Engineering & Mining Journal

APR 2014

Engineering and Mining Journal - Whether the market is copper, gold, nickel, iron ore, lead/zinc, PGM, diamonds or other commodities, E&MJ takes the lead in projecting trends, following development and reporting on the most efficient operating pr

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"It takes about 250 people to pro- duce about 50,000 tons of ore a month normally at a mine like Kloof," Pienaar said, in reference to the formerly owned Gold Fields operation where he had pre- viously worked. "With these machines and a few people, we can take out 30,000 tons to 100,000 tons in the same month." It's possible South Deep will suc- ceed where other South African pro- jects have so far failed—and build a viable, mechanized, high volume gold mine. Machines are ubiquitous in other mining countries, such as Canada and especially Australia. So it's to the Aussies Gold Fields has turned to steer its developing South Deep project into an underground assembly line using one-sixth of the usual workforce. South African mining companies have long yearned for technology to reduce their reliance on a militant workforce. As operations go ever deep- er, the goal is to put fewer human lives at risk by getting machines to replace them at the rock face. So far, the dream has been elusive. Uncooperative geology and lack of suitable machinery has meant that most of the country's mines still depend on the half a million or so men it takes to keep operations going. Gold Fields, how- ever, hopes to change that. It is advanc- ing toward full production at South Deep, the remaining South African asset in its stable, and intends for the opera- tion to be fully mechanized. The process has not been smooth and the mine is now two years beyond schedule. Recently the company took on a team of 15 Australians that it hopes will turn things around. "We've been doing mechanized min- ing in Australia for 60 years," Gary Mills, South Deep's newly appointed general manager and a native Aussie, said at the mine, 48 km west of Johannesburg. "We've made a lot of mistakes in that time, but now we have a pretty slick operation." Previously, Mills worked on Gold Fields' Agnew mine in Australia, a country that has operated mechanized mines for years. The company describes him as a man with "vast" mechanized mining experience. "When we came here we noticed they were making some of the same mistakes we did, so we need to rectify those and streamline the process," Mills said. Gold Fields bought South Deep in 2006 from its then owners Barrick Gold and Western Areas. At that time it was being mined using conventional hand drilling, but in 2008 Gold Fields stopped all work and declared it would resume operations once mechanization had been introduced. More than 2,500 workers were retrenched at the time. Halting operations was a risky move, but Gold Fields felt it was necessary if it was to advance to long-term mecha- nization over the course of the 50-year life-of-mine. When full production com- mences in 2017, the mine will be pro- ducing 700,000 oz of gold a year. Gold Fields needs a win. Its share price has dropped by more than half APRIL 2014 • E&MJ; 35 www.e-mj.com S O U T H D E E P South Deep is using simulators to train drillers and drivers. Men emerging from the South Deep main shaft. EMJ_pg34-39_EMJ_pg34-39 4/1/14 2:37 PM Page 35

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