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NEWS 13 Plan Nord paves way for development

Mining community lauds the Quebec govern-ment’s $80 billion development plan for the Northby C. Baldwin

16 Exporting the Canadian advantage CSRinitiatives in Africa should leverage Canadian cul-tural diversity, says consultant by P. Caulfield

18 Resurgent B.C. mining sector posts remarkable returns Mining industry rebounds in 2010, posting near-record revenues by P. Caulfield

20 Bridging the gaps Governance and trans-parency are key issues at forum on mining invest-ment in Africa by P. Braul

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CONTENTS|CONTENUCIM MAGAZINE | JUNE/JULY 2011 | JUIN/JUILLET 2011

UPFRONT 22 Making it right when things go wrong

Resolving disputes requires having the propergrievance mechanism in place by V. Heffernan

24 Pulling out the stops Quadra FNX’s mill up-grade is a triumph of collaboration and technol-ogy by A. Lopez-Pacheco

26 A long-lived pioneer Information systemsspecialist Tim Skinner discusses the strengthsof a revitalized industry – and its weaknesses by R. Bergen

FEATURED PROJECTPROJET EN VEDETTE 38 Present perfect for past producer The Copper Mountain Mine site in southwestern

B.C. has a rich history and a bright future by C. Baldwin

42 Un moment parfait pour un ancien producteur Le site de la mine Copper Mountain dans le sud-ouest de la C.-B. a un historique riche et un avenir prometteur.

29

FEATUREMINING MORE, MINING SAFELYEXPLOITER DAVANTAGE, EN TOUTE SÉCURITÉ 29 Exploring the limits New challenges in extraction are driving suppliers to find new

equipment and safety solutions by E. Moore

35 L’exploration à la limite de la technologie Les nouveaux défis en extractionpoussent les fournisseurs à trouver de nouveaux équipements et des solutions de sécuriténovatrices

38

COMMODITY FOCUS 44 The barometer of industry Demand for copper is

expected to maintain its momentum as the emergingnations ramp up development by C. Baldwin

MINE CLOSURE 46 Re-defining sustainability Pit lakes pose a

challenge for remediation efforts but there have beenadvances by C. McCullough

COLUMNS 48 Supply Side by J. Baird 50 MAC Economic Commentary by P. Stothart

52 Eye on Business by W. Duvall 54 Innovation by T. Hynes

56 HR Outlook by L. Forcellini 58 Metals Monitor by staff of Metals Economics Group 60 Standards by R. Holland, C. Waldie, J. Whyte and L. Arsenault 63 Mining Lore by C. Baldwin 82 Voices from Industry by R. Dimitrakopoulos

CIM NEWS 65 Seeing is believing Teachers tour helps educators

understand the importance of mining by H.B. George

66 Students take charge McGill University studentssuccessfully launch a new CIM chapter by M. Eisner

68 CMMF scholarships awarded Three second-yeartechnical college/CEGEP students receive McIntoshEngineering Scholarships by C. Baldwin

HISTORY 74 The foundations of modern economic

geology (Part 4) by R. J. Cathro

77 Social problems in the mining industry – a historical essay (Part 4) by F. Habashi

TECHNICAL SECTION 80 CIM Journal

IN EVERY ISSUE 6 Editor’s message 8 President’s notes / Mot du président 10 Letters51, 59 Calendar 66 Welcoming new members 68 Obituaries 81 Professional directory

Evidence of the robustness of the mining and miner-als industry was palpable at the recent CIMConference & Exhibition in Montreal this past May.

From the bustling floor of the largest trade show in CIM’shistory to the record-breaking contingent of delegatesattending packed rooms at an eight-stream technicalprogram, it was apparent that individuals and organiza-tions were keen on acquiring and sharing the best tech-nologies, techniques, processes and practices the industryhas to offer. And, a greater number of those attendingcame from international mining jurisdictions in search ofthe highly coveted expertise and products that Canadahas to offer.

Although the topics covered over the course of the three-day event wereextremely diverse, at their centre they all turned on the critical challenge for miningin the 21st century: how do we mine more, with greater efficiency and safety, andwith the utmost regard for social and environmental responsibility?

This represents a tall order, to be sure, but one that the Canadian mining industryis equipped to meet, as you will see throughout the editorial in this issue. In the fea-ture story “Exploring the Limits,” regular CIM Magazine contributor Eavan Moorelooks at how operators and suppliers are collaborating to access and extract challeng-ing deposits safely and efficiently. From confronting heat and rockburst issues at the2,800-metre-deep shaft at Xstrata Copper’s Kidd Mine to accessing ore bodies on theocean floor, ingenuity and partnership are advancing the frontiers of mining.

Copper shines brightly this issue – as the latest installment of the recently mintedcommodity focus, as well as the impetus behind the Copper Mountain Mine, whichwe feature in our mine profile.

Be sure to check out editor Ryan Bergen’s Q&A with Tim Skinner. The informationsystems specialist throws down a challenge to mine operators: take ownership of yourtechnology and the critical data generated by it.

On a final note, I would like to extend a hearty welcome to our new CIM president,Chuck Edwards. Chuck was instrumental in the conception and realization of thepeer-reviewed CIM Journal, introduced last year. We look forward to him bringingthat same tenacity to CIM towards the exchange of high-quality technical expertise,furthering CIM’s mandate as a community for leading expertise.

