Hard Rock Mine Design and Feasibility 431

Pre Feasibility Study for the Copper Gold Ore Deposit.

Orange, New South Wales.

Hard Rock Mine Design 431

Executive Summary
A mine optimization and design for the copper and gold deposit near Orange, NSW is required to be
carried out by our team. This is primarily completed through the use of Whittle 4 and Vulcan software
packages with the aid of Ventsim and Talpac.

Initially the ore will be mined using the open cut method. This will be viable for 15 years and will extract
3.624M tonnes of copper and 184.282M grams of gold. This pit has an overall stripping ratio of 1.81.
Once the final pit limit is reached the underground section of the mine will commence production. For

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this ore deposit sub level open stoping mining method will be used. This is the most suitable method as
determined by the UCS method selection system. There will be a total of five sublevels with two main
production levels. The underground component of the mine is expected to have a mine life of 17 years.
This will bring the total mine life to 32 years. The overall project will net a NPV of $1 795M over the total
mine life.

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Contents
Executive Summary.....................................................................................................................................2
1 Introduction.........................................................................................................................................9
1.1 Ore body characteristics..............................................................................................................9
2 Assumptions......................................................................................................................................10
2.1 Geotechnical..............................................................................................................................10
2.2 Working Time Availability........................................................................................................10
3 Open pit Optimisation.......................................................................................................................11
3.1 Justify parameters for Whittle....................................................................................................11
3.1.1 Market price.......................................................................................................................11
3.1.2 Milling cost........................................................................................................................12
3.1.3 Initial capital cost...............................................................................................................13
3.1.4 Reference Mining Cost......................................................................................................13
3.1.5 Mining cost adjustment factors..........................................................................................14
3.2 Optimization of NPV in WHITTLE............................................................................................15
3.3 Open pit final schedule optimization.........................................................................................18
4 Resource estimation...........................................................................................................................20
5 Open Pit Design.................................................................................................................................21
5.1 Pit design...................................................................................................................................21
5.2 Slope angle................................................................................................................................23
5.3 Batter angle................................................................................................................................23
5.4 Berm width................................................................................................................................23
5.5 Bench height..............................................................................................................................23
5.6 Haulage Road............................................................................................................................23
5.7 Dump design..............................................................................................................................25
5.8 Open pit layout..........................................................................................................................26
5.8.1 Power station.....................................................................................................................26
5.8.2 Dump.................................................................................................................................26
6 Equipment selection..........................................................................................................................28
6.1 Fleet size....................................................................................................................................28
6.2 Equipment..................................................................................................................................29

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 6.2.1 Shovel................................................................................................................................29
6.2.2 Haul Truck Fleet................................................................................................................29
6.2.3 Production Drill Rig...........................................................................................................29
6.2.4 The Wheel Loader.............................................................................................................30
6.2.5 Dozer.................................................................................................................................30
6.2.6 Water truck........................................................................................................................30
6.2.7 Motor grader......................................................................................................................30
6.2.8 Charge up Wagon..............................................................................................................31
6.3 Open Pit Reserve estimation.....................................................................................................31
6.3.1 Comparison Between Pushback Pit and Final Pit...............................................................31
6.3.2 Whittle and Vulcan Final Pits.............................................................................................32
7 Open Pit Project Evaluation...............................................................................................................33
7.1 Capital cost open pit..................................................................................................................33
7.2 Operating cost open pit.............................................................................................................34
8 Underground Mining method............................................................................................................35
8.1 Mine method Selection..............................................................................................................35
8.2 Comparison................................................................................................................................36
8.2.1 Sublevel Stoping................................................................................................................36
8.2.2 Cut and Fill........................................................................................................................37
9 Underground Mine Design................................................................................................................38
9.1 Shaft Hoisting............................................................................................................................40
9.2 Geotechnical Considerations.....................................................................................................40
9.2.1 Stope Stability....................................................................................................................40
9.3 Paste Backfill.............................................................................................................................41
9.3.1 Objective............................................................................................................................41
9.3.2 Mix design, strength characteristics and curing.................................................................41
9.3.3 Strength and strain characteristics of pastefill...................................................................42
9.3.4 Pastefill barricades.............................................................................................................43
10 Underground Mine Scheduling......................................................................................................44
11 Underground Equipment selection................................................................................................47
11.1 Underground Production Rig.....................................................................................................47
11.1.1 Atlas Copco COP 1838 ME: Simba 1250-series..................................................................47

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 11.2 Underground Development Rig.................................................................................................47
11.2.1 Sandvik DT720 (5)..............................................................................................................47
11.3 Underground Truck....................................................................................................................48
11.3.1 CAT AD55B elphinstone.....................................................................................................48
11.4 Underground LHDs....................................................................................................................48
11.4.1 CAT R 2900 Loaders...........................................................................................................48
11.5 Underground Charge-up units....................................................................................................49
11.6 Underground Services Units......................................................................................................49
11.6.1 CAT 12H Grader...............................................................................................................49
11.6.2 Integrated Carrier unit (IT)................................................................................................50
12 Underground Project Evaluation...................................................................................................51
12.1 Capital Cost Underground.........................................................................................................51
12.2 Operating Cost Underground.....................................................................................................52
13 Ventilation design..........................................................................................................................53
13.1 Ventilation Requirements..........................................................................................................53
13.2 Ventilation Equipment...............................................................................................................54
14 Total Production Cost....................................................................................................................55
14.1 NPV estimate.............................................................................................................................55
14.2 Sensitivity analysis.....................................................................................................................55
15 Risk Assessment............................................................................................................................57
15.1 Geotechnical..............................................................................................................................58
15.1.1 Stope Failure......................................................................................................................58
15.1.2 Drive and Decline Stability................................................................................................58
15.2 Production..................................................................................................................................59
15.2.1 Equipment Downtime........................................................................................................59
15.2.2 Vehicle Collision...............................................................................................................59
15.2.3 Underground Fire...............................................................................................................59
15.2.4 Hazardous Gases................................................................................................................60
15.2.5 Dewatering.........................................................................................................................60
15.2.6 Ventilation.........................................................................................................................61
15.3 Economical................................................................................................................................61
15.4 Environmental...........................................................................................................................62

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 15.4.1 Dust...................................................................................................................................62
15.4.2 Groundwater......................................................................................................................63
15.4.3 Fauna and Flora.................................................................................................................63
15.4.4 Topsoil...............................................................................................................................63
15.4.5 Hazardous substances........................................................................................................63
15.5 Social risks.................................................................................................................................63
15.6 Mining Method..........................................................................................................................64
15.6.1 Shaft Hoisting....................................................................................................................65
15.6.2 Truck and Shovel haulage..................................................................................................66
16 Sustainability.................................................................................................................................67
16.1 Environmental Considerations...................................................................................................67
16.2 Occupational Health and Safety.................................................................................................68
17 End-of-Life Plan..............................................................................................................................70
17.1 Mine Closure.............................................................................................................................70
17.2 Rehabilitation.............................................................................................................................70
18 Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................72
19 References.....................................................................................................................................73
20 Appendix.......................................................................................................................................74
20.1 Skip Calculations........................................................................................................................74
20.2 Equipment.................................................................................................................................74
20.3 Stope stability (Hanging wall and Footwall)...............................................................................77
20.4 Stope Costs Calculations:...........................................................................................................80
20.5 UBC METHOD............................................................................................................................81

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Table 1. Calculation of reference mining cost...........................................................................................13
Table 2. Calculation of MCAF for each bench............................................................................................14
Table 3. Direction of ore body...................................................................................................................15
Table 4. Pit by Pit graph without push backs.............................................................................................16
Table 5. Relationship between capacity, pushback and NPV.....................................................................17
Table 6. Resource estimation....................................................................................................................20
Table 7. Final pit and pushback pit comparison.........................................................................................31
Table 8. Tonnage comparison....................................................................................................................32
Table 9. Open Pit Capital Cost...................................................................................................................33
Table 10. Open Pit Operating Cost............................................................................................................34
Table 11. UBC ranking system...................................................................................................................36
Table 12. Mined stopes per period............................................................................................................46
Table 13. Underground capital cost...........................................................................................................51
Table 14. Underground operating cost......................................................................................................52
Table 15. Ventilation Requirements..........................................................................................................54
Table 16. NPV determining factors............................................................................................................55
Table 17. Risk assessment matrix..............................................................................................................57
Table 18. Risk assessment.........................................................................................................................65
Table 19. Shaft hoisting.............................................................................................................................66
Table 20. Truck and shovel haulage...........................................................................................................66

Figure 1. Ore body diagram.........................................................................................................................9

Figure 2. Copper price per tonne for the past 10 years.............................................................................11
Figure 3. Gold price per ounce for the past 10 years.................................................................................12
Figure 4. Pit by Pit graph with push backs.................................................................................................17
Figure 5. Milawa NPV................................................................................................................................18
Figure 6. Milawa balanced.........................................................................................................................19
Figure 7. Open cut block model.................................................................................................................21
Figure 8. Open cut design..........................................................................................................................22
Figure 9. Ramp cross section.....................................................................................................................24
Figure 10. Dump design.............................................................................................................................25
Figure 11. Site Layout................................................................................................................................26
Figure 12. Talpac truck route....................................................................................................................28
Figure 13. Fleet size of equipment each year............................................................................................29
Figure 14. Production drill rig....................................................................................................................30
Figure 15. Pushback pit design..................................................................................................................31
Figure 16. Underground design.................................................................................................................38
Figure 17. Stope Design.............................................................................................................................39
Figure 18. Cross cut and access drive design.............................................................................................39
Figure 19. Used to determine the stability of the Sub level stoping based on the Hydraulic radius..........41
Figure 20. Stope backfilling sequence.......................................................................................................42

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Figure 21. Profit per stope.........................................................................................................................45
Figure 22. Stope mining schedule..............................................................................................................46
Figure 23. Underground production rig.....................................................................................................47
Figure 24. Underground development rig.................................................................................................48
Figure 25. Underground truck...................................................................................................................48
Figure 26. Underground LHD.....................................................................................................................49
Figure 27. Grader.......................................................................................................................................49
Figure 28. Ventilation design.....................................................................................................................53
Figure 29. Sensitivity Analysis....................................................................................................................56

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1 Introduction
The purpose of this project is to determine the feasibility of metal ore deposit, approximately 120km
south of Orange in New South Wales, with the initial resource block model that has been provided. The
report will focus on the design of a new mining project consisting of both open cut and underground
mining techniques focusing on the optimal extraction of the resource.

1.1 Ore body characteristics

The resource consists of both gold and copper deposits with an average grade of 1% copper and 0.5
grams per tonne of gold. The deposits strike runs east west and dips to the south at an angle between
30 and 50°. The ore body is approximately 320m in width with a thickness of 280m and is present to a
depth of 950m below the surface. The rock mass is competent with a rock strength between 100 and
120MPaand is void of any major faults.

Figure 1. Ore body diagram

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2 Assumptions
There are several assumptions made regarding this project. The assumptions are used to analyze several
scenario of scheduling and determined the best schedule from Whittle, for underground scheduling and
construct the financial technical modeling just to name a few.

 The price of copper used is $6,500 per tonne

 The price of gold used is $1,000 per ounce
 The mining capacity for the open pit is 29,000,000 tonnes per year and that is including the ore
and waste. Mining capacity of 29,000,000 is considered to be the best scenario to be used for this
project that gives the best NPV.
 The mining capacity for the underground is 2,500,000 tonnes per year and it is constant
throughout the entire underground mine life.
 The milling capacity is 3,000,000 tonnes for year 1, increased to 8,000,000 tonnes for year 2 and
from year 3 onwards the milling capacity is 10,000,000 tonnes.
 The NSW royalty rate is 4%
 Income tax to be used is 30%
 Interest rate of 10%
 Debt 50% Equity 50%

2.1 Geotechnical
Occasionally is prone to seismic region. The mine is located within the local stress zone.
The given country rock and ore bearing rock are of high strength and therefore suitable for underground
development. However, the bolts and the mesh are definitely needed for ground support issues. We will
need stubby bolts, 2.5m bolts and 3m bolts and mesh. Cable bolts will be installed in the intersections
where loading activities will be taking place and in the localized weak footwall areas.

2.2 Working Time Availability

The mine life will be approximately 17 year with 346 effective working days per year. No
allowances made for public holidays. Down time, weather problems, natural disasters, hazards
and operator efficiency all have been taken into account. The mine itself will operate two 12
hour shifts, seven days a week, no public holiday.

