Electricity and Control September 2021

TRANSFORMERS, SUBSTATIONS + CABLES : PRODUCTS + SERVICES

Electrical installation at platinum mine expansion

Zest WEG is installing a range of electrical control and instrumentation equipment at Anglo American Platinum’s Mogalakwena mine in Limpopo, working closely with en- gineering group DRA Global. The construction is taking place within the Mogalakwena mine’s existing North Concentrator Plant, around various areas of the plant. The Electrical Control Instrumentation (ECI) package is being led by Eben Kleynhans, E&I Electrical Project Engineer at DRA. Electrical and Instrumentation Construction Proposals Manager at Zest WEG, Calvin Fisher says the Zest WEG work is being conducted for the mine’s Coarse Particle Rejection (CPR) plant and will be completed in the sec- ond half of 2021. “In addition to applying the highest level of workman- ship and professionalism, we are carrying out the project in line with our client’s Mining Charter requirements on lo- cal procurement,” says Fisher. “This means over 70% of people involved in our scope of work will be drawn from local communities, and we are sourcing a significant lev- el of our supplies from local businesses.” Equipment to be installed includes three 2 MVA transformers, stepping down from 11 kV to 550 V, and a 630 kVA mini substation for lighting and small pow- er requirements. Containerised motor control centres (MCCs), complete with variable speed drives (VSDs), an HVAC unit, cable racking, cables, lighting and small power also form part of the scope of supply. In addition, two backup generators will be installed – one of 630 kVA capacity and the other 330 kVA. “The three new containerised MCCs and VSD sets will be placed on plinths near the CPR feed tank, CPR pro- cess water area and CPR building and a steel roof struc- ture will be erected over the containers,” Fisher says. “The new transformer bay will be constructed next to the MCC, also with a roof over the transformer.” About 70 km of cable will be laid – ranging from low voltage to medium voltage cable – with 3 300 termina- tions and almost 2.5 km of cable racking. The various structures that Zest WEG will install require some nine

tonnes of steel. The instrumentation to be installed will comprise about 170 instruments, including flow trans- mitters, pressure gauges, level switches, temperature gauges and density transmitters. Around 250 lights will also be installed, mainly outdoors. Fisher notes that the electrical installation specialists are typically among the last contractors to go on site on a project, and need to be quite flexible to accommodate modifications that may have been required in the civils, structural and mechanical work completed beforehand. “Wherever necessary we work closely with the client to implement the plan smoothly and meet the need for safe access to the equipment being installed, to allow maintenance to be readily conducted,” he says. In addition to the installation contract, Zest WEG is supplying some of the items of equipment for the expan- sion project, including WEG motors and containerised generators. “We are proud of the high level of quality that we bring to projects like this, where we apply our successful mod- el of procurement to support our clients in meeting their critical local expenditure targets,” he says. “This also al- lows Zest WEG to make a valuable contribution to uplift local companies wherever we can.”

For more information visit: www.zestweg.com

The containerised motor control centres are placed on plinths near the CPR plant.

Electricity + Control SEPTEMBER 2021

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