Angela Hamlyn, Editor-in-chief


editor’s letter

Editor-in-chief Angela Hamlyn, [email protected]

Section EditorsNews, Upfront and Features:Ryan Bergen, [email protected] Stecyk, [email protected], CIM News, Histories and Technical Section:Andrea Nichiporuk, [email protected]

Technical Editor Joan Tomiuk, [email protected]

Publisher CIM

Contributors Luc Arsenault, Jon Baird, Correy Baldwin,Louise Blais-Leroux, Peter Braul, R.J. Cathro, Peter Caulfield,Roussos Dimitrakopoulos, William Duvall, Marlene Eisner,Lindsay Forcellini, Hartley Butler George, Fathi Habashi,Virginia Heffernan, Robert Holland, Tom Hynes, MichelLaliberté, Alexandra Lopez-Pacheco, Clint McCullough, EavanMoore, Staff of the Metals Economics Group, Paul Stothart,Craig Waldie, Jim Whyte

Published 8 times a year by CIM1250 – 3500 de Maisonneuve Blvd. West Westmount, QC, H3Z 3C1Tel.: 514.939.2710; Fax: 514.939.2714 www.cim.org; Email: [email protected]

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This month’s coverA welder at work at the Copper Mountain Mine, profiled on page 38. Soudeur travaillant à la mineCopper Mountain, page 42.

Layout and design by Clò Communications.

Copyright©2011. All rights reserved. ISSN 1718-4177. Publications Mail No. 09786. Postage paid at CPA Saint-Laurent, QC. Dépôt légal: Bibliothèque nationale du Québec.The Institute, as a body, is not responsible for statements made or opinions advanced either in articles or in any discussion appearing in its publications.

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president’s notesThe adventure continues

L’aventure se poursuitpour l’industrie, mais aussi pour la société dans son ensemble, parce que nos produits sont, et ont toujours été, la fondation même de notre civilisation, ceux-ci contribuant à loger, à nourrir, à vêtir, à chauffer, à mouvoir et à fournir de l’énergie à l’humanité.

Depuis plus de six ans, l’ICM s’est penché sur cet enjeu par l’intermédiaire de M4S, notre salon éducatif sur les mines, les minéraux, les métaux et les matériaux pour la société. L’ICM ajoute deux nouvelles initiatives à cet effort. Nous avons lancé une vaste offensive en vue de promouvoir les associations étudiantes affiliées à l’ICM dans tous les collèges et universités partout au Canada qui dispensent les compé-tences et les connaissances dont notre industrie a besoin. Nous mettons en œuvre le programme de perfectionnement du leadership de l’ICM pour nous assurer que notre industrie est synonyme d’excellence en leadership, mais aussi d’excellence technique.

Je suis très fier d’entreprendre mon mandat à titre de président de l’ICM et enthousiaste face à l’avenir qui s’annonce pour l’ICM. Les organisations les plus dynamiques commencent par imaginer l’avenir qu’elles souhaitent, puis prennent les moyens pour y parvenir. J’espère que vous prendrez part à l’aventure de l’ICM et partagerez notre avenir.

Chuck EdwardsPrésident de l’ICM

Je reviens tout juste du Congrès et Salon commercial de l’ICM de Montréal. Nous devons tous une fière chandelle et de sincères félici-tations à Martin Poirier ainsi qu’aux membres dévoués du comité organisateur qu’il préside, à tous les présidents et conférenciers de séances plénières, aux nombreuses entreprises participantes et aux délégués, et enfin au fidèle personnel de bureau de l’ICM. C’est à chacun d’entre eux que nous devons la tenue de cet événement remarquable. La plupart des participants n’ont pas idée de l’intensité ni de la quantité des efforts nécessaires à l’organisation d’un congrès aussi impeccable que celui de Montréal 2011. Ce n’est pas le fruit du hasard. Voilà pourquoi nous devrions tous prendre le temps d’apprécier la persévérance et le professionnalisme de ces gens, qui rendent la participation à ces événe-ments aussi simple et agréable.

Le nombre de participants a atteint un niveau record, soit 1 523 délégués. Impressionnant. Cependant, ce que j’ai trouvé le plus impres-sionnant, c’était l’ambiance résolument optimiste du congrès. Cela augure bien pour l’avenir de l’ICM.

En revanche, la pénurie de personnes motivées et compétentes dans notre industrie constitue un défi de taille. Cela a un incidence sur tous les aspects de l’industrie des mines, des minéraux, des métaux et des matériaux servie par l’ICM – y compris les milieux universitaire, de l’ingénierie et de la construction, de l’exploitation et de la finance. C’est une préoccupation non seulement pour ceux d’entre nous qui travaillent

At the same time, our industry’s current shortage of skilled, dedicated workers is an enormous challenge. It affects all aspects of the mining, min-erals, metals and materials industry that CIM serves – including academia, engineering, construction, operations and finance. This is a worry not just for those of us working in our industry, but for society as a whole, because our products are, and always have been, the foundation of our civilization, helping house, feed, clothe, heat, move and energize humankind.