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3 Open pit Optimisation
3.1 Justify parameters for Whittle
3.1.1 Market price
Market price is one of the parameters that need to be determined in order to produce different scenarios
that can be analyzed to find the most suitable schedule for this project. The copper price that was chosen
for this project is AU$6,500 per tonne and the gold price that was chosen for this project is AU$1,000 per
ounce.

These two prices are obtained by estimating the average of individual price for the last ten years as shown
by the two graphs below.

Figure 2. Copper price per tonne for the past 10 years.

It was decided to use AU$6,500 per tonne for copper because the price of copper for the last 10 years was
within the range of AU$2,500 and AU$11,000 per tonne, therefore, the average is

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2,500+11,000
=6,750
2

Or roughly around AU$6,500 per tonne.

Figure 3. Gold price per ounce for the past 10 years.

It was decided to use AU$1,000 per ounce for gold because the price of gold for the last 10 years was
within the range of AU$500 and AU$1,550 per ounce, therefore, the average is

500+1,550
=1,025
2

or roughly around AU$1,000 per ounce.

3.1.2 Milling cost

Milling cost consists of facilities cost, material and management cost. However, for milling facilities cost
include primary crushing, fine crushing, grinding, process section and tailing store. Additionally,
chemical and management, supervision and electrical cost are operation cost comprises of chemical,
which is about$ 6.76 per ton.

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3.1.3 Initial capital cost
Initial capital cost, which is $ 207,472,243 mainly consists of three components in open pit mine, such as
equipment cost, milling plant cost and infrastructure cost. First of all, all equipment items have been
selected depend on the mining capacity and geotechnical design in open pit, the total cost of which is
around $ 14,351,000.

Furthermore, milling plant has been constructed to process 3/8/10 million tons per year, where
conventional processing technology is primarily employed. Main parts of processing includes crushing,
SAG and Ball mill with recycle crushing, 4 flotation circuits with 150m3 tank cells, leaching circuit for
pyrite concentrate and copper concentrate and Bullion produced on site. Total capital cost of milling plant
is assumed to be $ 82,921,243.

The related infrastructure cost is necessarily considered except milling and equipment items, which will
consist of main office, mine workshop, light workshop, general warehouse, and construction camp and so
on. Total expenditure of infrastructures will be calculated carefully to $ 14,351,000.

Therefore, the initial capital cost of the whole project in open pit is exactly $ 207,472,243, which is going
to input the whittle tab in order to find optimum pit.

3.1.4 Reference Mining Cost

Reference mining cost is required for whittle to calculate the optimum pit, which consisting of digging
cost, drilling cost. Labor cost and dewaters cost. Hence, reference mining cost per ton is $2.41.

Equipment Cost labor cost dewater cost

hauling cost digging cost drill and blasting cost    
0.52 0.77 0.53 0.28 0.31
Total mining
Cost 2.41      

Table 1. Calculation of reference mining cost

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3.1.5 Mining cost adjustment factors
MCAF value are able to adjust the reference mining cost due to the increasing haulage distance because
consumption of diesel will be different when working in different working layers in open pit. The
reference mining cost focus on the haulage distance between ore store or dump and top bench in pit.

From whittle summary, total number of pit bench are able to be indicated, which is accurately 85 benches.
Meanwhile, MCAF calculation formula has been provided to obtain a reference mining cost in each
bench. The following table has been established in terms of MCAF formula:

# RMC # RMC # RMC # RMC # RMC

1 3.69 18 3.35 35 3.01 52 2.67 69 2.41
2 3.67 19 3.33 36 2.99 53 2.65 70 2.41
3 3.65 20 3.31 37 2.97 54 2.63 71 2.41
4 3.63 21 3.29 38 2.95 55 2.61 72 2.41
5 3.61 22 3.27 39 2.93 56 2.59 73 2.41
6 3.59 23 3.25 40 2.91 57 2.57 74 2.41
7 3.57 24 3.23 41 2.89 58 2.55 75 2.41
8 3.55 25 3.21 42 2.87 59 2.53 76 2.41
9 3.53 26 3.19 43 2.85 60 2.51 77 2.41
10 3.51 27 3.17 44 2.83 61 2.49 78 2.41
11 3.49 28 3.15 45 2.81 62 2.47 79 2.41
12 3.47 29 3.13 46 2.79 63 2.45 80 2.41
13 3.45 30 3.11 47 2.77 64 2.43 81 2.41
14 3.43 31 3.09 48 2.75 65 2.41 82 2.41
15 3.41 32 3.07 49 2.73 66 2.41 83 2.41
16 3.39 33 3.05 50 2.71 67 2.41 84 2.41
17 3.37 34 3.03 51 2.69 68 2.41 85 2.41

Table 2. Calculation of MCAF for each bench

By analysis of tables above, some of benches are close to dump and milling plant on the top of pit, so
reference mining cost is equal to 2.41 until benches 65. After that, increment mining cost is 0.02 in every
bench in terms of increasing haulage distance. At the end of pit, mining reference cost is increasing to
AU$3.69.

3.2 Optimization of NPV in WHITTLE

Whittle optimization will be necessary to input some of the parameters in terms of creating open pit
design. These parameters have been selected and justified realistically with the actual conditions in the
industry. All the prices and cost are 3estimated through one of the mine company in West Australia. The
input data parameters are:

 Mining reference cost: AU$2.41 Per ton

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  Mining recovery: 95%
 Mining dilution: 1.05
 Mining recovery: 90%
 Processing cost: AU$ 6.76
 Processing recovery of copper: 88%
 Processing recovery of gold: 95%
 Forecasted copper price: AU$6500
 Selling price of copper is AU$ 650
 Forecasted gold price: AU$ 1000
 Selling price of gold: AU$100
 Discount rate: 10%
Slope angle is provided from MEA, which will be set up as follows:
BEARING 0 90 180 210 270

SLOPE 45 45 45 45 45

Table 3. Direction of ore body

Whittle is running times. Based on maximizing NPV, we targeted the scenario between 50Mt/year and 25
Mt/year mining capacity, with 1st year of 3Mt milling, 2nd year of 8Mt milling and 10Mt milling capacities
for the rest of life of mine. For any scenarios which are out of this range, please referring our initial
WHITTLE 4X folder.

Initial pushback normally is input by guessing. After the 1 st pit by pit graph is done, previous pushback
can be modified by looking at the generated pit by pit graph. The optimal pushback often in a range
where there is a big jump for NPV. If it is hard to identify the best pushback, pit by pit output can be used
instead. Usually, it would take several runs for each scenario. Then, a comparative analysis is required to
determine the best set of push backs, based on the output file. Ultimate pit limit is identified where there
is a highest NPV. It shows that the pit shell cannot be expanded further; otherwise the NPV would go
down.

The results that obtained from pit by pit graphs are shown in Figure 4. They have shown the evidence of
pushback optimization and ultimate pit limit identification.

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Table 4. Pit by Pit graph without push backs

16
 Figure 4. Pit by Pit graph with push backs

After running pit by pit graph branch, previous pushback can be modified by looking at the generated pit
by pit graph. The optimal pushback often in a range where there is a big jump for NPV. If it is hard to
identify the best pushback, pit by pit output can be used instead. Usually, it would take several runs for
each scenario. The comparative analysis is required to determine the best set of pushback, based on the
output file. Ultimate pit limit is identified where there is a highest NPV. It shows that the pit shell cannot
be expanded further; otherwise the NPV would go down. The result that obtained from pit by pit graphs
are shown in table 4. The evidence was shown as follows:

MINING CAPACITY PUSHBACK NPV

50Mpta 9 15 18 20 21 1,481,565,662
40Mpta 9 15 18 20 21 1,455,810,248
35Mpta 9 15 18 20 21 1,430,054,833
32Mpta 9 15 18 20 21 1,605,530,214
29Mpta 9 15 18 20 21 1,703,572,949
27Mpta 10 15 18 20 21 1,677,553,021

Table 5. Relationship between capacity, pushback and NPV

Form table, the highlighted number represents the highest NPV with a corresponding final pit number 24
for a specific scenario. The red numbers indicate that the ultimate pit limit 24 is 29Mt/ as a mining
production rate with 3/8/10Mt/a milling capacities is the current best scenario. Therefore, final pit number
is pit 24.

3.3 Open pit final schedule optimization

Previous section has shown the best schedule is 29Mtpa as a production rate with 3Mtpa in the first year,
8Mtpa in the second year, 10Mtpa after year2. In order to verify this result, schedules are used; two types
of schedule are going to be selected, such as Milawa NPV and Milawa Balanced. Milawa NPV is focused
on the maximization of NPV where Milawa balanced schedule would provide a schedule with the best
balance between waste and milling rates.

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 Figure 5. Milawa NPV

Figure 6. Milawa balanced

From figure above, production schedule in Milawa NPV scenario provide the arbitrary mining capacities
in each year. However, production schedule in Milawa Balanced scenario was shown that mining
capacities is constant before year 14. Due to initial project requirement on milling capacity, we have to let
the mill to be as full as possible to be operated. Hence, Milawa balanced schedule is employed to
determine which scenario is the best.

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4 Resource estimation
The first step of analyses of the open pit mine design is through Whittle 4.2 Software. The project file
(fxmod.mov) gives us a total resource estimation of ore and waste within the deposit. The resource
estimation can be seen on the table below.

Metal Unit Cut Off Grade

Cu(tonnes
) 3,624,000 0.18
Au (gram) 184,282,683 0.3

Table 6. Resource estimation

The open pit optimization is done through Whittle and then later on to be analyzed deeper with Vulcan
Software. The final optimization and the ultimate pit limits will be produced from Vulcan. This is where
we have to convert the whittle optimization file into a Vulcan file.

The difference here is that the optimization using Whittle does not include the haul road design. This
optimization is done based only on the resource, mining limit and milling processing. Where in Vulcan,
we have a complete pit design with haul road, berm width and the optimum tonnages of ore and waste,
which will be mined out.

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5 Open Pit Design

5.1 Pit design

Vulcan application provides the models to design pit with our own design parameters where this design is
an optimization from whittle analysis. Once the optimization from whittle finish, the optimization of pit
have been commenced through Vulcan.

Figure 7. Open cut block model

The optimization file can be obtained when the optimum pit from whittle export into Vulcan, pit shell is
shown above which has been applied to design final pit in the Vulcan.

Before design pit, there are some paramount parameters of pit design that is going to insert open pit
design function as follows:

 Slope angle: 45
 Batter angle: 65
 Bench height: 16m
 Grade of road: 10

20
  Road width: 25 and 32.5 m
 Berm width: 5m

All parameter need to be calculated in order to avoid slope failure and cost effects. First of all, the road
width should be determined by the width of haul truck, and hence overall slope angle can be calculated in
terms of batter angle, berm and road width. On the other hand, slight changes in slope angle have a
significant effect on project value in large pit, so optimizing slope angle should be done which is based on
a design factor of safety or a design probability of failure.

Figure 8. Open cut design

Haulage road design is based on truck width. At the bottom of pit (RL 1710), the first string is flagged at
a toe, and then starting ramp design. However, ramp width was appropriately applied to be 2 times than
truck width in order to optimizing the mining planning in terms of the fleet sizes of trucks until RL 1982.
After this, ramp width was 3 times than one truck width where more trucks can park in the middle pit to
avoid traffic jam. Additionally, most sections of ramp is located in the footwall because ramp extend
outside of pit, so if pit ramp sits in footwall, pit mined a little bit more ore after ramp extended ; if pit
ramp sits in hanging wall, it will extend more waste due to this ore body shape.

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5.2 Slope angle
The overall slope angle is defined as the angle made from the upper most crest to the lowest most toe of
the pit. The slope angle chosen for this the pit is based on the strength and competency of the host rock.
The slope of 45 degrees is chosen.

5.3 Batter angle

Due to the competence of the country rock it was decided that a face angle of 68° will be the most
practical because the steeper the walls of the pit, the less waste that will be removed to get to the ore and
therefore a smaller stripping ratio. Furthermore, the angle has been set so that the shovel can reach to the
top of the bench face for scaling.

5.4 Berm width

A berm is a horizontal floor that is used to collect the materials which fall down from the benches above.
It also stops the movements of boulders. In this project 5m wide berms are designed in order to entrap
falling debris and to provide access for clean-up. With this width berm saves in the geotechnical stability
within the pit wall by lowering the overall final pit wall slope angle. The construction of the berms is also
based on the assumed angle of repose of 37degrees.
Catch berms are to be constructed considering two significant requirements. The safety berm and the
impact zone. Impact zone is the area designated to arrest any materials falling from upper benches and
can provide access for equipment such as dozer to perform clean up if needed. The width of impact zone
is designed to be 3.5m. The safety berm will act as a guide rail along the outer edge of the bench
preventing trucks and other machines from backing over. Safety berm is designed to be 3m.

