Category: Mines and Quarry

The low price of iron ore has claimed another victim, with Sinosteel Midwest to shut its Blue Hills mine.

110 people will lose their jobs as part of the closure, including 50 workers from mining contractor MACA.

Sinosteel said low iron prices and lengthy delays in obtaining environmental approvals for the expansion of the Blue Hill mines had led to the decision to shut the operation.

“Operations and corporate staff are likely to be progressively made redundant in line with operational requirements,” the company said.

MACA said the Blue Hills contract had generated the company approximately $3.5 million per month.

As a consequence of the suspension MACA advised that its full year revenue guidance for the 2015 financial year will remain approximately $600 million. However MACA said its work in hand position will reduce by approximately $30 million.

Quarry expansions in NSW will add to mining jobs in the state, according to the state Planning department.

Approvals for expansions to two quarries, the Tinda Creek Sand Quarry near the Wollemi National Park, and the Gunlake quarry near Goulburn, will create an additional 18 jobs for each operation, including truck drivers.

The rate of production at the Gunlake quarry will be increased by 50 per cent to see up to 750,000 tonnes of rock extracted each year.

Of the 15 submissions made in relation to Gunlake, seven opposed the expansion on grounds of noise, dust, surface water and other environmental considerations.

A spokesman for the department said the departmental compliance team would monitor the site to ensure strict conditions determined during public consultation were followed.

“We have approved the expansion based on the fact that the associated impacts can be appropriately controlled and it will bring a number of benefits for the local community and NSW as a whole, including more jobs and helping to meet construction industry demand for rock,” a spokesman said.

Approval for the expansion of the Tinda Creek sand mine will extend the lease from 2021 to 245, which will allow 300,000 production tonnes per year.

“Not only does this mean ongoing jobs for the 18 employees and contractors who work at the quarry, but the increase secures vital sand supplies needed for growth in Sydney’s booming north-west over the next 25 years,” a spokesman for the department said.

In response to feedback from environmental groups the expansion was scaled back to increase buffer zones between the quarry and the nearby Yengo National Park, as well as expansion to the biodiversity offset areas.

Polish machinery manufacturer Dressta has been an established player in the small to mid-range bulldozer market for some years in Australia, but now their sights are being set on the Australian mining industry.

With Australian bulldozer market dominance firmly in the grip of Cat and Komatsu, breaking in with a European brand will no easy task, but Dressta are looking to expand their services thanks to investment from a joint venture partnership with Chinese giant LiuGong Machinery, which now wholly owns the Polish company.

Despite the underrepresentation of the brand in Australian mining, Dressta claim unmatched performance in mining applications in many countries around the world, including coal mines in Poland, copper/gold projects in Uzbekistan, and nickel mines in the Philippines.

Global vice president of sales Howard Dale was pleased to showcase the LiuGong Dressta range at an open day at the company’s testing facility in Stawola Wola, Poland, near the Dressta manufacturing plant.

There the media were invited to get up close and personal with the machinery, and even to drive the new equipment for themselves to get a feel for the cabin comfort and ease of operation of their flagship dozers.

“Our products features high productivity, proven reliability, they’re easy to maintain on site, and we offer our customers a flexible manufacturing arrangement which allows us to tailor products to their specific needs,” Dale said.

“Our manufacturing, administration and engineering processes are all accredited to ISO9001, and here in Poland we’ve won many local awards for our design, engineering and for the quality of products we produce here.”

Dale also said Dressta has recently won the Polish Overseas Foreign Investment Award for the contribution made to the Polish economy by LiuGong’s ownership of Dressta.

In the past 12 months Dressta have also set up partnerships with Australian dealers and service providers Onetrak (Perth, Melbourne)and Terraquip (Rockhampton), which will allow greater sales and service to customers around Australia.

“We’re very excited to have Onetrak as a new dealer, who came on board in quarter three last year, and their first products have just arrived, and we’re working with the dealer to enable them in terms of their market readiness to serve new customers,” Dale said.

On the subject of marketing in Australia, Dale said the Dressta range had several features which would be attractive in the mining market.

“Our number one USP is our two-speed track system in the TD-40, for ease of maneuverability, but the second is that we have the best return on investment as it relates to owning and operating costs, and we move product for the lowest unit cost,” he said.

“Also our drivetrains are modular, which makes maintenance very easy on site.

“One of the key features we want to retain as we continue our development of these machines is their ease of maintenance.”

