australia may even be on the way to overtaking China as the world’s largest gold producer, but it is far too early to draw any real conclusions.”
In Australia, Kirkland Gold’s Fosterville mine in Victoria fell from third to fifth on the country’s list of largest gold producers, with a decline of 55,000 ounces on the last quarter.
Retaining top spot was Newcrest Mining’s Cadia East mine with 179,546 ounces of gold for the quarter.
Close said while some larger mines fell, other up-and-coming operations will look to challenge them over the next few years.
“Fosterville, Tropicana and Boddington together accounted for a reduction in output of 116,000 ounces, or 3.6 tonnes of gold, which was more than one third of the total reduction for the March 2021 quarter,” Close said.
“Novo and Ora Banda will increase output as they ramp up to full capacity over the next few months.
“Also, Capricorn Metals’ Karlawinda is due to start up mid-year and Wiluna Mines’ expansion project is underway.”
Close had no worries for the future of Australian gold, as prices and expenditure in exploration have uplifted the sector significantly.
“Thanks to higher gold prices in the last couple of years, the gold sector has continued to raise considerable capital and there is a tremendous amount of exploration going on, with excellent results being reported,” Close said.
“The chances of Australia’s gold output declining sharply in the next few years is unlikely.”
Australia’s largest gold producers for the March 2021 quarter were:
South32 has met or exceeded production expectations across its Australian operations, not allowing inclement weather to diminish a strong March quarter.
Worsley Alumina, in which South32 owns 86 per cent, is on track to achieve nameplate capacity of 4.7 million tonnes at its bauxite mine in Western Australia.
One of the world’s largest sources of alumina, the mine has undergone planned maintenance to its calciner which allowed nameplate to be achieved.
South32 has set a year-to-date production record for its Australian manganese operations at the Groote Eylandt Mining Company operation (GEMCO) in the Northern Territory.
The 4.329 million wet metric tonnes of high-grade manganese produced were a 5 per cent increase on last year’s prior corresponding results.
Despite this, production guidance of 3500 wet metric tonnes for the manganese operation will remain unchanged in consideration of the effects of the wet season.
“We set year to date production records at Brazil alumina and Australia Manganese,” South32 chief executive Graham Kerr said.
“We increased our production guidance for South Africa manganese as we continue to respond to market conditions and at Cannington off the back of continued strong underground performance.”
At the Cannington silver and lead mine in north west Queensland, South32 increased its production guidance by 10 per cent for the 2021 fiscal year, despite also being hit with torrential rain through the March quarter.
Silver production was almost 3.5 million ounces for the March quarter, an 11 per cent increase on the previous period, while lead jumped by 6 per cent on the last quarter to 33,000 tonnes.
South32 expects weather-related disruptions to Cannington’s rail logistics to be resolved over the coming quarter, making March’s strong results all the more impressive.
On the company’s length of positive results, Kerr said they only strengthened confidence in the future for South32.
“Looking ahead, we expect the global economic recovery combined with fiscal stimulus to continue, driving a rebound in metal demand and sustaining higher prices for many of our key commodities,” Kerr said.
“We continue to reshape our portfolio, moving closer to the divestment of South Africa Energy Coal while progressing studies for our base metals development options.”
At South32’s Illawarra metallurgical coal operation in New South Wales, the company reported a 17 per cent increase in year-to-date production.
It produced 1.57 million tonnes of metallurgical coal during the March quarter, which was a 12 per cent increase on the previous quarter.
This increase was thanks in part to the Appin project’s longwall reconfiguration in late-2019, allowing for improved efficiencies.
The coal operation will now look to the June quarter of 2021 for the next stage in its longwall reconfiguration, in hopes that further efficiencies can allow for greater production and less resource waste.
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Yancoal Australia is aggressively targeting organic growth opportunities to build on a rapid turnaround in company performance that led to a record 2018.
The company has highlighted a continuation of demand for its high efficiency thermal coal after posting several production records last year.