For over six years, CIM has addressed this issue through M4S, our educational show on mining, minerals, metals and materials for society. CIM is ramping up this effort with two new initiatives. We have a big push underway to foster and nurture CIM student chapters at all colleges and universities across Canada teaching the skills and knowledge our industry needs. And we are rolling out the CIM Leadership Development Program to ensure that our industry is defined by leadership excellence in addition to technical excellence.

I am truly honoured to begin serving as CIM president and excited about the future that beckons for our Institute. The most successful orga-nizations imagine the future they want, and then make it happen. I hope you will join the CIM adventure into our future.

Chuck EdwardsCIM President

I am just back home after attending the CIM Conference & Exhibition in Montreal. We all owe a word of thanks and hearty con-gratulations to chair Martin Poirier and his dedicated organizing committee, all session chairs and speak-ers, the many exhibiting firms and delegates, and our steadfast CIM national office staff for pulling off this stupendous event. When a conference goes as smooth as silk, as Montreal 2011 did, the huge and sustained effort to make it happen is not apparent to most

attendees. This does not happen by accident, so we all should pause and appreciate the perseverance and professionalism that makes these events seem so effortless and fun for us.

The record of 1,523 delegates was impressive. However, to my mind, even more impressive was the confident, upbeat mood at the confer-ence. This bodes well for the future of CIM.

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12:25 PM


lettersBarro Alto – proven producer

An article appearing in the recent May 2011 issue of CIM Magazine celebrated the successful completion of theBarro Alto project in Brazil for Anglo American under theEPCM direction of SNC-Lavalin. Unfortunately, the accom-panying site photo was out of date and perhaps inappropriateas a visual indication of the magnitude and importance ofthis ambitious undertaking that has now entered into actualproduction during a planned ramp-up period.

Project site aerial overview, January 2011 Barro Alto project first metal tap on Line 1, March 30, 2011

YOU’RE PROUD OF YOUR SKILLS AND KNOW-HOW. You want to work where you can be proud of your employer too. At Suncor Energy, we aim to earn your respect by providing you with the tools and support that enable you to do quality work.

When you join Suncor, you enter a working environment where how you get the job done is as important as the goals you achieve. You’ll be part of a company that’s guided by strong values and beliefs; that demands a high standard for safety, integrity, responsibility and always strives to exceed expectations – real reasons to take pride in saying, “I work for Suncor.”

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While final commissioning activities are still ongoing onLine 2, the Line 1 RK-FE process is now in early operation,and ferrous nickel product is being packaged and commer-cialized by Anglo American at this time.

The photos below are representative of the completedBarro Alto facilities.

Ryan Bergen, section editor, CIM Magazine

CIM

12:21 PM

9:42:36 AM

news

June/July 2011 | 13

Billed as an economic,social and environmentaldevelopment plan that willspan a generation, the Quebecgovernment’s Plan Nord is giv-ing its mining industry andnorthern communities a wel-come boost.

Northern Quebec, whichcovers 72 per cent of theprovince yet accounts for lessthan two per cent of its popu-lation, is sorely lacking ininfrastructure, a frustrationboth to companies hoping toaccess the region’s plentifulresources and those living inits communities. With PlanNord, the Quebec governmentintends to change that.

The plan involves $80 bil-lion in public and privateinvestment in infrastructure –for roads, hydroelectricity and com-munications – and in communitydevelopment, including education,housing and health services. The ideais to invigorate the North and its communities through sustainable eco-nomic development.

They are already seeing results. OnMay 20, ArcelorMittal, the world’slargest steel producer, announced a$2.1 billion expansion of its iron oremine at Mont-Wright. The expansionis expected to increase annual pro-duction of iron ore concentrates from14 million tonnes to 24 milliontonnes by 2013. As well, the invest-ment is expected to create 8,000 jobsduring the construction phase and900 once completed.

“We need to have good local condi-tions to be able to proceed with suchan important investment,” said ÉricTétrault, director of communicationsfor ArcelorMittal Canada, “one ofwhich is having a strong partner in building communities, housing,

Plan Nord paves way for development Ambitious 25-year plan will enhance northern region

By Correy Baldwin

transport infrastructure, manpowertraining and so on. This is what PlanNord provides us.”

“This is a fantastic example of avery balanced approach to develop-ment,” agreed Matt Manson, CEO ofStornoway Diamond Corporation,whose Renard project, now in the fea-sibility stage, has the potential to beQuebec’s first diamond mine. “On onehand, the government is making sub-stantial investment in infrastructuredevelopment, and on the other hand,they’re doing all of the appropriatebiodiversity conservation and socialdevelopment that makes developmentgenuinely sustainable.”

Open road for developmentStornoway Diamond will benefit

from the Route 167 extension, part ofthe $821 million investment in roadsthat is part of the Plan’s first phase. “Ifyou’re building a mine on seasonalwinter roads, how you operate and thescale of your operation is somewhat

limited,” explained Manson. “If youhave a two-lane gravel highway, youhave much more flexibility in how youbuild and operate your project.”

“The road allows us now to raisethe kind of serious investmentrequired to build our project and to getstarted with that work,” Mansonadded. “It’s a catalyst that allows us tomake a substantive investment in theconstruction of our mine.”