Turnaround for track overhaul of the large TD-40 in the field was quoted at inside of one day.

The Dressta range includes 42 models across five product lines: Bulldozers, loaders, backhoes, pipe layers and conveyor belt shifters.

Dressta’s bulldozers have a unique two-speed steering drive which allows for continuous transfer of engine power to both tracks, giving better performance for pushing full loads through the turns.

They also lay claim to “best in class” drawbar pull, as well as unmatched ripping performance with superb penetration in hard materials.

For specialist coal handling work Dressta offer blades for high productivity and optimal load handling capacities, with custom blades of 21m3 up to 47.5m3 in the TD-25E and TD-40E, the two largest models in the Dressta fleet.

These machines also boast comfortable cabins with excellent noise and dust resistance to ensure greater ease for operators working long shifts.

For industrial steelmaking applications Dressta bulldozers also come with a high-temperature pack used for working with hot slag, which can also be applied to emergency work with coal mine fires to ensure maximum reliability under the most severe heat conditions.

These machines are fitted with heat resistant fuel and oil lines which are also protected by fire suppression systems which can put out any smouldering, as well as extensive guarding and high grade steel used for the blade and rippers, with capacity to work in contact temperatures up to 600 degrees Celsius.

Dressta machines also come fitted with Trimble navigation systems designed to increase productivity.

Director of after sales service and training Jason Izzard said it was Dressta’s goal to have all machines leaving the factory fitted with Trimble systems within two years, making the machines much easier to use, as well as enable real time monitoring.

“The machines have to be fitted with systems so that you or I could jump onto the machine and begin to use it like an experienced operator,” Izzard said.

“Trimble gives the operator a screen which allows him to see what he’s moving, what he should be moving, what he’s actually moved, and it records production.

“It can send these details back to an office in Sydney or Perth, and then you know how much material a D11 working in the Northern Territory has pushed in the last hour, last day, week or month.”

Izzard said it was key to modern operations in mining and construction to utilize real time information with regard to machine performance.

“Basically it helps to forecast when the job is going to be finished, assist with scheduling, and you can work out where to put more machinery; it’s an excellent system, and we’ve recognised that need,” he said.

“We’ve chosen to partner with Trimble because they’re very active, they came to us, and you’ve just got to have it, especially if you’re putting machines into a hire fleet.”

Dale said there were two levels of Trimble readiness, the first being machines built with adjustments for harnesses in the system so that Trimble can be fitted as an after-market, plug-and-play scenario, but the preferred level will be machines with factory-fitted Trimble systems, ready for online operation at sale.

“In terms of the mining markets the application of telematics comes into its own for measuring machine availability, understanding service schedules, and as it relates to operations it’s going to be about calculating cubic metres of material loaded into trucks, the amount of product being hauled, so this will improve the efficiency of minesites through the sharing of data.”

However Izzard also pointed out that Dressta is well experienced with custom tailoring machines to customer needs, and that if not needed the Trimble systems can be left out of the equation.

But the immediate focus for the future of Dressta lies in the small to medium class bulldozers, currently aimed at the North American and Canadian markets.

Awaiting launch in third quarter 2015, the newest Dressta machines are small-range models (including the TD-9R) featuring the Hydrostatic Drive, which offers a vastly increased level of maneuverability.

The technology has also been developed for mid-range bulldozers such as the TD-14 and TD-20, which are suited to smaller mines, construction projects, and specific jobs on large mining operations.

Izzard said the hydrostatic system started for Dressta during their joint venture with Komatsu between 1992 and 2005, and was extremely popular in the TD-8, TD-9 and TD-10 machines in North America, however further investment was required to take development to the next level, which was facilitated through the purchase of Dressta by LiuGong.

The key to the hydrostatic system is that it improves on standard bulldozer steering (where one track is braked to turn in that direction) by incorporating hydraulic pumps which feed directly to the power train for each track, as Izzard explains.

“Hydrostatic system involves having a hydraulic pump attached to the back of the engine, there’s no gearbox, it’s a variable displacement hydraulic pump, and on the tracks you have two motors,” he said.

“So there’s a lot of variation. The motor on the back of the engine, you can choose how much oil it delivers to each side, and depending where you have the motor set on each track, the amount of oil you feed into it will give it speed, and you can vary the speed by the motor.