5.5 Bench height

Benches are constructed such that they are horizontal from one level to the next. Bench height is the
vertical distance from one level to the next level and limited by the height the shovel can reach and
geotechnical constraints. The sequence of open pit or pushback mining is scheduled according to number
of benches to be extracted. Given the type of shovel selected in this project and that the rock is competent,
a working bench height of 16m was found to be suitable.

5.6 Haulage Road

Depending on the width of the biggest haulage fleet, the ramp widths of 32.9m to be able to comfortably
accommodate two haul trucks passing each other and safety barriers. A general rule of thumb in the
mining industry is that the haul road width is approximately three times the truck width. The ramp will be
constructed on the footwall side. It is assumed that the footwall rock is competent and by putting ramp in

22
this wall, will prevent and production disruption that would result from pit extension which normally
occur in hanging wall side. There is no need to construct subgrade and subbase layers as competent rock
will provide sufficient bearing capacity against the heaviest piece of equipment travelling on the ramp.
Road base will be spear and compacted as final and finish layer.

Haul road will be constructed beginning with the bottom most layer (subgrade). This layer will compose
of native in situ soil and rock materials. Where the soft soils are encountered, then the fill material are to
be used to the required strength. The next layer, Sub-Base, made from compacted granular material will
be laid on top of subgrade. Subbase materials will most likely come from the run of the mine course rock.
This layer (300mm thick) provides strength and also prevents the intrusion of sub-grade soil into base
course and the reverse from happening. Then, the base-Course (200mm thick) sits on the sub-base layer.
It is made up of high quality treated/untreated materials with suitable particle size for distribution. This
layer is the main source of structural strength for the road and will also act as the sealing layer.

Figure 9. Ramp cross section

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5.7 Dump design

Figure 10. Dump design

The waste dump is considered a permanent structure because it will be fully rehabilitated at the closure of
the mine. Although the specific size and shape will increase throughout the mines life, the proposed
dimensions will not change. This is situated directly east of where the ramp begins, therefore when a
loaded truck is hauling out of the pit there will be minimal distance and corners it must take before off
loading the waste. This minimizes the risk of driver related accidents on the haul road.

It is approximately 150 m from the edge of the pit and is estimated to be 14,000 m2 in size. An ore pad
will be situated directly upon the waste dump, making it easy on the man and machine. Ore stockpiles
should be located close to the mill to minimize rehandling of material. These have been designed to suit a
wheel loader to move ore from the ROM stockpile to the conveyor into the mill.

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5.8 Open pit layout

Figure 11. Site Layout

The surface auxiliary buildings have been constructed in terms of the positions both open pit and
underground. First of all, larger surface construction and buildings need to be located in the footwall,
because it will have a huge amount of stress on the pit if dump or some bigger buildings sit hanging wall,
which consequently lead to the slope failure. Hence dump is located in north east of pit where footwall
side is. And main office and workshop and magazine are located in footwall side as well.

5.8.1 Power station

The power station is at the southern end of the pit and is estimated to occupy an area of 2400m 2. This will
provide all of the power resources that the mine will need with multiple transformers. Access roads will
surround the station making it accessible to the mine management and other authorized staff.

5.8.2 Dump
The position of dump is located in east north of open pit because dump should be sit next to pit and, also
will located in the footwall side in order to avoid generating a huge of stress on the pit. Dump base is
approximately 330m the edge of the pit. The final waste tonnage form the open pit working is
243,599,490 t, and 97,439,796m3 respectively. Applying a sell factor of 1.3 to the final volume will
achieve a waste dump volume of 126,671,735m 3. Other design characteristics taken into account were the
berm sizes, bench size and batter angles which are important in ensuring a stable foothold for the waste.

25
Our team chose a safe batter angle of 37 degree with an 89 meter berm and 16 meter high bench which
gives an overall slope angle of 28 degrees.

Process plant is located near operation shaft, so that distance between operation shaft and processing plant
is going to decreases so that it will take short circle time delivery ore to milling crushers.

26
6 Equipment selection

6.1 Fleet size

Figure 12. Talpac truck route

Fleet size is evaluated by using TALPAC Software for optimization of trucks. From the analysis, we
produce 12 fleet-sizes in total with an overall production of 326tph each truck at the beginning of mining
open pit. The design of the haul road above is based on the current haul road design generated from
TALPAC. After year2, the fleet sizes of trucks increasing to 18. However, the number of trucks should be
increase to 30 because haulage circle time rises up when pit is going to be deeper after 4. The design of
the haul road above is based on the current haul road design generated from TALPAC. As we can see
there, there are four switchbacks that are used. By employing similar haul road design, we ensure that the
production and fleet size analysis generates the optimum results.

The truck that is used is Komatsu 960E-1, with an overall bucket capacity of 326t. The shovel is a
hydraulic shovel of, with a maximum bucket capacity of 35m 3. There are 15 trucks in total with one
shovel to meet up the production target. The average cycle time is 42 minutes. So, the production rate of
the mine is going to be 29Mtpa.

27
 Equipment Year1 Year3 Year5 Year7 Year9 Year11 Year13 Year15

Haul Trucks 12 18 30 30 30 30 30 30

Shovels 3 3 6 6 6 6 6 6

Drill Rigs 3 4 7 7 7 7 7 7

Figure 13. Fleet size of equipment each year

6.2 Equipment

6.2.1 Shovel
The shovel that has been chosen for this operation is the Komatsu PC 8000-6 with a loading shovel
attachment. This machine is best suited to the conditions of this particular mining system due to their size,
bucket capacity and breakout force which will be required to dig the broken materials. This particular
machine has a bucket capacity of 38m3 which is equivalent to 55 tonnes (heaped) SAE 2:1 which means
that it can fill a Komatsu 960E -1 Haul truck in approximately four bucket passes in about 2.5minutes.
Using the Range Talpac software to optimize and select equipment fleet, it is found that one shovel can
achieve the production of about 14mil tones per year and is capable to load fleet size of 9 trucks.
Therefore, in order to finish mining in the approximated duration of 15 years, six (6) shovels have to be
purchased and operated throughout the mine life.

6.2.2 Haul Truck Fleet

The haul trucks to be used for overburden material will be Komatsu 960E-1 Haul trucks which have a
payload of approximately 326 tonnes. This particular model of truck is frequently used in similar mining
operations mainly because of their sheer size and reliability. The size of the fleet will be optimized so that
target development rates are maintained in conjunction with ore production rates. Using the Range Talpac
software, it is found that 30 trucks are needed for efficient productivity in the mine. The truck fuel
consumption is approximated to be (1743kW x 0.25 x 0.2) 87.15litres/Op.hr.

6.2.3 Production Drill Rig

Sandvik DP1500 is a hydraulic, self-propelled, self-contained, crawler based surface drilling rig
equipped with a cabin and a rod changer. Each rig is expected to drill at the rate of 120m/shift at
the diameter of 150mm.

28
 Figure 14. Production drill rig

Hole Diameter: 89 - 150 mm

Rock Drill: 28 kW
Engine Output: 261 kW
Flushing Air: 14m3/min,

6.2.4 The Wheel Loader

CAT 980H Wheel loaders will be used for blending processes, run-of-mill operations and for general
maintenance jobs around workshops and offices. These loaders will require fork, bucket and jib
attachments to carry out these general odd jobs..8.4-9.2 m3

6.2.5 Dozer
CAT D11T Track-Type Tractor (Dozer) is used to construct haul ramps, to develop waste dumps and to
assist with topsoil removal and initial land clearance. Also the dozer will perform some other duties
including to keep the floors of the pit, cleaning sharp rocks sticking out of the ground, or any rocks that
fall of the back of trucks to protect tyres of the trucks from damage.

6.2.6 Water truck

CAT 773F truck fitted with a water tank will be used provide water required to keep the dust down on the
ramp and at the face. Dust suppression is very important in order to minimize its impacts on the local
environment and. Furthermore, by spraying water on the roads and at the face will create the safer
working environment for the operators and other mine workers.

6.2.7 Motor grader

Pit ramp and haulage road maintenance is a vital aspect to provide for trucks performance. Bad roads may
cause the rapid wear and damage to the truck rubber tyres. Grading roads also provides the smooth riding

29
surface for comfort-ability of all road users. This is very important in order to achieve the high
productivity. CAT 16M grader (4.877m width) is chosen for the purpose of maintaining the roads.

6.2.8 Charge up Wagon

To be able to meet the production targets safely and efficiently, charging and blasting operations should
be carried out with great care. Bulkmaster (Volvo) truck fitted with a special purpose tank will be used to
load the bulk explosive (ANFO) into the blast hole.

6.3 Open Pit Reserve estimation

6.3.1 Comparison Between Pushback Pit and Final Pit
However, each pushback has been added for maximizing pit NPV much closer to our optimum pit. In this
case, we can see that NPV in both the first pushback pit and an ultimate pit has a slight difference when
calculating their reserves in VULCAN. The result is proved as follows:

Pit number no.9 Pushback Pit Final Pit

Ore
Reserve(tones) 108,506,907 148,124,528.20

Table 7. Final pit and pushback pit comparison

From table, we can see that pushback number 9 is less than final pit, which is around 39,617,621 tonnes.

Figure 15. Pushback pit design

30
6.3.2 Whittle and Vulcan Final Pits
After the optimization of pit in WHITTLE and designing pit in VULCAN, there are two different ore
reserve result that have been obtained from two applications. The following table is shown that both
copper and gold reserves have been produced by each of applications.

RESERVE ESTIMATION WHITTLE PIT VULCAN PIT

TOTAL TONNAGE 134,658,662 148,124,528.20

Table 8. Tonnage comparison

When compared between WHITTLE and VULCAN, total ore reserve from VULCAN is a little bit greater
than that from WHITTLE. The reason why optimum pit from VULCAN has 13,465,866.20 tones because
ramp design has impacts on the size of the final pit because pit design may oversize pit to obtain all ore
from WHITTLE pit which will lead to extend ramp to outside WHITTLE pit, so it is going to make final
ultimate pit a bit larger than optimum WHITTLE pit.

Therefore, total ore reserve from VULCAN is 148,124,528.20 tonnes.

31
7 Open Pit Project Evaluation
7.1 Capital cost open pit
The capital cost for the open pit is estimated to be $204,910,000, which consists of different costs from
mining equipments to infrastructure. The mining capacity for this project is 29,000,000 tonnes per year
including both ore and waste. The mining equipments need to be bought and the infrastructure needs
to be built early before the mine life starts. The explanations of the equipments chosen and the number
of units are explained further under equipments selection heading. The highest cost comes from the
total cost of the truck fleet, which consists of 30 trucks. The detailed of the capital cost is shown in the
table below.

