Modern Mining January 2022

operator paired up with a specialist Redpath twin- boom drill rig operator “The intention is to observe hours of operation for both the expatriate and the transitioning operator, especially when it comes to jumbo operation, which is the most critical skill. Each and every hour spent on the various activities such as setting up, tramming into the site, scaling, drilling of the face and support installation, among others, is logged, which then informs the progression of the transitioning opera- tor, and also informs their remuneration,” says Kobus. The second phase, which will kick in Q1 2022 will be in the K02 development area, where De Beers will dedicate one specific area at the 46 Level towards the ramp tunnel for training. A Redpath training manager will be stationed here with De Beers’ own trainers. “This will be a dedicated training area, and I am convinced that we will progress quicker than in Phase 1 in terms of skills transfer. While the twin- boom drill rig operation will be a principal focus area, we will also make room for other supporting activi- ties such as in-cycle shotcreting, bolting, trucking and installation of services, among others,” he says. Project background and optimisation The VUP will extend the life of Venetia mine up to 2046. Over the course of its life, it will treat about 131-million tonnes (Mt) of material containing an estimated 95-million carats, translating into about 5,9 Mt per annum with a production profile of about 4,5-million carats a year. Production ramp up, explains Rodel, will only start around 2025. “Phase 1 will see us ramping up the TOM first, which will give us about 3,5 – 4 Mt per annum, and as soon as we are able to access the production and service shafts, we will ramp up the BOM as well, which will then get us to 5,9 Mt per annum. The first phase of ramp-up will run from 2022 to 2024 and the second phase will then kick in once the shafts have been brought to operation, around 2025. Initially, the material, explains Rodel, will not come out of shafts; it will be hauled out of 46 Level onto a ramp accessing the bottom of the K02 pit. While the life of mine is up to 2046, De Beers has already started looking at further optimisation, with a “Hill of Value” concept study being implemented this year. It will look at further expansion of the VUP that will add a couple of years to the life of mine or increase the throughput. “It’s early days, but we are already looking at opportunities to improve our busi- ness,” says Rodel. As part of the optimisation process, there will be some value improvement practices focused on a number of areas, including maintenance processes, process simplification and energy optimisation. In terms of process simplification, focus will be on optimising equipping infrastructure and associated development, for example, truck tips; balancing the timing and the need for production tips versus

A 280% improvement in development in the past 18 months has been achieved.

hauling out of eastern decline. “Energy optimisation is an important area for us as we aim to become carbon neutral by 2030. For our equipment purchases from 2023, we are already looking at battery electric technology. This will be complemented by a 60 MW solar power plant to be built on site,” explains Rodel. Commenting on why the company is already looking at optimisation opportunities well before first production at VUP, Rodel says the two shafts have been built with the capability of handling much higher tonnages than 5,9 Mt. In fact, they can run on anything between 7,5 and 8 Mt, so the existing infra- structure can already support a higher throughput. “The reason we are starting with the optimisa- tion project now is because there is a whole lot of work that needs to be done between now and Q2 2026. We have to get down to 100 Level, which is at the bottom of the mine, and start resource defini- tion drilling to understand the ore at depth. We have to take the ore and do sample test work to decide what upgrades would need to be incorporated in the treatment plant to be able to process this type of material. This process is a journey, hence the need to start now. Any forward thinking business must have a resource extension programme and that’s how we manage to stay in business,” concludes Rodel. 

Key takeaways  In its seventh year of development, the US2,2-billion Venetia Underground Project has reached a 54% completion project milestone  When Modern Mining visited the site in November 2021, the project was 3,8% behind the pre-COVID plan, but overall the site team was tracking well against the post-COVID forecast, and on budget  The project has seen a 280% improvement in development in the past 18 months, but a further 70% is required over the next 12 months  To successfully transition from surface to underground mining and to estab- lish a mine of the future at VUP, De Beers has adopted an Operational Readiness Framework to enhance the transformation of people, processes and systems

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January 2022  MODERN MINING  21