“So you can have an infinite variable on each track, rather than simply on and off. On the smaller machines used for landscaping and civils, operators want to be able to get the machine to push effectively at any variable.

“The hydrostatic system allows infinite control via the tracks jut by moving the lever fractionally.

“To go faster they alter the speed from the pump, and for more power the pump will feed the maximum amount of oil to the slowest motor speed which gives you the maximum amount of push.

“If you’ve got a light load, you use the fastest motor speed with the lightest pump action because it saves fuel.”

Therein lies the benefits of the system, giving the operator so much more control in terms of maneuverability, with all settings computer controlled to respond from hand controls, transliating to massive fuel savings, ease of operation, excellent performance, which in turn leads to increased productivity.

Dressta have also implemented a medium scale hydrostatic system for the TD-14, TD-15 and TD-20 called Diff-Steer, based on earlier developments by Cat in the 1980s.

“It’s going to allow the operator a similar sort of manoeverability as the TD-9R in larger machines,” Izzard said.

“That’s the future, that’s where we’re going to be. It’s what we’ll be talking about this time next year,” he said.

“These machines will be aimed at smaller scale mines, but they will be the sort of machine you put with your dragline, for moving the cable, or to be used for cleaning up around washplants; there’s always marketable applications for the mid-range machines.”

Global construction materials giants Lafarge and Holcim are in talks to renegotiate the terms of a proposed merger that was slated to create the world’s largest cement company.

Almost a year after the merger was first announced, Swiss company Holcim has rejected the terms the two parties initially agreed upon.

According to a statement issued by the company, the Holcim board of directors “has concluded that the combination agreement can no longer be pursued in its present form, and has proposed to enter into negotiations in good faith around the exchange ratio and governance issues”.

The merger initially involved a one-for-one share exchange ratio. However, multiple media sources indicated that Holcim’s shareholders no longer felt this was adequate, given France-based Lafarge’s weak performance for the year ended 31 December, 2014.

It was said that the considerable divergence between the two companies’ valuations was partly due to the Swiss National Bank’s decision to remove an exchange cap in mid-January that caused the value of the Swiss franc to soar to record highs.

Reports indicated that Lafarge’s 2014 financial results had also caused Holcim’s board to question Lafarge CEO Bruno Lafont’s ability to lead the combined LafargeHolcim entity as per the original merger agreement.

Lafarge responded with its own media release, which stated that it was “willing to explore the possibility of a revision of the parity, in line with recent market conditions, but it will not accept any other modification of the terms of the existing agreements”.

Despite this, a Reuters report cited sources familiar with the matter as saying the two parties were discussing new leadership for the new company, which would position Lafont in a “lesser role”.

Quarry approached both Holcim and Lafarge for comment on the matter but neither had responded by the time of publication.

Update – 21 March 2015
After hastily convened talks, The Wall Street Journal and Reuters have reported that the two companies have agreed to new terms, which will see Lafont appointed as co-chairman of LafargeHolcim. Holcim’s current chairman Wolfgang Reitzle will be the other co-chairman.

BHP Billiton’s GEMCO operation has reportedly suffered four uncontrolled manganese spills following Cyclone Lam, the Northern Territory EPA says.

The miner reported four manganese ore discharges at the site due to heavy rains caused by Cyclone Lam, the ABC reports.

The cyclone hit the Northern Territory Coast as a category four, late last month, passing over GEMCO, the Ranger uranium mine, and Rio Tinto’s Gove alumina site.

According to the EPA the rains hit the stockpile, washing out a retaining wall, which allowed the manganese to discharge into the sea.

“The discharge occurred during a period [of] very high rainfall during a cyclone,” NT EPA head Bill Freeland said.

“The circumstances of that we are still investigating.”

He went on to say that discharge poses no environmental concern.

“This thing gave way during heavy rainfall repeatedly, the things that came out were manganese concentrate, which is manganese dioxide. It’s pretty insoluble and sank to the bottom,” he said.

This is not the first time the mine has suffered an accidental spill.

The miner accidentally dumped two tonnes of manganese iron ore into the sea at its port facility in 2010.

At the time, NT Resources Minister Kon Vatskalis stated: “To their credit GEMCO immediately reacted and they put a container under the conveyor belt and also dredged the area where the manganese was dumped into the sea.”

However he did voice disappointment the incident was not reported for nearly a week.

Regarding the most recent spill, Freeland said investigations are ongoing.

