Modern Mining April 2016

COVER STORY

“Our strategy has been to retain the same team throughout all the study phases as this makes for continuity,” comments Mouton. “We have also, of course, gone for consultants with excellent track records. DRA, for example, has real in-depth mining and processing expertise and is particularly experienced in the PGM sec- tor, where it has been responsible for designing and building close on 50 processing plants. Similarly, Stantec – we’re working with its Phoenix, Arizona office – has an international reputation in mining consulting – and indeed in other areas of engineering – and has worked very successfully with Ivanhoe on previous projects such as Oyu Tolgoi in Mongolia.” The phase one project as delineated in the PFS is now well into construction. In fact, pre- liminary works on site started as early as late 2013 although work was halted for several

The four-drum stage winder required for the sinking phase.

plus 500-page document – on the project in January last year, which outlined the staged approach to development. According to the PFS, phase 1 will have an average annual production rate of 433 000 ounces of platinum, palladium, rhodium and gold (3PE+Au), plus 19 million pounds (8 618 tonnes) of nickel and 12 million pounds (5 433 tonnes) of copper. The PFS esti- mates the pre-production capital requirement of phase one at US$1,2 billion (at a Rand/US dollar exchange rate of 11 to 1). It said the new mine would have a cash cost of US$322 per ounce of 3PE+Au, net of by-products, placing it near the bottom of the cash curve. It estimates the after-tax NPV (at an 8 % discount rate) at US$972 million and the after-tax IRR at 13 %. Following on from the PFS, Ivanplats is now busy with a full Feasibility Study (FS), which is expected to be completed in Q1 next year, using the same team of professionals responsible for the PFS (and for the earlier Preliminary Economic Assessment or PEA). They are DRA Global (process and infra- structure), Stantec Consulting International (mineral reserve estimation and mine plan), SRK Consulting (geotechnical), AMEC Foster Wheeler (mineral resource estimation), Golder Associates (hydrology, backfill and tailings) and Digby Wells (environmental). DRA is man- aging the study while OreWin of Australia is responsible for overall NI43-101 report prepa- ration and economic analysis.

Reducing the impact of the Platreef mine One of the challenges of the Platreef project is that it occupies a relatively compact site in close proximity to a number of villages and informal settle- ments. Ivanplats’ engineers are therefore making every effort to ameliorate the dust, noise and visual impacts of the project and to ensure the safety of community members. All construction activities are taking place within a 345 ha fenced con- struction compound and a 10 m high berm will be built which will help reduce noise levels and also reduce the visual impact. Non-mineralised rock from the shaft and underground development workings will be used to cre- ate the berms, which will eventually be clad with top soil and hydro-seeded. The shaft headframes, of course, will be visible over a long distance, par- ticularly the 100 m-high structure of Shaft 2. To lessen the profile of the taller headframe, Murray & Roberts Cementation has incorporated unob- trusive lighting and also implemented design initiatives to reduce noise and dust levels. The overall aesthetics have also been considered, with the headframe having pleasing fluted features using concrete throughout. The tailings storage facility will be located 8 km away from the mine site – and across the N11 road linkingMokopane with theMartin’s Drift border post on the Botswana border – in an area where there are no communities. Ac- cording to the design, 60 % of the total tailings will be used for underground backfill which will reduce the overall environmental impact on surface. 

April 2016  MODERN MINING  23