Capital Cost No. of Cost/unit Total cost

Unit
Shovel Komatsu PC 8000-6 6 $ 3,500,000 $ 21,000,000
Truck Komatsu 960E-1 30 $ 3,500,000 $ 105,000,000
Production Drill Rig Sandvik DP1500 4 $ 2,100,000 $ 8,400,000
Wheel Loader CAT 980H 2 $ 2,900,000 $ 5,800,000
Dozer CAT D11T 1 $ 2,200,000 $ 2,200,000
Water Truck CAT 773F 2 $ 3,000,000 $ 6,000,000
Motor Grader CAT 16M 1 $ 600,000 $ 600,000
Charge-up Wagon Bulkmaster (Volvo) 1 $ 500,000 $ 500,000
Light Vehicle   30 $ 25,000 $ 750,000
Truck Service Shop   1 $ 1,500,000 $ 1,500,000
Workshop   1 $ 750,000 $ 750,000
Store (spare parts, consumables)   1 $ 800,000 $ 800,000
Office & Admin   1 $ 770,000 $ 770,000
Safety and Training   1 $ 400,000 $ 400,000
Crib Room   1 $ 200,000 $ 200,000
Meeting Room   1 $ 240,000 $ 240,000
Milling Plant   1 $ 30,000,000 $ 30,000,000
Tailing dams   1 $ 20,000,000 $ 20,000,000
        $ 204,910,000

Table 9. Open Pit Capital Cost

32
7.2 Operating cost open pit
Open Pit Operating Cost
Truck Tires - 6 months period $4000/unit $ 32,000 $ 960,000
  Grease/Lubrication $5.50/kg $ 25,960 $ 778,800
  Fuel - 400L per day $1.1/L $ 207,680 $ 6,230,400
  Spare Parts 1 $ 170,000 $ 5,100,000
  Hydraulic Oil - 70L per day $1.90/L $ 62,776 $ 1,883,280
  Engine Oil - 50L per day $2.25/L $ 53,100 $ 1,593,000
  Transmission Oil - 20L per day $2.20/L $ 20,768 $ 623,040
Shovel Tires - 6 months period $3000/unit $ 24,000 $ 144,000
  Grease/Lubrication $5.50/kg $ 25,960 $ 155,760
  Fuel - 400L per day $1.1/L $ 207,680 $ 1,246,080
  Spare Parts 1 $ 170,000 $ 1,020,000
  Hydraulic Oil - 75L per day $1.90/L $ 67,260 $ 403,560
  Engine Oil - 40L per day $2.25/L $ 42,480 $ 254,880
  Transmission Oil - 20L per day $2.20/L $ 20,768 $ 124,608
Labour Loader Operator 2 $ 120,000 $ 480,000
  Truck Operator 30 $ 134,000 $ 4,020,000
  Grader Operator 2 $ 100,000 $ 200,000
  Fitters 3 $ 95,000 $ 285,000
  Electricians 3 $ 90,000 $ 270,000
  Mechanics 4 $ 95,000 $ 380,000
  Mine Manager 1 $ 220,000 $ 220,000
  Foreman 2 $ 170,000 $ 340,000
  Shift bosses 4 $ 156,000 $ 624,000
  Safety & Trainers 2 $ 90,000 $ 180,000
  Geologists 2 $ 100,000 $ 200,000
  Surveyors 2 $ 100,000 $ 200,000
  Engineers 2 $ 136,000 $ 272,000
  Geotechnical 1 $ 70,000 $ 70,000
  Processing cost     $ 50,000,000
  TOTAL     $ 78,258,408

Table 10. Open Pit Operating Cost

The total operating cost shown in the table above is for a year. The operating costs mainly contributed
by the equipments’ fuel and spare parts. The total operating cost for the entire open pit mine life of 15
years will be $1,173,876,120.

33
8 Underground Mining method
Mine method selection is vital in ensuring that the mine is operating at maximum capacity while returning
the highest profit, development and production that is possible for the ore body and, country rock and
location. Mine method selection was based on the UBC (University of British Colombia) system which
focuses on the following characteristics:

• Ore body Shape

• Ore body Thickness
• Ore body Plunge
• Ore body Depth
• Ore Grade
• RMR – Footwall, Hangingwall and Ore
• RSS – Footwall, Hangingwall and Ore

8.1 Mine method Selection

After considering these characteristics in relation to the mine, and applying the UBC ranking system, the
best suited mining methods were determined. Table 8 below illustrates the numerous mining methods that
were found to have the highest ranking.

34
 1 Sublevel Stoping 42

2 Open Pit 32

3 Cut and Fill 29

4 Sublevel Caving 27

5 Block Caving 20

6 Top Slicing 14

7 Square Set 5

8 Shrinkage Stoping -15

9 Room and Pillar -67

10 Longwall -83

Table 11. UBC ranking system

As seen in the tale above, sublevel stoping was found to be the most suitable method however to ensure
the correct method is selected, a comparison between the top two underground methods, Sublevel stoping
and cut and fill, must be made.

8.2 Comparison

8.2.1 Sublevel Stoping

The most favorable method found by the UBC system, sublevel stoping, requires rubber tired load-haul-
dump machinery which load directly out of the draw points located at the base of the working stopes. The
machines then transport the ore directly into waiting trucks or to ore passes located near-by. Remote-
controlled boggers have demonstrated to be effective for loading out draw points under unsupported
ground, particularly near the brow of the stope and are primarily used for the safety of personnel. The key
to minimizing production costs is mechanization. This involves utilizing large-scale machines which are
still of a reasonable and practical size for decline and access drive specifications and sizes. The utilization
of large capacity long hole drill rigs may also minimize production costs as less cuts are required which
results in less tramming time, and less transactions between drill, blast and haulage operations.

Sublevel open stoping is generally considered a high-production, low-cost method and is commonly
selected as a preferred underground mining method when surface mining of a deposit is no longer viable
or practical. This method meets production requirements with the use of a development decline and

35
haulage shaft and selected equipment. The decline and progressive access drives allow for flexibility to
the overall operation.

8.2.2 Cut and Fill

The Cut and fill underground mining method is a high production underground mining method. It focuses
on the mining of generally thin, weak ore bodies and then filling removed stopes for extra ground support.
The main benefit of this mining method is the low dilution and great stability however it is a very
expensive method and is often only used when ground is weak. With relatively low grade ore, this method
would not be economically viable, as the costs per tonne of ore removed would likely exceed the
generated revenue. In addition, for the cut and fill mining method the ventilation system is more difficult
to design which can cause additional complications.

After careful consideration of the top two favorable mining methods, sublevel stoping is deemed to be the
most suitable method. With the use of a shaft hoisting system and adequate planning, the high production
requirements can be met. In addition to this, the method is very safe, well suited to the structure and
geotechnical features of the ore body and relatively inexpensive.

36
9 Underground Mine Design
The underground mine will consist of 5 sub levels with 2 main haulage levels. The mine will operate a
dual access system with machinery and personnel access via a decline from the within the open cut while
ore will be removed using a shaft haulage system.

Figure 16. Underground design

The stopes will be 55m in height, 30m in length and 20m in width. Each sub level will on average have
160 stopes to be mined. There will be a 40m crown pillar separating the first sublevel and the bottom of
the open pit. Between each level there will be a sill pillar that is 30m in height. This will act to support
the open stopes and prevent void collapses.

37
 Figure 17. Stope Design

The main decline will be access the surface via a portal in the open pit at 1870m RL and travels down on
a 1:7 gradient for a vertical depth of 630m making the total decline a length of 4.4km. The decline will be
5.5m by 5.5m in cross section. The main shaft will be located to the north of the workings and is located
at the surface adjacent to the open pit. The shaft has a circular cross sectional with a diameter of 3.5m The
cross cuts and access drives will be smaller than the main decline with a cross sectional dimension of
4.5m wide by 4.8m high. For each sublevel there is on average 11km of development drives.

Figure 18. Cross cut and access drive design

There will be a total of four ore passes with two running to each production level. There will be a crusher
operating on both production levels, initially operating on the first level while the first two sublevels are

38
being mined and then the crusher will be moved to the second production level once the stopes in the
upper sublevels are mined.

9.1 Shaft Hoisting

The main goal in the material handling is to be able to meet production schedule safely and efficiently.
Due to amount of ore and waste materials to be removed from underground, the shaft hoisting system is
chosen to transport materials from underground to surface. As the shaft will only be used to transport
materials, the diameter of shaft is 3.5m.

The bottom dump fixed body skip has been chosen due to its best performance compared to other types of
skips. Friction Hoist Koepe system has been chosen. This is a balanced system where an endless rope is
used thus eliminating the need to attach and store the rope on the winder. A wheel containing grooves
lined with friction material is utilized to resist slippage of the rope.
To determine the capacity of skip, the hoist cycle time has to be determined first. At the skips loading
station is located at depth of 900m below the ground level and hoist shaft cycle times is calculated to be
120 seconds as shown in the appendix. Two skips @ 10 tonnes payload each are required. As the shaft
will only be used to transport material, the diameter of shaft is 3.5m

9.2 Geotechnical Considerations

9.2.1 Stope Stability

A fully extracted stope is essentially a large void, there is no rock present in the stope to hold the
walls and roof (backs) from caving in. It is important that stope’s dimensions produce a stable
void in the rock. In addition, regional stresses in the rock also play a part in the stability and
design of stopes. Given the ore body shape, area geology and rock strength and the stable
conditions prevailing at the proposed mine, the designed stope size is 55m high, 30m long and
20m wide. The tables given in the Appendix are used to summarize the calculations and results
obtained in order to determine the stability number N for both, hanging wall and footwall.
Stability number N is then used with the hydraulic Radius to check the hanging wall/footwall
stability in the extended Mathew method stability chart. It is found that the modified stability
number N, is 52.0 for footwall and 42.7 for hanging wall and the hydraulic radius of 10m. These
values are then plotted in the extended Mathew stability chart to check the stability of the
designed stope size. From hydraulic radius calculations it is found the stope can be up to 31.4 m
long which fall in the stable stope zone as shown below.

39
 Figure 19. Used to determine the stability of the Sub level stoping based on the Hydraulic radius

9.3 Paste Backfill

Paste backfill is a blend of slurried mill tailings, sand and Portland cement in a specified mix
proportions resulting in a more homogenous and considerably stronger product than
conventional hydraulic backfills.

9.3.1 Objective
The main purpose of using paste backfill is increase the mining recovery; provide stability for
the subsequent stopes due the void created from the previous mined stope and to reduce the
environmental impacts resulting from the utilization of the tailings and aggregates from the Run
of mine.

9.3.2 Mix design, strength characteristics and curing

Paste backfill will be gravity fed onto the stopes and will comprise of 2.5% Portland cement, 27.5% mill
tailings and 80% sands. By mass proportions the paste backfill will have 15% of water and 85% of solids.
With this water content the mix proportions will have met the following:

 The flow characteristic during transportation changes from hydraulic to Bingham flow

40
  The backfill material has a considerable friction resistance to allow blasting soon after filling
operation.
 Hydration process is accelerated and resulted in relatively high final shear strength and water
decant

In order to prevent segregation of the grains and retain the water while operating under pumping pressure,
the optimum grain size distribution for the paste fill is to maintain the minus 20 micron content around
20% passing.

Paste fill will be produced in a large capacity, fully automated backfill plant. Plant will be installed on
surface and paste components to make the paste fill are trucked from nearby tailings areas and sand pit.
Pastefill production in the form of concrete batching method (i.e. 5 tonnes every second) at the maximum
output of 200tph in a desired slump between 180 – 210mm is released into polyethylene lined gob hopper
and is funneled into the borehole pipeline system. The underground network comprises continuous 250 –
200mm diameter pipes. Pouring procedure consists of filling bottom of the stopes with a base plug of
high cement strength backfill (8% cement). This is followed by curing period of 8 hours, after which the
remaining stope void is filled with lower strength backfill (2.5% cement). The stopes are fairly large,
having volume of 37,404m3

Figure 20. Stope backfilling sequence

9.3.3 Strength and strain characteristics of pastefill

Uniaxial compressive strength is the most common test method to evaluate the strength of
cylindrical specimen. Based on the uniaxial results it is expected that the vertical strain at failure
to be less than 1% and 7 days the paste sample should reach approximately 65% of their 28 days
compressive strength.

41
9.3.4 Pastefill barricades
Barricades are constructed for the purpose of retaining paste fill material within the mined out
stopes. The majority of the applicable barricade pressures on hydraulic and Bingham fill
barricades in open stope mining are much larger. Composite fill fence will be constructed using
the rebar skeleton, wire mesh, and an adequate thickness of shotcrete. This type of barricade

42
10 Underground Mine Scheduling
The underground mine schedule has been developed using stopes in the first sublevel. Using the Vulcan
Computer Software 165 stopes were generated in a grid pattern to cover the deposits present at that level.
From there each stopes copper and gold grade and tonnage was calculated using the Advanced Reserve
Calculator function. Now that the grade for each stope is known it is possible to determine the revenue
that can be generated by mining each stope. This number is calculated by using the ore tonnages, the
copper and gold prices, the milling recovery percentages and the tax and royalty rates. From here the cost
of mining each stope can be generated. As each stope has the same design parameter, that is that they are
20 by 30 by 55m in dimension, the volume of each stope is roughly the same. Therefore the costs
associated with mining each stope should be the same for each stope. The costs associated with mining
each stope include drilling and blasting, mucking, and backfill costs. Other costs include development and
milling costs. For each stope the cost is then removed from the income that can be generated by mining
each stope and the resulting number is the profit that will be made by mining each stope. Each stope has
an assigned number and those that are positive indicate that those stopes are profitable to mine. The figure
below presents the stope layout in the first level of the underground workings and displays the profit
margins for each profitable stope. The stopes without numbers have ore that is below the cut off grade
and therefore unprofitable.