“You’ve got be careful about what you do. You can’t just say ‘you’ve been negligent or terrible or anything like that’,” he said.

“You’ve got to really investigate and find out what happened.”

Freeland went on to applaud GEMCO’s quick reporting of the incident.

Under their existing licensing arrangements, they have to notify us of any untoward thing, any incident, anything contrary to the license … and that’s what happened,” Dr Freeland said.

“They’re dutiful people and they provided the information we looked for.”

GEMCO is not set to remain a BHP company for much longer, having been flagged to be spun out in the upcoming demerger, and placed in the new entity South32.

BHP has been contacted for further comment.

An equipment supplier program that provides additional benefits with all purchases of wheel loaders and excavators has been extended.
The ChoicePlus program is being offered by Hitachi Construction Machinery Australia (HCA), the exclusive Australian distributor of Hitachi, Bell and John Deere equipment.

Under the program, any customer that purchases selected excavators or wheel loaders from the Hitachi and John Deere range will be allowed to choose a reward – each worth thousands of dollars.

The reward options include 12 months of free servicing, a free four-year powertrain warranty, reduced finance of 3.99 per cent for up to five years, and a trip to Hitachi’s factory in Japan, among others.

The program was originally launched in September 2014 and was due to close on 31 December, 2014, but has now been extended until 31 March, 2015.

HCA’s sales director for construction, forestry and mining Gilberto Pauleta said the ChoicePlus program was about delivering value beyond the productivity and efficiency gains offered by the two suppliers’ excavators and wheel loaders.

“Hitachi and John Deere are well known as premium brands,” he said. “We’re focused on delivering excellent value and return on investment. I think contractors who take a look at what they get when they choose Hitachi or John Deere will be pleasantly surprised by the quality of the product and the price.”

Pauleta said HCA was excited to extend the popular program, adding each reward had “real value”, especially because customers could choose an option that best suited them.

“The free service offer is worth between $4000 and $12,000, depending on the size of the machine,” he said. “Our standard powertrain warranty is 36 months, so the ChoicePlus option is a significant step up for those customers interested in the extra peace of mind that comes from an extended warranty. As for the exclusive factory trip, we think that this will be a real eye opener for those who have not previously been to our factories.”

ChoicePlus is available across the Hitachi excavator range, from the eight-tonne ZX85 to the 82-tonne ZX870, the Hitachi wheel loader range from the 1.1m3 bucket ZW100 to the 3.7m3 ZW250, and the John Deere wheel loader range from the 3.6m3 724K to the 5.5m3 844K, while stocks last.

“While the greatest reward for choosing Hitachi or John Deere machinery is having an advanced, productive, reliable machine with a strong support network around Australia, ChoicePlus is a great way to make your investment go even further, so it’s an ideal time for contractors to think about upgrading or expanding their fleet,” Pauleta added.

Rio Tinto plans to condense its assets into four product groups as part of a major restructure in an effort to rein in costs.

The corporate restructure will see its various assets now operate under: Aluminium, Copper and Coal, Diamonds and Minerals, and Iron Ore.

As part of the changes, Rio’s coal and copper operations will be combined, while uranium will be added to the Diamonds and Minerals group.

One of the consequences of the restructuring is the exit of Energy chief executive Harry Kenyon-Slaney will leave the business.

The Aluminium and Iron Ore product groups remain unchanged.

In announcing the changes, Rio said a number of key corporate functions will also be “reshaped” to further reduce costs and improve effectiveness.

Rio Tinto CEO Sam Walsh said the restructure is part of a business transformation aimed at reducing costs and simplifying the company.

“Our coal and uranium assets remain a part of our world-class portfolio. We will work hard to ensure there is a smooth transition for our colleagues in the Energy product group and continue to maximise efficiencies in our coal and uranium operations,” Walsh said.

“I would like to thank Harry for the important contribution he has made during almost 25 years with the Group, including as a colleague on the Executive Committee for the past five years. Harry has my best wishes for the future and my full appreciation for the significant role he has played in his time at Rio Tinto.”

The move comes after an Australian Mining exclusive last week which flagged the company was set to engage a heavy cost cutting campaign, involving renegotiation of service contracts, reduction of scheduled maintenance task times, and changes to staff pay .

An internal document leaked to Australian Mining showed Rio Tinto iron ore chief executive Andrew Harding had outlined a series of cost cutting requirements, including an immediate hiring freeze, which he said must be performed to maintain business success.