Northern lightsXstrata’s Raglan nickel mine in

Nunavik may be too remote to makeuse of road expansions, said FrancisBeauvais, Raglan’s director of commu-nications, but the announcement forhydroelectricity in the area under PlanNord is welcome news. “Like all com-munities in the North, we are usingdiesel power generators,” he explained.“The cost of fuel energy is very expen-sive. We’ve made several efforts to getconnected to a grid, but since we’re soisolated, it was almost impossible.”

Quebec Premier Jean Charest spoke at ArcelorMittal’s mine expansion announcement at the Mont-Wright mining complex.

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“Hydro is good news not just forus,” added Beauvais, “but also for ourInuit partners in the communities thatare using diesel fuel to generate elec-tricity. Just imagine what hydroelectricity could do for the communi-ties. Once you have hydroelectricity, itis an open door for development.”

Housing and employment trainingMetanor Resources is accessing yet

another aspect of Plan Nord for itsBachelor Lake gold project. “Theemployee training program is goingto make our search for employees andhiring qualified people easier,” saidPascal Hamelin, general manager ofoperations. “There are a lot of youthup North, especially in the FirstNations communities. They are opento training in mining, and that’swhere Plan Nord is going to be atremendous opportunity for us,” heexplained. “We’re already in discus-sion with Emploi-Québec for training

to start at the end of the summer. Alot of the programs up North arealready in place.”

Employment is also one of theissues being advanced by MakivikCorporation, a non-profit organiza-tion owned by the Inuit of Nunavik,and one of the signatories to PlanNord.“Nunavik has a very young population,” said Allison Irqumia,Makivik’s assistant project manager.“At least 60 per cent are under the ageof 25. Under Plan Nord, hopefully wewill see job creation for this demo-graphic.”

Shortage of housing in the region isalso a top priority for Makivik. “Hous-ing is a critical issue in Nunavik rightnow,” explained Irqumia. “Families areliving on top of each other and thisleads to all sorts of problems; it createsbigger problems.” She is hopeful thattheir concerns are being addressed. Atleast 500 new housing units inNunavik will be built during the first

five years of the Plan, as well as reno-vations to an additional 482.

The response to the Quebec gov-ernment’s initiative has been positiveto date. “Plan Nord constitutes theideal platform for private investmentin the North,” said Beauvais. “It’s eas-ier for the companies to commit whenthere is also a commitment from thegovernment and the local communi-ties to develop. Some companies areon the verge of making a decision, andif the government is opening the doorsfor investment and making it easier, itwill have a great impact on their deci-sion.”

It is certainly making a differencefor ArcelorMittal. “We want to raiseour global iron ore concentrate pro-duction to 100 million tonnes per yearby 2015,” said Tétrault. “To meet thisobjective, we will have to study manymore projects in Quebec, and PlanNord is certainly one of the conditionshelping us in our decisions.” CIM

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news

The race to develop the vastmineral resources in Africa isgrowing more competitive.Canadian and Chinese miningand exploration companies areamong the leaders competing forthe best properties and for theall-important social licence tooperate. The scale of Chineseinvestment is difficult to keeppace with but Canada has dis-tinct strengths of its own, someof which the industry does notfully recognize. That was the casethat Radcliffe Dockery, presidentand CEO of consultancy firmHigherEye Education and Train-ing, made at a recent seminar inVancouver on risk mitigation andcorporate social responsibility.

Dockery explained that one ofthe ways that Chinese companies,many of which are state-ownedenterprises with deep pockets, arewinning the CSR battle is throughmassive investments in infrastructureand other forms of CSR programs.“China has invested billions of dollarsin Sub-Saharan Africa,” Dockery said.“They’re real, tangible projects with realdollars.” In 2010, a mining companyrun by a Chinese contractor in Accra,Ghana, hired African clothing manufac-turers to make clothing that wasdistributed to more than 2,000 schoolchildren, he said

In a telephone interview, RonThiessen, director, president and CEOof Vancouver-based HDI (formerlyHunter Dickinson Inc.), which hashad several producing and explorationproperties in Africa, offered his per-spective on the Chinese approach toCSR. “Chinese companies are not asfar up the CSR learning curve as Cana-dian companies,” Thiessen said. “Ingeneral, Canadian and Western com-panies have been doing CSR programsfor much longer than the Chinese.”

Exporting the Canadian advantageCultural mosaic is a resource to develop says consultant

By Peter Caulfield

Thiessen added that most Canadianmining and exploration companies inAfrica are public and therefore subjectto much more legal scrutiny, such asCanada’s Corruption of Foreign PublicOfficials Act, than Chinese companies,many of which are state-owned enter-prises and are not subject to the samestringent rules.

In an interview following his pres-entation, Dockery said that Chinesefirms can provide valuable commu-nity engagement. He cited the case ofa Chinese construction company thatwas expanding the Gabarone city air-port in Botswana in 2008. It providedtwo-year training courses in electricaland mechanical engineering and IT to350 young people aged 19 to 24.According to a 2007 United NationsWorld Youth Report, Sub-SaharanAfrica has both the fastest growinglabour force and youth unemploy-ment in the world, which increased

by 34 per cent between 1995 and2005. “Canadian CSR programs tendto focus on such things as HIV/AIDSprevention and child care,” he said.“However, the number-one youthchallenge in Sub-Saharan Africa isunemployment. If it isn’t addressed,there will be considerable financialand social costs to pay.”