  $240,605 $83,618              
  $531,767 $1,780,252 $860,359 $611,394
  $564,912 $2,740,351 $2,329,580 $143,145 $304,714 $2,041,523
$165,604 $1,274,555 $3,202,987 $3,672,191 $2,306,304 $1,895,014 $1,122,732 $568,446 $1,371,327 $2,981,105
$859,933 $2,390,664 $3,954,335 $4,483,142 $4,222,079 $3,495,776 $2,741,331 $1,963,766 $2,258,035 $3,420,786
$603,237 $2,787,960 $4,823,243 $5,393,750 $5,326,414 $4,686,992 $3,835,985 $2,925,939 $2,928,215 $3,278,972
  $2,129,348 $4,760,384 $5,836,832 $5,591,296 $4,771,514 $4,171,032 $3,143,397 $3,109,168 $2,811,580
  $1,089,021 $3,728,490 $5,091,700 $5,511,242 $4,480,240 $3,472,853 $2,257,599 $2,406,739 $1,811,958
  $625,830 $2,767,534 $4,092,711 $4,907,502 $4,113,721 $1,933,746 $583,540 $747,888 $470,511
  $1,094,799 $2,677,377 $4,250,593 $4,479,742 $3,091,722 $705,459 $98,291 $1,330,289
$1,838,036 $2,787,214 $3,830,494 $4,708,154 $4,609,993 $2,577,354 $629,765 $1,615,369 $2,837,741

$2,300,491 $3,246,235 $4,629,430 $5,047,963 $4,815,857 $3,298,144 $2,299,060 $1,297,553 $3,119,328 $3,504,107

$544,557 $1,786,042 $4,128,230 $4,873,358 $3,590,841 $4,382,618 $4,311,483 $3,334,224 $3,812,759 $3,691,385
  $833,894 $2,672,313 $3,764,755 $3,427,844 $4,646,478 $5,718,043 $4,885,289 $3,690,175 $2,851,640
$229,705 $2,381,248 $1,696,549 $2,107,080 $2,242,771 $4,147,977 $5,500,524 $4,569,672 $2,228,681 $796,514
$274,799 $2,921,314 $1,822,614 $729,320 $790,307 $2,306,378 $3,351,379
  $1,953,945 $933,751 $220,838 $386,045
             

43
 Figure 21. Profit per stope

With the stope values now known a schedule can be produced. To satisfy the milling rate of 2.5 million
tonnes per year 7 stopes need to be mined every three months. Thus to create a mine schedule for the first
two years of underground production a total of 56 stopes need to be mined. The aim of the schedule is to
maximize the profit while remaining within the constraints of the sublevel stoping mining method. To
achieve a high profit the highest grade stopes available must be mined first. However stopes must be
mined while retreating towards the decline because once a stope is mined all access to the stopes beyond
that are lost. Also no two stopes can be mined in the same period due to the stability issues. The schedule
must also take into account the stopes to be mined after the initial two year period.

Based on the cycle time and capacity of the boggers being used, it is calculated that it takes on average 23
days for one bogger to muck an entire stope. It is also assumed that it takes a week to backfill and for that
subsequent backfill to cure. Therefore it will take on average a month for a stope to mined and backfilled.
The time taken to drill each stope is relatively insignificant as it only takes a small amount of time and
can be performed well in advance of when the stope is to be excavated.

As there is no formula to determine the optimum mine schedule a process of trial and error is required. To
determine a mine schedule for the first 8 three month periods stopes with the highest grade were chosen
first. A NPV formula was created using an interest rate of 2.5% per three month period as the annual rate
is 10%. The resulting schedule can be seen in the figure below.

44
 Figure 22. Stope mining schedule

Perio
d Stopes to be Mined Total
1 $4,569,672 $1,953,945 $729,320 $386,045 $796,514 $274,799 $2,306,378 $11,016,673
$4,147,97
2 $2,228,681 $3,351,379 $2,107,080 $2,921,314 7 $4,885,289 $2,851,640 $22,493,359
$5,500,52
3 $933,751 $3,764,755 $790,307 $4,646,478 4 $3,334,224 $3,691,385 $22,661,423
$4,873,35
4 $3,690,175 $5,718,043 $2,381,248 $3,504,107 8 $2,242,771 $1,822,614 $24,232,317
$3,812,75
5 $4,382,618 $5,047,963 $1,696,549 $3,427,844 9 $2,837,741 $833,894 $22,039,368
$2,672,31
6 $4,311,483 $3,590,841 $3,119,328 $4,708,154 3 $1,786,042 $3,298,144 $23,486,305
$3,246,23
7 $4,128,230 $4,815,857 $4,250,593 $2,299,060 5 $1,615,369 $2,577,354 $22,932,699
$2,787,21
8 $4,629,430 $4,092,711 $4,609,993 $3,091,722 4 $1,297,553 $1,330,289 $21,838,912
Total NPV $152,102,594

Table 12. Mined stopes per period

As the table above shows in the first period a relatively small profit is made when compared to the other
periods. This is because in the first period some of the lower grade stopes needed to be mined before the
higher grade stopes could be accessed. In one case a stope that would be profitable was left out to

45
increase the overall NPV. As the stope only had a small profit it was preferred to leave it and mine a
much more profitable stope sooner thus increasing the overall NPV.

11 Underground Equipment selection

11.1 Underground Production Rig.

11.1.1 Atlas Copco COP 1838 ME: Simba 1250-series

This production drilling machine is chosen because of its ability for ring drilling with parallel holes
upwards/downwards and in the side walls. It is a production rig with hydraulic top hammer rock drill. Electrical
Direct System, EDS, provides a basic, efficient and productive long hole drilling solution. It has three different
positioning unit configurations to match the user's needs. This rig is suitable for drilling production blast hole
of 89mm diameter. In order to achieve production targets, four production rigs are needed. Drilling rate
for each rig is 140m/shift.

Figure 23. Underground production rig

11.2 Underground Development Rig

11.2.1 Sandvik DT720 (5)

Jumbos will be used to perform three basic functions of scaling, installing rock reinforcements and
blast hole drilling. With the planned decline development rate of 255m per month this twin booms
jumbo is selected due to its Superior performance with high consumable life, Rapid and safe
tramming with excellent balance, Built-in diagnostics to minimize maintenance time. This rig is

46
 suitable for development blast hole of 44mm diameter. Each jumbo is to drill at the rate of
4.5m/shift.

Figure 24. Underground development rig

11.3 Underground Truck

11.3.1 CAT AD55B elphinstone
In order to produce 7353t/day of ore and 1500t/day of waste, 4 reliable trucks are required;
AD55B elphinstone trucks of 55 tones capacity are chosen to handle the ore and waste products
from underground operations. Trucks will be required to haul the materials from the draw points
underground and dumping to the underground crusher. The average distance from the draw
points and crusher is estimated to be 800m. Calculations for required number of trucks travelling
at an average speed of 15km/hr are given in the appendix:

Figure 25. Underground truck

11.4 Underground LHDs

11.4.1 CAT R 2900 Loaders
To keep up with production R 2900G elphinstone loaders are chosen. This type of is very much
compatible to the above chosen AD 55B tonnes trucks. Its compact design, high engine power
higher torque rise and excellent maneuverability makes the loader more versatile and reliable.
Three loaders are required to achieve daily production tonnage. This bogger has a bucket
47
payload capacity of 8.9 m3 x 2.5 ~ 20 tonnes per bucket. Loaders will be bogging the materials from
the stopes and development faces and dumping directly to the ore passes. The average distance from the
stopes and faces at the sublevels underground has been calculated to be 350m return route. Calculations
for required number of LHD’s travelling at an average speed of 10km/hr are given in the
appendix.

Figure 26. Underground LHD

11.5 Underground Charge-up units

Four charge up wagons are required for the stope and development face explosive charging operations.

11.6 Underground Services Units

11.6.1 CAT 12H Grader.

Decline roadway maintenance is a vital aspect to provide for trucks performance. Bad road may
cause the rapid wear and damage to the truck rubber tyres. Grading underground roads also
provides the smooth riding surface for comfort-ability of all road users. This is very important in
order to achieve the high productivity. One motor grader is chosen for the purpose of
maintaining underground and surface mine roads.

48
 Figure 27. Grader

11.6.2 Integrated Carrier unit (IT)

CAT 980H Integrated Carrier unit will be used for perform mine services active in underground. These
jobs require are done in a basket which is attached to the boom of the loader in order to lift personnel and
materials while working from heights. These services include extending and retracting ventilation bags,
water and compressed air distribution, electricity distribution etc. These loaders will require fork, bucket,
basket and jib attachments to carry out these general odd jobs.

49
12 Underground Project Evaluation
12.1 Capital Cost Underground

The capital cost for the underground is estimated to be $132,240,000, which consists of different costs
from underground mining equipments to the development of the underground. The highest cost from
this table comes from the decline and followed by the truck fleet.

Capital Cost No. of Cost/unit Total cost

Unit
Trucks CAT AD55B elphinstone 8 $ $
3,500,000 28,000,000
Loaders CAT R 2900 elphinstone 4 $ $
2,800,000 11,200,000
Production Rig Atlas Copco COP 1838 ME: Simba 4 $ $
1250-series 2,200,000 8,800,000
Development Rig Sandvik DD420 5 $ $
2,000,000 10,000,000
Charge-up Unit   4 $ $
500,000 2,000,000
Grader CAT 12H 1 $ $
550,000 550,000
Integrated Tool Carrier CAT 980H 4 $ $
80,000 320,000
Light Vehicle   4 $ $
25,000 100,000
Decline 5x5m   4060m $7,000/m $
28,420,000
Drifts 4x4m   5000m $4,000/m $
20,000,000
Ventilation raises   600m $2000/m $
1,200,000
Surface facilities   $
4,265,000
Working capital   $
5,505,000
Engineering and   $
management 6,715,000
Contingency   $
5,165,000
TOTAL   $
132,240,000

Table 13. Underground capital cost

50
12.2 Operating Cost Underground
The operating cost for the underground is shown in the table below. The production rate for the
underground throughout the underground mine life, 17 years, stays constant which is 2,500,000 tonnes
per year.

Underground Operating Cost ($/tonne ore)

Equipment operation 1.62

Supplies 3.89
Hourly labor 9.55
Administration 5.98
Sundries 2.1
Stoping cost 29
Milling cost 10
Grade control 1
TOTAL 63.14

Table 14. Underground operating cost

From the table above, it can be calculated that the operating cost per year for this deposit is 2,500,000 x
63.14 = $157,850,000 per year and $2,683,450,000 in total for the whole underground mine life of 17
years.

51
13 Ventilation design
The underground mine design layout was exported into Ventsim to determine the ventilation
requirements. It was determined that to provide the required air to the mine workings an intake shaft was
required. Without the intake shaft the quantity of airflow would be too great through the decline and this
would result in dust and other contaminants being transported down the decline. With the addition of a
secondary intake the air flow in the decline would be within the acceptable standards and the mine would
still receive adequate ventilation. While the exhaust shaft was designed to avoid the pit the intake shaft
can be in the pit as no fans are required. This will save costs associated with creating extra drives and
raise boring.

Figure 28. Ventilation design

13.1 Ventilation Requirements

The ventilation requirements take into consideration the underground equipment such as LVs, trucks,
boggers and jumbos. They also take into consideration underground facilities like the fuel bay. Each piece
of equipment has a set ventilation requirement and when added together the total requirements of the
mine can be found. The table below displays the underground equipment and machinery and their
ventilation requirements as well as the total air quantity required for the underground mine.

52
 Table 15. Ventilation Requirements

13.2 Ventilation Equipment

To meet the ventilation requirements two 180kw centrifugal fans are required. The fans are to be installed
at the surface of the exhaust shaft and should be installed in series. This will provide the network with the
350m³/s of ventilation that is required. The use of two fans instead of one means that if one fan breaks
down the other can still provide ventilation to the mine. Several auxiliary fans and vent bags will be
required to provide fresh air to the operational stopes.

53
14 Total Production Cost

14.1 NPV estimate

For the open pit, several results were obtained from Whittle regarding the measurements. Using the
29,000,000 tpa as the production rate and using Milawa Balanced, the following results were obtained:

 NPV of $1,703,572,949
 Life (year) of the mine is 15 years
 Payback after 1.35 year
 Payback ratio of 0.09
 IRR of 97.18%

For the underground, financial technical modeling were used to calculate the same measurements as
the open pit. Below is the parameters that were used in order to find the measurements.