The move by Rio to simplify its business comes after BHP Billiton undertook a similar simplification process last year.

BHP chief executive Andrew Mackenzie said simplifying the company’s product portfolio was a “priority” before announcing that a portfolio focused on major iron ore, copper, coal and petroleum assets would be part of its four pillar company.

This has led to the proposed demerger of BHP’s non-core assets of aluminium, manganese, nickel and silver into company South32.

Kingsgate Consolidated has been forced to keep its Chatree gold mine in Thailand closed.

The mine was suspended from operating in mid-January after orders from the country’s environmental watchdog.

Kingsgate was ordered to close the mine after sampling found high levels of arsenic and manganese in the blood of people living near the operation.

The mine, 280km north of Bangkok, was to close for 30 days while the government conducted testing.

However, a further 45 days has been served while Kingsgate responds to additional information from the Thai authorities.

“As a result, considerable uncertainty still remains with respect to the structure and timing of any restart,” the company said.

Kingsgate chairman Ross Smyth-Kirk has previously said the company was shocked at the decision to close Chatree because it does not use either arsenic or manganese at the site.

“We are shocked and amazed at the temporary suspension order at the Chatree Mining Complex, situated in central Thailand which is internationally recognised as one of the safest gold mines in the world,” Smyth-Kirk said in a statement.

“It is important to note that arsenic and manganese are not used or stored at the Chatree Mining operation now or at any time in its history.

“We are calling for a speedy resolution as there are 1100 jobs at the mine which are in jeopardy. Loss of these jobs would have adverse flow on effects to the local communities.”

Shares in Kingsgate have been suspended since the mine was shut.

A new 167 year life coal mine has opened in Russia.

The new Arshanovsky open cut mine, in south eastern Siberia, has set a goal of two billion tonnes of coal extracted over its mine life, at a rate of around 10 million tonnes per annum, according to the Siberian Times.

One of Australia’s largest coal mines, Adani’s Carmichael mine, has an operational life of only 60 years.

The Russian mine will be located in the Khakassia region of Siberia, with plans to construct additional rail infrastructure to support the operation.

The opening comes as Russia also announces the construction of two new coal ports in Siberia, which gives the nation more access to Chinese, Japanese, and Korean coal markets.

Rio Tinto’s iron ore business is set to engage in a heavy cost cutting campaign, involving renegotiation of service contracts, reduction of scheduled maintenance task times, and changes to staff pay which will “reflect market conditions”.

An internal document leaked to Australian Mining this week showed Rio Tinto iron ore chief executive Andrew Harding had outlined a series of cost cutting requirements, including an immediate hiring freeze, which he said must be performed to maintain business success.

The document was distributed by email to members of management, and was read aloud to workers on all Rio Tinto iron ore sites in Western Australia.

The areas said to require urgent attention include:

Cost-outs and capital reductions that are significantly below the existing plan;
The renegotiation of significant service and supply contracts;
Reflecting market conditions for employees and labour related costs;
The extension of an immediate hiring freeze and review of organisational structures;
Revamping of the way we schedule maintenance – by intervals and task times;
A significant reduction in warehouse and stockpile inventories.
Harding stressed that “the whole business will be called to contribute to this work, with a degree of urgency”.

The document also said that all site superintendents will be subject to quarterly reviews, which would help to identify “pinch points” in the business.

“These will cover safety, cost and productivity performance, as well as commitments for the forthcoming quarter,” Harding said.

“I do not intend that any of these actions, and the extra efforts required on safety, will compromise our objective of continuing to be the best iron ore company in the world.

“Indeed, I expect that they will actually ensure that we can continue to be ‘the best’.”

Harding said the agenda was a large one, but “not unmanageable”.

Australian Mining contacted Rio Tinto to discuss the details of these adjustments, however a spokesperson for Rio Tinto said no further details could be disclosed at this point, and made the following statement:

“We remain focused on maintaining our market competitiveness in very challenging industry conditions. For some time now our people have been pursuing cost and productivity improvements. We are constantly examining all parts of our business in order to remain strong and globally competitive.”

Recent rumours among staff on Rio Tinto sites around Western Australia suggest plans to cut the Australian iron ore workforce by 10 to 15 per cent, however Rio Tinto said these claims were incorrect.

Rio Tinto will release their Quarterly Report on Thursday evening, February 12.