Dockery said he believes thatCanada has a distinct edge over Chinathat it should make use of. The way todo it is through what he calls leverag-ing Canadian diversity. “There are 1.1million people in this country withroots in Africa or the Caribbean,” heexplained. “And many of them wantexperience in emerging markets, suchas Africa.”

Dockery implored the audience tomake use of Canada’s cultural and lin-guistic diversity. “It’s our competitiveadvantage over anyone else on theplanet Earth,” he said. CIM


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Radcliffe Dockery appealed to Canadian mining companies to make good use of the country’s cultural diversity intheir CSR programs.

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news

In what is being hailed as a renais-sance for British Columbia’s miningindustry, companies have turned inimpressive results for revenues, netincome and cash flows in 2010,according to a recently released reportby consultants PwC (formerly Price-waterhouseCoopers).

The provincial mining industry,benefitting from strong demand andrising commodity prices, reportedtotal pre-tax net earnings of $3.7 bil-lion in 2010, a jump of 65 per centfrom $2.3 billion in 2009. Gross min-ing revenues increased 13 per cent to$7.9 billion in 2010, coming in closeto the provincial all-time high of $8.4billion in 2008. Cash flow from opera-tions increased by 32 per cent to $2.9billion and capital expendituresjumped 120 per cent to $1.25 billion.

“The 2010 financial performance ofthe B.C. mining sector was outstand-ing, driven by strong coal and metalsprices and a lot of hard-working peo-ple in the industry,” said MichaelCinnamond, leader of PwC's B.C. min-ing industry practice and co-author ofthe report. “The PwC report showsthat just about every aspect of the B.C.mining sector has done better thanexpected. Many of the positive trendswe saw last year have continued intothe first quarter of 2011.”

The PwC report also cited theimplementation of two new tax rev-enue-sharing agreements with themining industry and First Nations,and the pledge by federal and provin-cial governments to build theHighway 37 Northwest TransmissionLine as major impetus for the reboundin mining.

“New mining projects are neces-sary for the long-term viability ofB.C.'s mining industry,” said ErfanKazemi, senior manager at PwC andco-author of the report. “We areencouraged to see three new major

Resurgent B.C. mining sector posts remarkable returnsRevenues and earnings approached record high in 2010

By Peter Caulfield

metals mines in the constructionphase and a pipeline of projects readyto go. This is a level of activity notseen in B.C. in over a decade.”

Gavin Dirom, president and CEO ofthe Association for Mineral Explo-ration British Columbia, pointed tothe return of the majors to B.C.,including Xstrata and Freeport-McMoRan, as more evidence of therevival of mining and exploration tak-ing place in the province. “They can goanywhere in the world, but they'rechoosing to come to B.C.,” he said.

In 2010, coal, as in years past, wasthe biggest contributor to net miningrevenues, accounting for approxi-mately 51 per cent of the total.Shipments increased by 32 per cent to22.3 million tonnes, while pricesincreased by 15 per cent to an averageof US$181 per tonne.

But coal was not the only star per-former in 2010. As China continues itsmarch towards massive infrastructuredevelopment, total copper revenuesincreased from $1.2 billion in 2009 to$1.4 billion, while stronger demandand increased prices for zinc and zincconcentrates raised net revenues by 29per cent to $755 million.

Silver revenues shone, jumping 44per cent to $416 million. Molybdenumprices increased 42 per cent, yieldingnet revenues of $255 million. Andalthough shipments of lead and leadconcentrates dipped by four per cent, a24 per cent price increase raised net rev-enues by 13 per cent to $157 million.

Tom Schroeter, president, CEOand director of Vancouver-basedFjordland Exploration Inc., is cau-tiously optimistic about theprospects for exploration and miningin the province in 2011. He said thatthey are “excellent, although theydepend on the usual factors, espe-cially the harmonious interactions ofthe provincial and federal govern-ments and First Nations.” CIM


1 2 11:15:34

PwC report on the state of mining in B.C. in 2010:“Seize the Day”

Scott Shellhaas, Thompson Creek Metals Company Inc.’s COO since 2009, waspromoted to president. As president and COO, Shellhaas will continue to oversee thecompany’s mining operations and projects, plus assume responsibility for ThompsonCreek’s corporate responsibility, exploration, new business development and humanresources/administration departments. Shellhaas has more than 29 years of interna-tional executive management and operating experience within the mining industry.Immediately prior to joining the company, he provided executive management consult-ing services to natural resource and energy companies.

MOVING ON UP

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As more and more companies establish mines in Africa,questions about development and sustainability are growingmore complex. Where, for example, does one draw the linewhen it comes to roles and responsibilities of mining compa-nies and African governments when dealing with the issues ofgovernance, transparency and development?

These were the main themes discussed at an internationalforum held in Montreal in April. The conference, titled “Min-ing investment and development in Africa: Roles andresponsibilities of actors concerned,” was organized by theCanadian Network on Corporate Social Responsibility, L’En-traide missionaire and UQAM’s Research Group on MiningActivities in Africa. The one-day event featured a series ofpanel discussions and attracted a wide range of stakeholders.