UNITS INPUTS
205,000.
INVESTMENT EXPENDITURE AU$'000 00
102,500.
DEBT AU$'000 00
INTEREST RATE % 10%
WACC % 11%
COMPANY INCOME TAX % 30%
YEARLY PRODUCTION tonnes '000 2500
ROYALTY % 4%
MINING COSTS $/t 11.00
CLOSEDOWN COSTS AU$'000 225000
A$ INFLATION % 2.89%
EXCHANGE RATE 1US$=AU$ 0.84
GOLD CONTAINED Ounces'000 88594
COPPER CONTAINED tonnes'000 109552

Table 16. NPV determining factors

From the parameters, the following measurements were found:

 NPV of $92,419,778.30
 Life (year) of the mine is 17 years
 Payback after 2.4 years
 Payback ratio of 1.21
 IRR of 114%

54
14.2 Sensitivity analysis

There are several parameters that contributed to the changes of the NPV for this project. The
parameters are exchange rate, gold prices, copper prices, gold metal content, copper metal content,
mining costs, capital costs, annual production rate and inflation rate. The base case values for each
individual parameter are the values that are used for the financial technical modeling.

The base case values for each parameter is compared to 10% and 20% to both negative and positive
directions.

SENSITIVITY ANALYSIS
NPV VALUES IN AU$'000

6,000,000.00
Exchange rate
5,000,000.00 Gold prices
Copper prices
4,000,000.00 Gold Grades
Copper Grades
3,000,000.00 Mining costs
Capital costs
2,000,000.00 Annual Production
Inflation rate
1,000,000.00

-
-20% -10% Base Case 10% 20%

Figure 29. Sensitivity Analysis

From the graph, it is clearly seen that the exchange rate is the most influential parameter to the
changes of NPV. Small changes in exchange rate resulting in big changes in NPV. The capital costs and
mining costs are the less influential parameters to the changes of NPV. Small changes in capital costs
and mining costs resulting in only small changes of NPV.

55
15 Risk Assessment
Risk Assessment is the process of investigating all activities involved in mining processes and identifying
potential risks. To reduce these risks a set of actions are planned to control the likelihood of potentially
serious accidents. A Risk Assessment should be performed before any mining operation begins and the
developed Risk Management System should be implemented. The main steps in a Risk Assessment are:

 Identify Hazards
 Assess Risks (Likelihood and Consequences)
 Controls (Actions or steps put in place to reduce the hazard)
 Evaluate Residual Risk
 Additional Controls (if needed)
 Monitoring, follow-up, re-assessment

To recognize and identify the severity of the risks present in a mining environment the matrix shown
below (table 16) classifies the severity of the hazard and the probability of it happening in the mining
workplace. The severity ranges from catastrophic to Negligible (I – IV) and the probability is ranked from
frequent to unlikely (A – E). The rated numbers range from 1 to 20 and as seen below, an accident rate 9
can be tolerated but any lower, actions must be taken to make the situation safer.

Table 17. Risk assessment matrix

There are many risks involved in underground mining, regardless of the method chosen. The risk
involved with this mining system are directed in to five main sectors; geotechnical, production,

56
environmental, economical and social. The risks associated with the mining method and methods of
egress are also discussed and critically analyzed. The major risks that are expected within this operation
are outlined within the following pages.

15.1 Geotechnical
Rock falls underground are a potential hazard that results in damage to machinery and/or injury to
workers. Inspections should therefore be performed on a regular basis in order to make sure that this
hazard is minimized to the greatest possible extent. We can increase roof stability and minimize risk by
employing ground support such as shotcrete, rock bolts and meshing in the underground mining
procedures. Where required, extra ground support should be installed and check scaling performed on a
regular basis. In the decline check scaling should be performed regularly and any hazardous materials
should be removed using a scaling bar. In the case of rocks above head height, an IT should be used to
perform the scaling to minimize any hazard of a rock fall occurring involving injury.

15.1.1 Stope Failure

Stope failure is a very realistic risk that may occur in any stoping operation. It may be caused in several
ways, depending on the competency of the country and host rock and type of stoping being used. These
can cause significant production problems for the mine and losing a stope inevitably means a large
tonnage of ore is unrecoverable. This causes roll-on effects, with the mill having very little to put through
which will result in lower revenues if another stope is not already in production.

Hang-ups may occur in the draw points, which may be caused by factors such as incorrect rock mass
classification and poor blasting practices. Generally, a mine that has just begun to stope will go through a
testing phase to get the stope to fire and pull correctly. It is expected that the deposit for our project will
go through this process, and hence blasting practices and ring designs will be adequate enough to
demonstrate a sufficiently low risk.

15.1.2 Drive and Decline Stability

As the mine only extends to a relatively moderate depth, stresses on drive walls and backs should be kept
relatively low. Rock strength is reasonably competent at 100-120MPa, and is expected to be stable. Risk
from falling scats that may occur from the backs will be minimized through the installation of adequate
ground support where required. This will be in the form of rock-bolts, 5mm steel mesh, shotcrete and
cable bolts which will be applied over significant areas of the mine. A large amount of attention is given
to decline stability with particular detail to design and regular maintenance being of high importance.
These developments have to last the life of the mine and thus floor, wall and backs conditions must be of
a high standard.

57
15.2 Production

15.2.1 Equipment Downtime

As in any mining operation the unexpected downtime of both production and development equipment can
cause a major problem in the production rate. This is seen as a risk to both the production and financial
aspects of mining. To deal with breakdowns that might and will occur, a stringent maintenance schedule
will be set up to minimize the unexpected down time. A contingency plan will be put in place to cater for
unscheduled maintenance and it will be of a high priority to perform maintenance tasks on time and
according to the established schedule.

15.2.2 Vehicle Collision

Vehicle collisions are an expected risk within the mine and can result in several levels of seriousness from
a minor equipment damage incident to a serious injury or death. Incidents can occur for a variety of
reasons such as a collision due to an incorrectly parked vehicle or from a vehicle experiencing break
failure. Runaway vehicles are a serious issue that is not unheard of in the mining industry. A runaway
vehicle on the decline is of particular concern as it has the time and distance to build up speed in a high
traffic zone. The impact that the vehicle will undergo will cause serious injury and or damage to itself and
whatever it collides with. To try and control this risk, strict parking requirements for all vehicles will be
enforced and a stringent maintenance scheme will be in place to maintain the integrity of the vehicles.
Other measures will include radio procedures for breakdowns, regular parking bays and practices such as
not leaving the vehicle, should it break down and compulsory training to better prepare personnel.

15.2.3 Underground Fire

Fire in an underground metalliferous mine poses a moderate to high risk. This is due to the flame and
smoke created by the fire itself as well as the possibility of extensive damage to machinery and injury to
workers which could all result in prolonged downtime or even mine closure. Fires can be in the form of
tyre fires, diesel fires or electrical fires which are all applicable to the mining equipment used in the
underground mine. Once the fire has been ignited there are several fluids to fuel the fire, i.e. diesel,
hydraulic fluid, oil. Furthermore, fresh air provided by the ventilation system will also fuel the fire. This
can be overcome by having an automated ventilation system that may be controlled by a personnel on the
surface.

Fires pose a high risk of occurring underground if full awareness in not adopted by the mine culture. A
full investigation into the cause of the fire and the design of the mine and its safety procedures in place
will take place if there are serious or fatal injuries to workers. The closure of the mine during the
investigation will be very costly to the mine as production will cease and underground personnel will be

58
on standby. Also share prices for the mine company could decrease due to a death causing wide spread
financial pressure on all of the mines owned and operated by the mining company. The company may
also adopt a negative view from the industry and the media and consequently the general public. This
may affect future operations and the overall value and reputation of the company.

After acknowledging this, procedures are enforced to maintain a safe working environment and to
minimize the chance of a fire occurring. Fire suppression systems are protocols are to be put into place
throughout the mine. These include but are not limited to AFFF, Aqueous film forming foams, being
fitted to all machinery, and a sprinkler system being installed underground which will also be used for
dust suppression. In addition to this, precautions such as stink gas and standard emergency systems will
also be applied as well as adequate training.

15.2.4 Hazardous Gases

There is the constant threat of accidents and injuries occurring underground from toxic gases either
produced by the mining machines, blasting or produced naturally by the rock. Carbon Monoxide, Carbon
Dioxide, Nitrogen Oxide are examples of the gases found underground, all of which are toxic to humans.
These can irritate the air way of a person and cause asphyxia if in that area for long periods of time. Also
instant brain damage, seizures and death can be caused by breathing in high concentrations of these
gasses. A serious injury due to this could cause an investigation into the ventilation of the mine and
careful scrutiny of all the underground practices. Ceasing production increases the cost of the mine,
therefore risking the closure of the mine and refusal to work by the underground workers. If faulty
practices are found in the investigation, possible suing of the mining company by any of the employees is
possible or a money hand out to all of the employees could be given by company, putting more financial
pressure on the company.

This risk is minor in the mine with a low risk ore body and adequate ventilation however all vehicles will
be equipped with gas monitors and strict re-entry procedures will be installed to monitor gases released
from blasting.

15.2.5 Dewatering
Water flow poses a major potential threat to any underground mine. Sufficient care should be taken to
make sure that the pumping equipment used can provide the head movement required. Stagnant water is
not allowed to accumulate and is to be pumped away from its resting area. Adequate precautions should
be taken to prevent employees from being exposed to noxious gases or depletion of oxygen from this
pumping action. (Regulation 7.16) Even though water issues are not major in the mine, regular sumps will

59
be installed throughout the mine and an effective pumping system will be implemented. Portable pumps
will be available for active headings and will be employed where and when needed.

15.2.6 Ventilation
Ventilation is an essential part of underground design and is vital to provide sufficient air flow and to
dilute any air contaminants. When considering ventilation requirements, the decline is of particular
attention as it is more susceptible to problems with generated heat and diesel fumes. One of the problems
with such a large ventilation requirement is the velocity of the air traveling throughout the mine, as this
may cause dust problems and an undesirable working condition.

To minimize any problems associated with ventilation, an appointed ventilation officer is to carry out
primary and secondary ventilation. These inspections will be recorded and any issues will be dealt with
immediately. All personnel will also be required to carry sufficient water for fluid loss in working
conditions and will be advised to notify their supervisor immediately if temperatures rise too high, or if
they believe sufficient air is not being provided.

15.3 Economical
Within this operation, as with any operation, the finances and profitability of the deposit play a vital role
into whether the mine will be producing or become uneconomically viable. This may occur at the pre-
feasibility stage of the mine, resulting in either not going into production, or if already in production,
having operations ceased. The largest economic risk is the demand of the market for gold and copper. If
the market drops dramatically and the cost of extracting and refining the gold and copper is greater than
what the market is willing to pay, then the operation will no longer be profitable. The market demand for
both metals contained in the deposit is currently quite strong and is expected to remain so into the near
future. With fluctuations in the sale price of the commodities, the economic viability of the deposit will
lower. This only becomes a problem when cut-off grades are reached, forcing areas of the deposit to be
re-assessed for financial profit. Should the price drop too low then the operation may become
economically unviable and need to be put on care and maintenance or mine closure plans may need to be
implemented.

Another risk is that the estimated grades of the minerals are lower than expected therefore the ore
is not as valuable, threatening the profitability of the mine. In addition to this is the risk of
fluctuation exchange rates, increases in interest rates and fluctuations in inflation rates, all of
which could have a dramatic affect on the mines profit. Demand and supply variations in the

60
market can also strongly affect the value of the commodities which could once again lower mine
revenue.

A decline mine with large truck haulage requirements has a comparatively higher operating cost and is
more susceptible to fluctuations in the gold and copper price. The advantage however, is being able to
extract ore before all the development is completed and the extraction flexibility means that the mine can
start producing money at an earlier stage of the mine and therefore generating a cash flow. The large
requirement of labor in a decline mine means that a labor shortage or a dramatic spike in salaries due to
demand has the potential to diminish mine profits. In a mining boom, the shortage of truck tyres and
heavy machinery could cause problems if management is required to increase production or if the trucks
experience higher than expected wear and tear.

15.4 Environmental
Environmental risks are particularly relevant in today’s society where the media and
communities focus on mining’s impact on the environment is extremely prevalent. Degradation
is viewed poorly by the community, stakeholders, investors and the media which can bring large
penalties and fines. Before operations begin, the surrounding environment needs to be observed
and conditions need to be recorded in order to monitor any environmental impact. A box cut
portal will scar the landscape and will be noticeable for many years regardless of how much
rehabilitation takes place. In addition to this, the diesel powered machinery emits harmful
emissions into the atmosphere and also creates noise pollution. Every day environmental
concerns for any mine consist of diesel or oil spills and the disturbance to native flora and fauna
to name a few.

