Modern Mining August 2016

GOLD

is now a consensus that new gold production will consequently continue to decline. This, in combination with growing global geopoliti- cal and economic jitters, must be good for the gold price, at least in the long run. That’s where Randgold’s focus has always been fixed. We’re building a sustainably profitable business on a very solid foundation, but considering the inter- nal and external challenges ahead, our teams will have to test and, if necessary, re-invent the way they operate on a continuous basis.” Included in Randgold’s Q2 report is an interesting commentary on the innovative man- agement solutions which are driving down the cost of power and securing the stability of sup- ply at the group’s operations, while at the same time reducing its carbon footprint. Randgold’s Technical and Capital Projects Executive, John Steele, says access to power is one of the key considerations in developing a mine in Africa, particularly in those remote regions where the infrastructure is practically non-existent and there is no national power grid. “In fact, it’s so important that power man- agement has grown into a big business within the Randgold group, and our engineers have become adept at building and managing major power stations – some of which are the larg- est of their kind in their host countries – and at dealing with the complex demands of main- taining mine-based micro-grids,” he says. The Loulo-Gounkoto complex has an installed capacity of 60 MW of which it draws 45 MW. Initially all power was supplied by high speed diesel-powered generators but over time it has migrated to HFO (heavy fuel oil) medium- speed generators, which now supply 80 % of its power, improving reliability and reducing unit costs significantly. A central power station sup- plies the whole complex through an overhead grid which extends over more than 30 km. Kibali in the DRC represents a further advance in the evolution of Randgold’s power management strategy. Here the company has had the opportunity to build its own hydro- power plants. Nzoro, the first of these to be commissioned, has supplied a steady 20 MW into the Kibali grid for over a year. The second, Ambarau, will soon come on line and the third, Azambi, will be operational in 2018 when Kibali is at full production. Together, the three hydroplants will have a capacity of 44 MW which may reduce to 20 MW during the dry season. Kibali’s peak demand is expected to be 40 MW and to ensure that this can always be met it has a high-speed diesel generating capacity of 36 MW. Its current

A trench at the Massawa exploration project in eastern Senegal. Massawa was discovered in 2008 and is one of the largest undeveloped orebodies in Africa. A feasibility study into the project is currently being progressed, with results showing good recoveries and a materially higher grade and larger resource in the central zone of the orebody.

supply is a 55/45 mix of hydro and thermal power but hydro’s contribution is planned to grow to 75 % as the Ambarau and Azambi plants are commissioned. Photos courtesy of Randgold Resources

Randgold leads the way in exploration While the gold mining industry generally went back into survival mode in the post-supercycle slump, Randgold stepped up its exploration drive and both its greenfield and brownfield programmes have consequently deliv- ered significant results, including the discovery of major new targets and a substantial increase in the company’s groundholdings in its target areas. Exploration remains the engine that drives Randgold’s business and the resource triangle is still the most effective way of managing this critically important function, ensuring that the company’s assets are developed in a balanced andmethodical manner, says Group General Manager Exploration Joel Holliday in Randgold’s Q2 report. “It’s a simple but essential tool which enables us to maintain a pipeline of projects with the potential to pass our strategic filters and ultimately to deliver our target of three new mines over the next five years,” he says. “We have a broad base of targets in our resource triangle and the discov- ery of Bakolobi, Fonondara, Kassere and Gbongogo in the past two years shows how quickly good ground can develop into significant advanced targets in a short time. All four feature significant mineralised systems with the potential to host large orebodies. Over the past quarter, we have com- pleted the detailed surface geological work necessary for the development of models and drill programmes.” Holliday says Randgold’s generative research is the only work of its kind being carried out in Africa at the moment and is providing new insights into the controls of large orebodies on a range of scales from continental target- ing to detailed orebody definition. “This research is highlighting areas of prospectivity where we will be acquiring new ground over the next few years. It also ensures that we do not waste time and money in areas which do not have the potential to host deposits that meet our criteria,” he says. 

August 2016  MODERN MINING  35