Yancoal stated that the power industry’s ongoing focus on improving thermal efficiency in generators would drive demand for the high-quality, low ash thermal coal product in which the company specialises.
Key Asian coal markets such as China and Japan have made a push towards high-efficiency, low emissions (HELE) thermal coal in order to help meet environmental targets.
Yancoal chief executive officer Reinhold Schmidt said the company would invest in new fleets and operational efficiencies across its open cut mines, while progressing a pipeline of Australian brownfield projects, with focus on the Mount Thorley Warkworth and Moolarben operations in New South Wales.
“With three of the most successful low-cost, high-quality producing Tier 1 assets in Australia, we are aggressively pursuing new organic growth opportunities to sustain the profitable return of Yancoal,” Schmidt said.
“Coal remains a critical part of global baseload energy supply and we are well positioned to maximise returns from current market conditions by meeting increasing needs for high quality coal supply.”
Chinese customs reforms this month have resulted in a fall in Australian coal prices, however. Customs clearing times at some Chinese ports have doubled to at least 40 days, according to a report from Reuters.
An official at Dalian Port Group told the news agency that the port was capping coal imports at 12 million tonnes for 2019. Five harbours within Dalian are no longer clearing Australian coal through customs, though coal from Russia and Indonesia is still allowed, the official said.
Despite this market volatility, Yancoal has raised its saleable production guidance for 2019 to 35 million tonnes, 2.1 million tonnes higher than its 2018 record.
The company’s attributable production in 2018 was 32.9 million tonnes, 27.7 million tonnes of which was thermal coal. This figure was nearly 78 per cent higher than the 18.5 million tonnes recorded in 2017.
Correspondingly, the company also achieved a record for its operating earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) at $2.18 billion, a 121 per cent year-on-year increase. Yancoal secured a hat-trick third record, net profit after tax, which stood at $852 million (compared to $229 million in 2017).
Yancoal also announced a $377 million final dividend for shareholders (28.5 cents per share), another record for the company.
The National Group ( Headoffice: Level 3, 68 Marine Parade, Southport BC, QLD 4215 ) has closed out a record breaking 2018 and started 2019 off with a bang by delivering a pair of brand new excavators into Queensland’s Bowen Basin.
The first of these excavators, a Hitachi EX5600, was added to BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance’s (BMA) Peak Downs site where the National Group handed over five Liebherr ultra-class T 282C trucks in September 2018.
The second excavator, a Liebherr R 996B, was delivered to its sister mine Poitrel, part of BHP’s other Queensland joint venture, BHP Mitsui Coal (BMC).
The excavator is the first piece of equipment that National Group has at the coal mine. Founder and managing director of the National Group, Mark Ackroyd, was there in person to hand over the keys at both locations and was very pleased to further contribute to its already strong relationship established with BHP.
“We have been working with BHP for some time now, especially at Peak Downs, so to be adding more equipment there is a testament to the machines we currently have operating for them and speaks volumes of our team onsite who do a great job with maintenance when needed,” he says.
“[At] Poitrel on the other hand, we are very excited to be adding our first piece of equipment there and for it to be the ever-reliable Liebherr 996 digger. We’re confident they are going to love this machine and hope it is just the beginning of things to come,” says Ackroyd.
Bringing such big equipment down under is a very complex process and one that requires a lot of aspects to go right, which is where National Group differentiates itself from most. It has the capabilities to handle all transport, assembly and delivery, giving their customers peace of mind when securing these long-term rentals.
“We know how difficult it can be to get the bigger gear to Australia first of all, let alone having to worry about everything else once it arrives here. That is why we have worked very hard to build brands that complement each other in the entire journey of port-to-pit,” Ackroyd explains.
National Group is coming off one of its best years to date. However, it shows no signs of slowing down in 2019 with future plans already to invest in technology and enter the automation space.
“The mining industry is now following the technology trend around the world and automation is at the forefront of this, says Ackroyd. “It is all about finding different ways to help your customers succeed and embracing innovation to get that edge over competitors.”