CSR limitsDespite the fact that mining companies have undertaken

extensive corporate social responsibility (CSR) campaigns,

Bridging the gapsGood governance and transparency keys to development in Africa

By Peter Braul

some presenters questioned their effectiveness in dealingwith large-scale issues. “While CSR projects may effectivelyaddress some of the symptoms or the outcomes of mining-related impacts, they are often less well adapted to dealingwith structural and long-lasting development deficits thatmay be created at the local level,” said Catherine Coumans,a member of the Canadian Network on Corporate Account-ability and research coordinator at MiningWatch Canada.

“When we deal with public sectors and the attempts toresolve conflict and initiate peace-building activities, weare almost always condemned to frustration,” said JimFreedman, one of the presenters and a professor emeritusat the University of Western Ontario, who suggested thatindustry has the means to fill the governance roles tradi-tionally reserved for host governments. “The private sectorhas developed a governance capacity in areas of conflict,which sometimes can be quite sophisticated,” he said.

But even if the private sector has developed this capacity,the question remains whether governance should be theburden of the miner. “The best approach is regulation by thehost government,” said Tony Andrews, executive director ofthe Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada. “Theindustry can do all the corporate social responsibility itwants,” he added. “But if there’s not similar progress withhost country governance capacity building, the progress wecan make is limited.”

Financial transparencySusan Maples, a post-doctorate research fellow at Colum-

bia Law School, pointed out that mineral developmentagreements made between countries and corporations canvary wildly in their fairness, but are difficult to examinebecause of limited transparency.

“The contracts that these deals hinge on are not public,”said Maples. “And the fair deal conversation cannot be hadwithout the contracts.” She views the reasons that corpora-tions give for keeping contracts private, such as the need forcompetitiveness and commercial confidentiality, as being nolonger acceptable.

If development issues in Africa are to be solved, “it’s goingto require a public-private partnership at an unprecedentedlevel,” Maples explained. She acknowledged that a civil dia-logue “just cannot happen without transparency.” Toachieve this, Maples said companies would have a more pos-itive impact if they shifted their energies away from CSRprograms and utilized the Extractive Industries Trans-parency Initiative (EITI), which is designed to reinforcegovernance by improving transparency and accountabilityin the extractive sector. It requires companies to disclose


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what they pay, and governments to divulge what theyreceive. The figures are reviewed by an independent partyand then made available for public scrutiny. Maples hopesthat EITI will expand to include company payments to CSRinfrastructure projects, which has already happened insome cases. “We need the whole package,” she said.

Governance gapsOn the subject of the mining industry stepping in to fill

the governance void, Gordon Peeling, the outgoing presi-dent and CEO of the Mining Association of Canada, said,“Industry is willing to fill a gap, but it can’t be the long-termsolution for Africa. It’s one thing to collect tax, but if youdon’t know how to invest it for the best outcomes for yoursocieties, it will all be wasted,” he added.

Antonio Pedro, the director at the sub-regional office for East-ern Africa of the United Nations Economic Commission forAfrica, explained that good governance takes time to develop.“African governments impose very modern and aspirationallegal and regulatory frameworks, and yet don’t have the capacityto enforce them,” he said. “Balancing the provisions in the law… with the capacity to enforce is a major problem.”

When it comes to addressing the challenges of miningin Africa, Pedro said, “there is no universal recipe.” Hebelieves that dialogue remains the key to developing thebest understanding and best practices for the region. Headded that developed and developing nations can learnfrom one another, and that the problems Canadians facetrying to address First Nations issues are echoed in manyAfrican jurisdictions.

Andrews declared that mining companies have an oppor-tunity to radically change the way they are perceived. “Youcan contribute in a very real way, and become known as amechanism for the alleviation of poverty and the strengthen-ing of economies in the developing world,” he explained. CIM

June/July 2011 | 21

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PMI Gold Corporation appointed Michael Allen as the com-pany’s new CFO. He replaces Philip Gibbs who was hired on acontract basis in Canada. Allen is a Chartered Accountant withabout 30 years’ experience, which includes senior financialexecutive appointments in the mining, advisory and investmentindustries. Most recently, he was a principal in the corporatefinance division of RSM Bird Cameron in Perth.

Frans Knox was appointed general manager of Forbes &Manhattan Coal Corp.’s Slater coal operations based inDundee, Kwazulu-Natal. Most recently, Knox was with BHP Bil-liton Energy Coal South Africa as the general manager atseveral of their coal operations.

Golden Predator Corp.’s new vice-president of exploration(Canada), Michael Maslowski, is charged with overall direc-tion of the company’s Yukon exploration and developmentactivities. He brings 30 years of exploration and productionexperience to the company.

MOVING ON UP


While contractors were building the road to thegiant Antamina copper-zinc mine in Peru a decadeago, they accidentally broke one of the irrigationcanals that local farmers relied on for their crops,

and then failed to follow through on their promise to repair it.With the dry season coming on, and their livelihoods indanger, villagers from nearby Aquia set up a blockade on themine road. Because there was no protocol to deal with theescalating protest, the mine’s consortium of owners, includ-ing Canada’s Teck Resources and the now defunct Noranda,were uncertain on how to proceed.

They sent one of their senior managers, Paul Warner, tothe frontlines. Warner told the protestors they did not needto block a road to get the owners’ attention and handed outhis direct phone number to anyone who would take it.

“Nobody called, but the blockages stopped,” Warner tolda diverse crowd of social activists, academics and miningcompany representatives at a recent seminar at Ryerson Uni-versity in Toronto organized by the federal government’sOffice of the Extractive Sector Corporate Social Responsibil-ity (CSR) Counsellor.

