Modern Mining November 2018

COMMENT

Syama to spearhead the drive to mining automation

O ne of the most exciting stories in mining globally at the moment – although perhaps not quite as well publicised as it should be – is the development of what is be- ing touted as the world’s first “customised ful- ly automated underground mine”, to quote the words of John Welborn, MD and CEO of Aus- tralia’s Resolute Mining. The mine in question, of course, is Syama in Mali, now transitioning into an underground operation, and Resolute is the owner. Automation has had a rocky history in mining, with the high hopes attached to its implementation in working mines having so often been dashed in the past. The entire industry will therefore be watching the Syama ‘experiment’ with great interest. If it is success- ful, Syama will emerge as the flag-bearer for a new 21st century approach to mining. There are, of course, a number of mining operations that already have a high degree of automation. Here in South Africa, we have the Finsch diamond mine, where De Beers put in driverless trucks well over a decade ago when it still owned the operation, and I understand that Kibali in the DRC is also highly automated with multiple driverless loaders operating with full automation. Upcoming mines which will follow the same path include Ivanhoe’s Platreef project near Mokopane in South Africa, which according to Robert Friedland, who heads the company, will be staffed by a new breed of tech-savvy mine employees who “will lift nothing heavier than a pencil.” This is obvious hyperbole but one gets the message. Further afield, there are several pace-set- ting operations, with perhaps the pick of them being the CMOC-Northparkes copper and gold mine in Australia, which in 2015 claimed to have made history by reaching 100 % auto- mation in its E48 block cave mine using fully autonomous driverless loaders. What apparently makes Syama unique is that it will bring together automation technolo- gies that have been used separately in the past but are for the first time being brought together in a single package. This point was made ear- lier this year by mining robotics expert Dr Joe Cronin, who was automation project manager at Northparkes and who is currently assisting Resolute with the automation of Syama. He described Syama as “the mine we have been talking about building for over a decade. It brings together the automated truck experience

from Finsch and the automated loader expe- rience from Northparkes. Combined with a centralised scheduling and visualisation sys- tem and a mine-wide wireless network, we will have real-time, closed loop control of the entire underground production task.” The company selected by Resolute as its technology partner for the Syama underground project is Sandvik, which has worked closely with Resolute on the mine design. To fully automate Syama, it is delivering its AutoMine ® and OptiMine ® systems and a full fleet of Sandvik TH663 trucks and LH621, LH517 and LH514E loaders. The LH514E tethered electri- cal loader has been selected as the main loader for stope extraction. Originally a BHP operation which later passed into the hands of Randgold, Syama was acquired by Resolute in 2004. It was then on care and maintenance but was recommis- sioned in 2009. Mining at the main Syama pit was completed in 2015 and since then the mine has subsisted on stockpiled ore, underground development ore and satellite operations. The current underground project will see its life extended into the 2030s with annual produc- tion from the sub-level caving operation being at a rate of 2,4 Mt/a to produce plus 300 000 ounces of gold a year. A landmark in the development of Syama Underground was achieved during the September quarter of this year with the delivery of the first stoping ore. Sub-level cave produc- tion is due to start before the year is out. Although Resolute has an operating gold mine – Ravenswood – in Australia, the com- pany has for long had a strong association with Africa. In 1998 it opened the Golden Pride gold mine in Tanzania, the first ‘new generation’ mine in that country, which sub- sequently went on to produce 2,2 Moz of gold before mining operations ceased in late 2013. The company also owns the historic Bibiani gold mine in Ghana, which it is planning to recommission as an underground operation capable of producing around 100 000 ounces of gold a year. Syama, however, is Resolute’s ‘jewel in the crown’ and represents the cornerstone of its plans to become a 500 000-ounce-a-year gold producer. As Welborn commented earlier this year, “We aim to make Syama the best mine of its type in the world.” The whole indus- try will be wishing Resolute well in this bold endeavour. Arthur Tassell

Syama will bring together automation technologies that have been used separately in the past but are for the first time being brought together in a single package.

November 2018  MODERN MINING  3