15.4.1 Dust
The majority of dust particles at mine sites are large dust particles created from activities such as the
mechanical disturbance of rock and soil materials, bulldozing, blasting, and vehicles travelling on dirt
roads. Large particles are also created by wind blowing over the surface of bare land. Finer particles,
which have a higher health concern, account for around 5% of mine dust emissions and are mostly
generated from vehicle exhausts and combustion processes, similar to urban areas. Dust can have some
health impacts for local communities, so steps are taken to minimize the level of dust emissions. If health
effects arise from exposure to coarse particles, such as from mining activities, the symptoms are likely to
include coughing, wheezing or worsening of asthma, increased need for respiratory and antibiotic
medications and increased breathlessness. Dust emissions are managed through a combination of mine

61
planning, minimizing disturbed areas, undertaking continuous rehabilitation, minimizing road distances
and traffic, use of enclosed conveyors, and methods such as water sprays on stockpiles and unpaved
roads.

15.4.2 Groundwater
Potential groundwater issues or impacts include sever issues such as the lowering of local groundwater
levels as a result of dewatering and possible acidification of groundwater due to aerial exposure in the pit
void. Groundwater can also present an issue with an increase in the instability of the pit wall.

15.4.3 Fauna and Flora

The short duration of the project means that topsoil will only be stockpiled for a short period, thus
minimizing loss of seed viability. No species or communities of conservation significance will be
affected. The impact on fauna populations is likely to be relatively low given the small size of the project
area and the short duration of the project. Although clearing of vegetation may result in localized
population reduction in the project area, most species are common and widespread throughout their range
and their status is unlikely to be affected.

15.4.4 Topsoil
In order to reclaim the land successfully after mining, topsoil must be categorized, removed, stockpiled
and planted. An environmental technician analyses the topsoil and recommends the depth to which it
should be removed. (Howard L. Hartman, 1992). Topsoil and subsoil will be used in site rehabilitation.
Topsoil will be placed onto rehabilitated surfaces after mine closure. The topsoil will be deep ripped on
the contour and seeded with local provenance species. Cleared vegetation will also be stockpiled and
then spread over rehabilitated areas to act as a seed source, a mulch to protect the soil from erosion and
habitat for fauna.

15.4.5 Hazardous substances

Bulk volumes of hazardous substances to be used within the mining operation such as diesel and
lubricants will be stored in tanks within the designated fuel storage or workshop areas. Explosives which
may be used will be stored in accordance with the Dangerous Goods Regulations.

15.5 Social risks

Social impacts refer to all changes in the way that people live, work, play, relate to each other, organize to
meet their needs and generally cope as members of society. Included among these changes are cultural
impacts involving the values, norms and beliefs that guide social action. Impacts may be positive or
negative, small or large in magnitude, short or long term, and so on. They may also have different

62
implications for different groups within the community. Ultimately, assessment of whether a particular
impact, or social change, is positive or negative, is entirely dependent on community values and
aspirations.

The form and magnitude of many of the project’s potential social impacts are directly related to the size
of the incoming workforce, the demographic characteristics of the workforce and their families, and the
existing social order of the district.

Native title and cultural heritage need to be taken into consideration before this operation can commence
as there are legal requirements in place. If native title and cultural heritage is not taken into consideration
this can lead to the mining operation to be redundant before it has started. Not only are there legal
responsibilities, but failure to take care of social needs and community concerns can damage the public
image of the company and its corporate reputation. This can also cause conflict with the community and
stopping any future mines to be operated by this current mining company.

There are a few general principles to consider when it comes to managing the social impacts that a mining
project will have on the community. The overall project needs to be designed to minimize any large social
effects. There are going to be some impacts that cannot be avoided. For these impacts strategies need to
be in place so that the effect on the community is minimized. The mining company needs to inform,
consult and engage the affected community and its social groups. Provide the right information on all
activities and there effects. During the mining operation the company should constantly and accurately
monitor major effects that are caused by the mining company. Therefore in order to be a successful
mining operation, community involvement and interaction needs to be established between the mining
company and its surrounding community.

15.6 Mining Method

The detailed risk assessment for the mining haulage method was assessed using the parameters as seen in
table 17.

63
 Table 18. Risk assessment

15.6.1 Shaft Hoisting

Activity Hazards L C RR Management and Controls

Severe vibrations due to

Operator Training and regular
sudden stoppage of skip High
Hoisting Likely Major maintenance of break and clutch
applying bending moment risk
mechanism in the winding drive.
on headgear.

Clamps on rope, maintenance and

Hoisting Extension of rope Possible Moderate medium
regular check for the dia. of rope

Unlikel
Minor Low
Slippage from water and y
Hoisting Frequent cleaning of ropes
salt build up

Job Safety Analysis (JSA),

No Cross Ventilation from cleaning of the exhaust shaft
Production Possible Moderate Medium
exhaust surface and regular inspection of
the ventilation drives.

Unlikel Ensure regular check up ore bins:

Hoisting Ore Bucket Failure Moderate medium
y greasing and ropes

Blasting from
Dust and Emissions Possible Major High Job Safety Analysis
shaft sinking

Table 19. Shaft hoisting

64
15.6.2 Truck and Shovel haulage
Activity Hazards Likelihoo Consequence Risk Management and Controls
d Rate

Productio Increasing Possible Massive High Enforcing mandatory use of mask in the
n risks of fires fire hazard area, regular identification and
demarcation of the hazardous areas and
installing the fire extinguishing equipment
in these areas.

Haulage Risk of Unlikely Massive High Use effective navigation equipment in all
congestion and trucks and adopting the truck loop
accidents technology to make sure not more than 5
trucks are hauling at one time

Haulage Increased Possible Minor Medium Adequate ventilation to compensate for

diesel diesel exhaust.
emissions

Blasting Dust and Possible Major High Job Safety Analysis

Emissions

Haulage Fatigue Likely Major High Job safety analysis and job enrichment by
multitasking apart from single task all
over again.

Haulage Truck Tyre Likely Moderate High Frequent cleaning of haul roads and
burst regular truck tyre pressure inspection.

Blasting Scale rock on Likely Major High Only Trained blasting crew should enter
the corners and the area after the blast to scale down the
the roof extra rock that may fall.

Table 20. Truck and shovel haulage

65
16 Sustainability
16.1 Environmental Considerations
As in all mining operations environmental requirements play a vital role in its commissioning as well as
the ongoing operations throughout the mine life. In order to consider all environmental factors during the
mine life, the International Standard ISO 14001 this will be applied and achieved by adhering to a strict
Environmental Management Systems (EMS). To ensure this happens the mine will look to seek
certification of these EMS standards by an external organization that has no affiliation with either the
owners or the consultants. This mine lease is located in New South Wales 120km away from the large
mining region, Orange, so the expected ecosystem in the surrounding areas is found to be typical of a
temperate climate. The EMS must consider all facets of the environment and must be implemented to
ensure environmental impact is minimal.

In order to keep the environment at a sustainable level for future generation to access, a set of laws and
regulations must be met to sustain the environment for future usage. Some of the issues that need to be
taken into account in this mining operation at both the open pit and underground stage of this mining
operation are air quality, water quality, ground water monitoring, blast, noise and seismic monitoring,
plant and animal protection, tailings waste storage and rehabilitation. These are all important
environmental issues within them mining operation.

Air quality is an important aspect to consider when a mining operation is progressing. Air quality can be
affected by the storage of mine tailings near the mine site, unsealed roads and the processing of ore close
to the mine operation. These factors can all contribute to the air quality problem. Plating trees on tailings
dams and around the mining lease to aid in the rehabilitation stage of the mine life, can greatly affect the
air quality as dust and other contaminates such as sulphur dioxide in the air can be reduced by trees. Air
quality monitoring devices can also be used in the field to track the air quality in and around the mine.

Monitoring devices to monitor the quality of the water can be implemented so that drinking
water quality can remain at a healthy level for employees and the community. The monitoring
system for ground water will need to include water level measurement and groundwater
sampling and analysis. These measurements and sampling can be done on the field by
conducting field analysis for pH levels and electrical conductivity levels. Laboratory analysis can
be used to measure ground water cyanide and pH levels. Acid mine drainage from the processing
plant or from the waste dumps seeping into the soil or draining down into the surrounding
66
environment is also a conce3rn which must be further investigated. Furthermore, acidic toxins
evaporated into the atmosphere possibly inducing acid rain in the area which would be
devastating to the surrounding flora and fauna.

Monitoring the health of vegetation around the mine is important as vegetation levels can be affected by
changing groundwater levels. Monitoring vegetation can be completed by the assessment of trees health
at specific locations. If animals decrease in population, then there is something that is affecting the
animals in a negative way and research must be done.

A major storage facility in a mining operation is required for tailings. If this storage is not properly
engineered it can readily lead to major environmental affects. To insure that tailings are stable the
following issues should be taken into consideration. Tailings should be stored so that impoundment
structure remains stable, impact on local residents are minimized, environmental impacts are minimized
and storage facility is able to be rehabilitated when closed. These basic points should be considered when
building a tailings dam.

16.2 Occupational Health and Safety

As with any mine site Occupational Health and Safety plays a vital role in its operation. This can also be
seen in the mine where all employees will be encouraged to maintain the stance that safety comes before
production as is promoted in many mine sites today. To ensure this attitude this mining operation will
have in place many programs to minimize the risk to the employees while they are both on and off site
where the importance and understanding of duty of care is stressed to all personnel. Before any person,
skilled or unskilled, starts working on this site even though it is known that they may have already
undergone inductions they are required to undergo a general onsite induction to bring to their awareness
the dangers of working on this particular mine, in addition to this all employees will also undergo an
underground induction and fire fighting course.

To increase health and safety in the workforce our mining operation will provide both the following in
open pit and underground operations (where are relevant). The following protective gear will be provided
to all mining personnel that are working on this mining operation:

 Hard hat (both underground and open pit)

 Heavy duty clothes including long sleeved shirts and pants with reflective strips on them
(both underground and open pit)

 Steel capped boots (both underground and open pit)

67
  Safety glasses (both underground and open pit)

 Ear muffs (both underground and open pit)

 Hard hat Light (underground process only)

 Self rescuer (underground process only)

 Belt (underground process only)

To improve safety and machinery performance the following will be implemented on both underground
and open pit operation once they have commenced. Safety lights and sirens on machinery will be
implemented for visibility and improved awareness especially at the underground stage. Every vehicle
will have a flashing beacon on top of it to improve visibility on it, and the colour of the lights will
correspond to the type of machinery. For instance, emergency vehicles will have a blue flashing light,
yellow for light vehicles and light machinery and green for trucks. Also fire suppression equipment will
be added to all vehicles to ensure that fires can be managed if an unlikely event of a fire occurs.

Fitness for work programs will be implemented on site to aid in the fitness and health of all employers.
Issues like drug and alcohol consumption will not be taken lightly at this site. There is a zero alcohol and
drug tolerance on site. This means that any employer found to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs
while on site will be terminated as he didn’t comply with the company regulations. Employees will be
informed on topics such as fatigue management, hazard identification tasks will be shown how to be filled
out before employees operate machinery and commencing work, accident/incident report forms will be
shown how to be filled out if an incident occurs, competency training, work procedures development and
competency reassessment will also be implemented for a safer work place.

68
17 End-of-Life Plan
17.1 Mine Closure
Mine closure covers a vast range of aspects including but not limited to the mining excavation, waste
dumps, processing facilities, tailings dams, water storage, buildings, services, roads and accommodation.
The impact on the surrounding community, employees and families should also be considered and
managed. This closure plan must be created and approved before the mine operation commences and may
be re-evaluated throughout the life of the mine. It address all the environmental issues encountered on site
and failure to develop and implement a sufficient closure plan will result in severe environmental damage
and significant economic sanctions, not to mention a poor reputation and negative media attention.

Decommissioning and closure planning is required to explain the rehabilitation and closure strategies that
will be employed to adequately address environmental issues in a way that is satisfaction in meeting
regulatory standards. The strategies are designed to ensure maintenance free closure over the long term
and are aimed towards leaving a footprint which is as small as possible. The five basic steps involved in
closure planning are:

 Removal and disposal of all infrastructure not required for other uses.
 Rehabilitation of disturbances.
 Remediation of any soil or water contamination.
 Post-closure maintenance and monitoring.
 Tenement relinquishment and financial security retirement.
These five steps will be vital in creating and enforcing a mine closure plan. Each stage of mine
closure will be carefully investigated to ensure the best possible outcome for the environment
and surrounding communities is achieved.

17.2 Rehabilitation
Rehabilitation is the final process of the mining operation. Rehabilitation will occur nearing the
completion of mining although rehabilitation planning will be completed before the mine has commenced
operation as part of the closure plans.