Although nobody recognized it at the time, Warner’sinstinct to be fully accessible and forge personal relation-ships in the community would become a cornerstone of the

grievance mechanisms thatmining companies are cur-rently adopting to nipcomplaints in the bud,before they become full-blown protests.

Using the proper tool“For a company to take a

bet on winning lawsuits orsuccessfully countering hos-tile campaigns is, at best,optimistic risk manage-ment,” wrote John Ruggie,the Special Representative ofthe United Nations Secre-tary-General for businessand human rights and aleader in the field, in a 2008report.

In fact, escalated com-plaints are a sure sign that acompany does not have aneffective grievance mecha-nism in place, says Warner,who now works with both

mining companies and communities – through his companyBoth Sides Now Consulting – to try to find better ways toengage with each other.

Several organizations, ranging from the Prospectors andDevelopers Association of Canada to the InternationalCouncil on Mining and Metals, have published guidelinesthat mining companies can use to implement their own,project-specific grievance mechanisms; these guidelineswill continue to evolve based on real-life experiences atmining operations. Even Oxfam Australia, traditionallyregarded as anti-mining, is working with the mining indus-try to ensure that complaints are heard and dealt withbefore they lead to protests.

Warner says if he could use just one reference, it wouldbe the guidelines published by the Corporate Social Respon-sibility Initiative at Harvard University’s John F. KennedySchool of Government called “Rights-Compatible GrievanceMechanisms, a Guidance Tool for Companies and TheirStakeholders.” Ruggie is a professor of human rights andinternational affairs at the Kennedy School and the drivingforce behind the guidelines.

They call for a legitimate and trusted mechanism that ispublicized, transparent and accessible. The basis for themechanism would be engagement and dialogue between the

upfrontS U S T A I N A B I L I T Y b y V i r g i n i a H e f f e r n a n

Paul Warner listens to villagers’ concerns at a community meeting in northern Liberia.

Making it right when things go wrong Grievance mechanism key to building good mine-community relations

Paul

War

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company and the community, and the end result would bepredictable, fair and empowering. Finally, the mechanismwould be a source of continuous learning to evaluate whatworks and what does not.

The guide will be revised and expanded later this yearbased on four pilot projects, one a coal mining operation innorthern Columbia called Cerrejón, owned in equal parts bysubsidiaries of BHP Billiton, Anglo American and Xstrata.

Building relationships and communitiesIn 2007, Cerrejón’s owners commissioned an independ-

ent review of the mine’s social engagement by a panel ofinternationally recognized experts in the area of social devel-opment. The resulting report identified a number ofconcerns and grievances, mostly related to the resettlementof the Tabaco community to make way for a mine expansionin 2001, when police evicted residents by force.

Following the panel’s recommendations, Cerrejón agreedto buy a piece of land where Tabaco could be reconstructed,build a community centre, provide the initial engineeringworks to build the new village, fund socio-economic proj-ects and to compensate community members.

But there are ongoing concerns from the 200-plus com-munities that line the 150-kilometre railway that serves themine, including access to water, electricity and education,employment opportunities and the loss of livestock near therailway. The railroad is subject to periodic blockages bycommunity members, who use this technique to protesteverything from local power outages to recent plans to change the country’s distribution of royalties from commodities.

So Cerrejón set out to develop a larger, more comprehen-sive complaints mechanism following Ruggie’s guidelinesand adding the input of employees, contractors and commu-nity members. “Implementing the Ruggie guidelines to

manage grievances has helped us internalize better interna-tional social standards and provided communities improvedtools to interact with Cerrejón,” said León Teicher, presidentand CEO of Cerrejón, in a recent progress report on thecompany’s commitments. “The success of the mechanismwill depend on both the company’s ability to respond timely,fairly and consistently, and on the transparency of employ-ees and communities.”

Lack of planning courts disasterCases in which companies have failed to respond in a fair

and timely manner are just as instructive as the success sto-ries. When UK-based Monterrico Metals proposed buildinga large copper mine in a remote area of northern Peru in2005, for example, residents protested. The dissent endedwhen allegations surfaced that several protestors weredetained and beaten by Peruvian police.

The company continued with its development plans andthe Rio Blanco Mine was expected to begin commercial pro-duction this year, but when residents held an informalreferendum in 2007, the vast majority voted against the mine.The company offered them millions of dollars in compensa-tion, but by then there was too much bad blood. In 2009 acivil lawsuit was brought against Monterrico (now owned byZijin Mining Group) in the United Kingdom by the victimsof alleged human rights abuses during the 2005 protest and£5 million ($8 million) of the company’s assets were frozenby the UK courts.