Liebherr is ready to strengthen the reputation of the R 9100/R 9150 excavators when its B versions of the machines arrive at Australian mines this year.
As the R 9100 has proved to be a worthy successor to the R 984 C excavators over the past seven years, Liebherr is convinced the B versions will add further benefits.
Liebherr delivered widespread improvements on the R 984 C with the R 9100 and R 9150, and set similar expectations during development of the new models.
The original versions have, however, provided a strong foundation for Liebherr to build on.
Liebherr launched the R 9100 in 2010 and the R 9150 two years later. Since 2012, the OEM has sold machines for operation in 21 countries over six continents.
The excavators have operated for more than one million hours at the mines, with a third of the machines recording more than 15,000 hours each.
They are used across operations for numerous commodities, including gold, coal, iron ore, copper, nickel and manganese.
Australian miners and contractors are amongst the users of the machines, including Blue Cap Mining, which operates two R 9150 excavators at gold sites in Western Australia and Queensland.
Blue Cap general manager Paul Allen says the R 9150 has many notable qualities that have made it suitable for the small hard rock operations where they are in use.
“We have seen both excavators perform well at different sites with different challenges,” Allen tells Australian Mining.
“Part of the reason we went for the 9150 was the specification and capacity of the machine, its hydraulic system and the additional power you are pulling in that unit – it has 565kW.”
Blue Cap pairs the excavators with haul trucks in the 100-tonne class, a match that been a strong fit for the designs of the pits at the gold sites.
Another key factor that helped the R 9150 stand out for Blue Cap was the technology Liebherr included on the machines, Allen continues.
“It was (at the time) more about some of the newer technology that Liebherr embedded around productivity and fuel efficiency,” he says.
“We are seeing around 15-20 per cent more efficiency out of this digger compared to some competition.”
With the success of Blue Cap’s R 9150 excavators, Allen has taken a keen interest in the updates incorporated on Liebherr’s updated models.
The B-version excavators were launched in January and the first machine in Australia will be received this month.
Liebherr senior product manager – mining excavators George Barturen backs the new excavators to drive productivity at mining operations, whatever the environment.
“Such systems are robustly designed and will be very well suited to the Australian mining environment from our extensive experience over the last five decades,” Barturen says.
“The B series machines, as was the R 9100 are suited to all mining and quarrying operators as the machine brings a competitive advantage regardless of the mined commodity with a reduced cost per tonne.”
Blue Cap’s R 9150 at the Red Dog site. image: Blue Cap Mining.
Stepping up operations
Liebherr’s updated hydraulic excavators have been developed to provide a step forward in performance and reliability, while lowering the cost per tonne.
Both models have received upgrades across the machine, including the latest generation of Liebherr’s D9512 engine, which offers an increased lifetime target of 15,000 hours, and other features that support maintenance efficiency.
The B versions include the exclusive EVO Bucket Solution, maximising loading capacity and ensuring optimal penetration efficiency.
With contoured sidewalls and augmented depth, the EVO Bucket has a 7.5m3 capacity on the R 9100 B and 8.8m3 and 9.6m3 on the R 9150 B, the latter being available on machines configured with a shorter boom.
The buckets match the excavators with the Liebherr T 236 truck, as well as other articulated and rigid trucks in the 50–100-tonne class.
Liebherr has positioned the R 9150 B directly between the 100-tonne and 200-tonne class machines with its bucket capacities. The R 9150 B begins to challenge the productivity of larger machines in the 200-tonne class with 12m3 buckets.
Barturen says incorporating the patented EVO Bucket design to the new machines is the most significant advance that increases productivity.
“This has brought about an increase in bucket payload with a reduction in bucket weight, whilst maintaining the same fast cycle time,” Barturen says.
“Additionally, the EVO Bucket for backhoe machines Liebherr is introducing several patented innovations together with machine functional control systems to provide the operator with semi-automatic functions increasing the overall efficiency and productivity of both machines.”
Barturen, a Liebherr employee since 1991, has worked closely with the company’s mining excavator team on the development of the B versions.