It is important for soil in any affected area to be stripped, removed, stockpiled and planted during the
mining operation in a manner suitable for it to be reused for rehabilitation. Local provenance species will
be used to re-vegetate disturbed areas and to minimize top soil erosion. Ideally re-vegetation will occur

69
through careful management of topsoil and its contained seed resource and will be performed throughout
the mine life. Additional seeding or planting may occur if monitoring of rehabilitation concludes that re-
vegetation is achieving less than expected results.

Monitoring will be conducted after the completion of rehabilitation to ensure the effectiveness of
treatment over time. Monitoring will consider physical stability, erosion, vegetation establishment and
progression as well as the presence of weeds and native fauna. Since mining activities represent only a
temporary use of the land, extensive rehabilitation measures have been adopted to ensure that land
capability, post mining, meets agreed and appropriate standard of land's pre-mining condition. In all
cases, mining is subject to stringent controls and approvals processes.

Drainage within and off the site is carefully designed to make the new land surface as stable and resistant
to soil erosion as the local environment allows. Often dams are built to protect the area from erosion and
to serve as permanent sources of water. It is of significant importance to keep a close watch on the
progress of rehabilitation and typically prohibit use of the land until the vegetation is self-supporting. The
cost of the rehabilitation of mined land is factored into the mine's operating costs.

70
18 Conclusion
This project aims at designing the open pit and its associated mining systems of a deposit located 120
kilometers South-West of Orange in NSW. The extent of the ore body as dictated by the economic
viability forces the underground operations scheduled to commence soon after the open pit operations
ceases. Copper to gold ratios stay consistent throughout at around 1% copper to 0.5g/t gold.

It is found that open pit total reserve is 3.624M tonnes of copper and 184.282M grams of gold which will
be mined over the total 15 years of open cut mine life. It is expected that the open pit operations will
generate a total NPV of $1703.6M. Open pit capital costs and operating costs were found to be $204.9M
and $78.3M respectively. Over the open pit mine life, the economic, mining, and milling and processing
risks have been assessed to determine their impacts on project viability. Project evaluation has shown that
the open pit mining is viable and that the project should go on.

Underground mining had been scheduled to start at the end of open pit operations. Mining will be done
using the sublevel open stoping method. The underground workings capital costs will come from the
revenues obtained from open pit operations and were found to be $132.2M. Operating costs are found to
be $63.1 per tonne. The calculated NPV for underground operations are found to be $92.4M over the
period of 17 years. Assessments on the risks and project evaluation revealed the project is viable.

The life of mine is expected to be around 32 years with a total project’s Net Present Value (NPV) of $1
795M.

71
19 References
Astaline Mining Services,[online]<http://www.ostaline.com.au/html/literature___pdfs.html>
[Accessed, 29th May, 2010]
AtlasCopco Australia,

http://www.vmdrilling.com.au/Rigs/RigTwo/tabid/68/Default.aspx [Accessed, 26th May, 2010]

Hustrulid, W., Kutcha, M. (1998) OPEN PIT MINE PLANNING & DESIGN, London, Taylor &
Francis plc.

Sandvik, Mining and Construction

http://www.sandvik.com [Accessed, 26th May, 2010]

Infomine, 2010, Investment, accessed 2 June 2010, <http://www.infomine.com/investment/charts.aspx?

mv=1&f=f&r=10y&c=ccopper.xaud.umt#chart>

Infomine, 2010, Investment, accessed 2 June 2010, <http://www.infomine.com/investment/charts.aspx?

mv=1&f=f&r=10y&c=cgold.xaud.uoz#chart >

Caterpillar, 2004, Caterpillar Performance Handbook 2nd Ed., Caterpillar Publication Inc., Illinois.

72
20 Appendix

20.1 Skip Calculations

At the depth of 900m, acceleration is assumed to be 0.5m/s 2, Maximum speed is 10m/s

t = t1 + t2 + t3 + tr
Where: t, is overall time for one cycle in seconds
t1, is the accelerating time
t2, is the constant speed time
t3, is the decelerating time
tr, is the rest time while loading and unloading

t1 = accelerating time = V/a; where V = maximum speed in m/s and a = acceleration in m/s 2
= 10/0.5 = 20s,
t1 = t3 = 20s
Distance taken by t1 = 0.5at2 = 0.5 * 0.5 *202 = 100m = distance taken by t3
Distance (s) taken by t2; 900 – (2*100) = 700m.
Therefore t2 = S/v = 700/10 = 70s
t3 is assumed to be 10s

Then t = 20 + 70 +20 + 10 = 120s.

The skip capacity in tonnes (Q) for a planned daily production of 8150 tonnes/day that has to be hoisted
up the shaft is calculated by -:
Q = KWt
3600T
Where; k, - is the irregularity factor = 1.15,
t,- is overall time for one cycle in seconds = 120s,
and ,T - is working hours of the hoist per day = 17.4 hrs
Q = 1.15 x 8150 x 120 = 18tonnes; two skips at 10 tonnes payload each are
required.
3600 x 17.4

20.2 Equipment

To calculate the number of R2900G LHD’s required.

Loaders will be bogging the materials from the stopes and faces and dumping directly to the ore passes.
The average distance from the stopes and faces at the sublevels underground has been calculated to be
350m return route. The loader travelling in the 2 nd gear at an average speed of 10km/hr the following
travel times are calculated below:

Bucket Raise Time 6.7 Sec.

Bucket Lower Time 2.4 Sec.

73
Bucket Tip Time 2.8 Sec.
Bucket Total Time 11.9 Sec

Total haul Time 170 Sec

Total Return Time 162 Sec

Bucket filling time 135Sec

Payload 20tonnes

Required Daily Production 8853 tonnes

Effective working shift 11.2 hours

Total Cycle Time = 11.9 + 170 + 162+ 130 = 479 Sec = 8.0min

Production per hour per LHD = (Loader payload x 60) / total cycle time

= (20 x 60) / 8.0

= 150 tonnes per hr

Required shift production = 8853/ 2 = 4426 tonnes

Required tonnes per hour = 396 tonnes per hour

LHD’s required = 396/ 150 = 2.64 Loaders (Say 3)

The decision is made to have four loaders in order to overcome any unscheduled maintenance that may
arise from utilizing the loaders.

To calculate the number of AD55 trucks required.

Trucks will be required to haul the materials from the draw points underground and dumping to the
underground crusher. The average distance from the draw points and crusher is estimated to be 800m. For
the truck travelling at an average speed of 15km/hr the following travel times are calculated below:

Total haul Time 400 Sec

Total Return Time 360 Sec

Turn and filling time 200Sec

Turn and Dump Time 45Sec

Effective working shift 11.2 hours

Total Cycle Time = 400 + 360 + 200+ 45 = 1005 Sec = 16.75min

74
Production per hour per Truck = (Truck payload x 60) / total cycle time

= (55 x 60) / 16.750

= 194 tonnes per hr

Required shift production = 8853/ 2 = 4426 tonnes

Required tonnes per hour = 396 tonnes per hour

LHD’s required = 396/ 194 = 2.1Loaders (Say 3)

The decision is made to have four loaders in order to overcome any unscheduled maintenance that may
arise from utilizing the trucks.

Snapshot of Talpac run results for the haulage system. One loader can handle 7 trucks when the pit gets
deeper.

75
Snapshot of Talpac run showing various parameters calculated when the pit is at 600m.

20.3 Stope stability (Hanging wall and Footwall)

Stope
Height(m) Length(m) Area Perimeter Shape Factor
surface
East end wall 55 20 1100 150 7.3
West end
55 20
wall 1100 150 7.3
Footwall 55 30 1650 170 9.7
Hanging wall 55 30 1650 170 9.7
Crown 20 30 600 100 6.0
Table 1.1 Stope geometry data
Stopes
RQD Jn Jr Ja Q' value
Surface
East Endwall 60 7 2 1 17.1
West Endwall 68 5 2 1 27.2
Footwall 80 6 3 1 40.0
Hangingwall 70 8 15 4 32.8
Crown 80 13 2 2 6.2
Table 1.2 Rock Quality Data (Q system)

σc (USC in Induced stress

Surface
Mpa) σt(Mpa) σc/σt A
East end wall 120 40.8 2.94 0.22
West end wall 120 40.8 2.94 0.22
Footwall 120 25 4.80 0.35
Hanging wall 120 25 4.80 0.35
Crown 120 50.8 2.36 0.17
Table 1.3 Stress data used to determine the rock stress factor (A) for the open stope

76
 Dip/Dip
Dominant Dip/Dip Direction(stope
Surface structure Direction(structure) surface) B
East end wall Joint set A 80/90 45/90 0.4
West end wall Joint set B  80/90 45/90 0.4
Footwall Bedding  80/90 55/90 0.6
80/90
Hanging wall
bedding   55/90 0.6
80/90
Crown
Joint set B   0/90 0.8
Table 1.4 Data used to determine the joint orientation adjustment factor B

Surface θ C=8-7COSθ
East end wall 0 8
West end wall 0 8
Footwall 75 6.19
Hanging wall 75 6.19
Crown 180 1
Table 1.4 Data used to determine the joint orientation adjustment factor B
Surface Q A B C N
East end wall 17.1 0.22 0.4 8 12.1
West end wall 27.2 0.22 0.4 8 19.1
Footwall 40.0 0.35 0.6 6.19 52.0
Hanging wall 32.8 0.35 0.6 6.19 42.7
Crown 6.2 0.17 0.8 1 0.8
Determined modified stability number, N

HYDRAULIC RADIUS
HR = Area

Perimeter

9.5 = 55*S

77
 2(55+S)

S = 1045

(55 – 20)

S = 31.4m
This is to say that the maximum safe stope length to be used for this particular dimensions (i.e. 20m
(width) x 30m (length) x 55m (height) is 31.4m.
CALCULATIONS OF EFFECTIVE WORKING DAYS
PER YEAR: Days hours minutes Seconds
         
Available days 365 8760 525600 31536000
Holidays Nil Nil Nil Nil
Weather Problems 2 48 2880 172800
Natural Disasters 1 24 1440 86400
Downtime 14 336 20160 1209600
Operator efficiency 5 120 7200 432000
Strikes & other union related issues 3 72 4320 259200
Total 340 8160 489600 29376000
Effective working shift   11.2 670.6849 40241.1
Table. Calculations of effective working days per year

MATERIAL MOVEMENTS
  Tonnes per year Tonnes per day Tonnes per shift Tonnes per hour
Ore tonnes 2500000 7353 3676 329
Waste tonnes 510000 1500 750 67
Total 3010000 8853 4426 396
Table. Material movements

20.4 Stope Costs

Calculations:

Back Fill
Stope tonnes 93,511     (m3) 37404.6
grade 0.50    
Tonnes of Cu produced 411    
Fixed Costs ($)

78
 Unit Units Cost per tonne of
Activity Unit Total cost
cost required ore milled

Decline (6.5x 6.5) meter $6,950 0 $0 $0

Cross cuts meter $5,670 0 $0 $0
Vertical development (capital) meter $3,500 0 $0 $0
93,
Milling and admin ore tonne $4.00 511 $374,046 $4
NSW Royalty Tonne Cu 260 411 $106,977 $1
Back Fill t $5 72939 $361,048 3.9
TOTALS (without backfill):       $481,023 5.1
Table . Stope fixed costs

Variable Costs ($)

Unit Cost per tonne of

Activity Unit cost($) Units required Total cost ore milled
           
Slot raise meter $3,200 52 166400 $2
Stoping stope tonne $3 205670 557365.7 $6
Cable Bolts meter $15 0 0 $0
93,51 860305.66
Other operating costs ore tonne 9.2 1 2 $9
   
72,93 583511.66
Back Fill t $8.00 9 7 6.2
TOTALS (without
backfill):       $1,584,071 16.9
Table. Stope variable costs

20.5 UBC METHOD

RM RM RM RS RS RM
Shap Plung Thicknes Grade Dept R R R S S R Tota
Method e e s s h Ore HW FW Ore HW FW l

Open Pit 2 1 4 3 0 3 4 4 3 4 4 32

Block
Caving 2 4 4 2 3 0 2 2 0 0 1 20

Sublevel
Stoping 4 4 3 4 4 4 4 3 4 5 3 42

79
Sublevel
Caving 4 4 4 2 2 1 2 3 2 1 2 27

Longwall 4 -49 -49 1 2 2 3 0 1 2 0 -83

Room
and Pillar 4 -49 -49 2 3 5 5 0 6 6 0 -67

Shrinkag
e Stoping 4 4 -49 2 3 3 4 3 4 4 3 -15

Cut and
Fill 4 4 0 3 3 3 3 2 3 2 2 29

Top
Slicing 2 0 1 1 1 1 3 2 0 2 1 14

Square
Set 1 2 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 5

80