Alongside fellow Liebherr product manager Michel Runser, Barturen has guided the excavators through their final stages of development before launch.
“The main drivers in the development process were to improve the machine as a whole, enhancing machine safety, improving reliability and productivity KPIs and introduce operator comfort options, both active and passive.” Barturen says.
“The Australian mining industry drives continuous improvement of the machines through the different standards, guidelines and mining industry associations.
“Additionally, Liebherr has an internal global reporting system, which brings feedback directly into the factory from the field, speeding up the implementation and introduction of suggested improvements to suit the market, which is continuously driving improvement.”
Updated Liebherr engine
This series of Liebherr excavator was the first to introduce the OEM’s own diesel engines, a milestone reflected in the B versions. The R 9100 B and R 9150 B are equipped with Liebherr’s latest D9512 V12 diesel engine, which exists in Tier 2 and USA/EPA Tier 4 final version.
Liebherr Australia executive general manager, customer service, Tony Johnstone says the company’s service team has updated its skillset to support the new engine since its introduction.
Johnstone believes this has led to a new approach for the team, which has previously serviced and maintained engines from other OEMs.
“For us the challenge has been the development of our service technicians to be ready to work on the machines, understand the systems and be able to provide the best services that are required for customers,” Johnstone says.
“We’ve also had the challenge of upskilling our technical trainers so that we could train all of our service technicians in the Liebherr engine.”
Liebherr’s Australian-based technicians completed training on the engines in the company’s Switzerland engine factory certified training centre, with focus on control systems, maintenance and diagnostics.
In addition, customer training will be provided by Liebherr certified trainers at the new technical training centre at the Para Hills West facility in Adelaide.
The company has also ensured it has widespread availability of the unique service and maintenance parts for the engine.
“We had to stock appropriately for parts and for the future which we are working on now; we are enabling our remanufacturing centre to rebuild and run the D95 series engine,” Johnstone says.
“It has been a ground up approach because it was the first Liebherr engine in a Liebherr mining excavator.”
Liebherr’s preparation for the change of engine has the services team well placed to support the B versions once they arrive in Australia.
The R 9150 B will also be available in electric drive.
The updated features of the B version machines. Image: Liebherr.
Comfort and safety first
The B-version machines feature an upper structure that is accessible via a robust fixed ladder or 45-degree access stair in option. It integrates one large central platform equipped with slip resistant surfaces.
Liebherr has designed the new arrangement with wide catwalks to facilitate maintenance and to ensure comfort during operations.
“Included in the upgrade was the integration of hard safety systems – an improved catwalk on the left side of the machine, together with a handrail installation on the counterweight for added safety during machine and engine maintenance tasks,” Barturen says.
“Integration of HEPA filtration of the operator cabin is available should the requirement be needed.”
The cab, updated with improved ergonomics and operator attenuation, provides the ideal working platform and optimal comfort for operators.
Liebherr’s resiliently mounted cabin on ISO mounts reduces vibration, while a new cabin interior liner provides a two decibel decrease in noise levels in the cabin for the operator.
Technology advances
Liebherr has shown its awareness of modern connectivity needs, equipping the B version machines with GSM data transmission, together with the ability to transmit on customer site networks to provide operating parameters, error codes and machine faults.
Machine end users can access the data through the Liebherr Mining Data (LMD) platform, and generate custom reports to track and analyse machine data.
Barturen says the excavator product team focused on Liebherr’s six pillars of mining: safety and environment, productivity, efficiency, reliability, customer service, safety, and environment when enhancing the machines with technology.
“Improvements to the machines’ operating systems provides enhanced machine operational efficiency. Together with the integration of machine data management and analytics, the B series will enable customers to increase the effective utilisation of the machine in lowering the cost per tonne,” Barturen says.
“Customer service is enhanced by on board systems for the management of the machines’ maintenance and reliability interfacing with the Liebherr developed Troubleshoot Advisor.”
The data collected by the connectivity kit is recorded in a worldwide database for processing and assessment by Liebherr.
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