Rio Blanco may be an extreme case of a mining company-community conflict turning ugly, but it underlines theurgent need for effective grievance mechanisms. Implemen-tation is finally gathering momentum, says Warner, andcompanies ignore the new guidelines at their peril. “Foryears I felt like I was pushing a wall, and then I turnedaround and the wall was pushing me,” he says. CIM

June/July 2011 | 23

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Some six years ago, Canadian mining companyQuadra FNX Mining Ltd. realized it could be facinga serious problem in the not-too-distant future withits semi-autogenous grinding (SAG) mill at its Robin-

son open pit copper mine near Ruth, Nevada.“The equipment we had was late 1980s and early 1990s

technology,” says Cary Brunson, maintenance manager,Robinson Nevada Mining Company. “And the computerizedportion of this had become obsolete. We recognized theshort supply of the components we needed to maintain theequipment. If we shut down because we were out of parts, itwould cost us up in the $50,000 an hour range. If we had toshut down because we didn’t have the part on site and thatpart was already obsolete, we could be facing weeks to get itrepaired or get a new one. It became apparent that the costof trying to operate on an obsolete system was going to beprohibitive.”

So two years ago, the management team at Robinsondecided that this year, it would upgrade the mill, whichemploys Siemens’ Simine Mill GD solution for gearlessmill drives and twin-pinion mills. But that decision didnot come without its own challenge since the upgradework itself would likely require a significant and costlyshutdown. That’s when Siemens Industry, Inc. came intothe picture.

“We did an evaluation as to what the recommendedupgrade would be,” says Vinny Matthews, business man-ager, mining projects, Siemens. “And what we were able tofigure out is that we could upgrade all the power conversion,electronics and automation without having to replace themotors, which are extremely large, very expensive and arevery time-consuming to replace with new ones. Fortunately,Siemens has always built an extremely robust motor. ForRobinson, that was a feasible alternative because it greatlyreduced the shutdown period that would be required.”

While this solution did indeed dramatically reduce thenecessary shutdown period, the challenge of how to do theupgrades, which included a Sinamics SL150 cycloconverterand a new diagnostics system, with the shortest possibleinterruption to production remained critical.

Small windows of time“We have two opportunities a year to have this mill down

for the amount of time we need to do the upgrade and, logis-tically, we had to have this set up so we can do the upgradewithin those two periods,” says Brunson. “Siemens hasworked very well with us on this and been very flexible.Instead of taking all the downtime they need to do to get thisup and running, they’ve broken it down. We have a 14-hourshutdown every five weeks, so they’re coming in and doingbits of what needs to be done within those windows.”

While not replacing the motors was part of the solution,it also presented its own challenges. “We were looking atputting the new section in while the old one was still run-ning to limit the shutdown period,” says Matthews. “Aswell, it would allow us to test the new one as much as pos-sible without connecting the motors prior to converting theentire system. But we looked at this and thought, ‘Where arewe going to put all these electronics?’ Typically, you take outthe old and replace it with the new.”

The mine operators and the Siemens team decided onwhat was to become one of the more unique and innovativeaspects of this project. “We built a platform outside of thebuilding, which would connect to the existing concentratorsso there would be a shared wall, and then put in an e-house,essentially a portable building that houses electronic equip-ment, on that platform,” Matthews explains.

upfrontE N G I N E E R I N G E X C H A N G E b y A l e x a n d r a L o p e z - P a c h e c o

Pulling out the stopsSiemens and Quadra FNX avoid downtime as they upgrade mill drive

A crane sets into place the portable building that accommodates the new electronics.The plant will use the “e-house” while the obsolete technology is phased out.

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The e-house was built in Indiana. There, all the equip-ment was installed in the e-house and tested. “Because thee-house is too big to ship in on one flatbed, you typicallysplit it in half or thirds, or more than that, and then youtruck it to the site,” he adds. “You lift it up with cranes ontothe platform and put in place.”

“Despite the cost,” says Brunson, “we did our analysisand realized that the cost of even a day’s time of being downwould match the price for this upgrade, so it became a veryeasy decision.”

Greater performance with a smaller profileThroughout this phase of the project in the summer of

2011, the existing equipment continues to operate, whileSiemens focuses on the installation of the e-house and thewiring work, as well as much of the automation testing.Sometime in September, depending on the feasibility forRobinson, the mine is expected to shut down for approxi-mately four days, during which time the new system will befully connected to the existing motors and thoroughly tested.

“We expect several types of performance improvements forRobinson with the upgrade,” says Matthews. “That includes asmaller electronics footprint, which means the number ofcomponents tend to be reduced, and when the number ofcomponents are reduced, the reliability tends to increase.

Instead of having lots of electronics, which is typical with ana-log, this is primarily a digital system. That means we’re able tocontrol everything much more precisely and the diagnosticsare greatly improved. The power performance has alsoimproved significantly over the years, so they’ll be able to dothe same amount of work with less energy. Furthermore, theuser interface has become much friendlier. Today, it’s basicallypoint and click. It allows the operators to get a lot more infor-mation and higher productivity with the system.”

In addition, the mine operators won’t have to worryabout an unexpected shutdown due to a broken, obsoletepart. With many mines in North America using equipmentthat is two or more decades old, Siemens says it is seeing anincreased demand for innovative solutions for upgradessuch as this one that limit the need for shutdowns. “We spe-cialize in this,” says Matthews. “We were kind of driven thisway by the recession. Several years ago, everyone was veryconcerned about the amount of investment they couldmake, yet they still needed to make the investment becausethey had to have the equipment going. So we started to lookat how we could modernize the mills for our customerswithout a massive amount of capital being expended andwithout them having to shut down their production for aprolonged period. This is what drove this type of innovation,which has in turn become a value proposition.” CIM

June/July 2011 | 25

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Tim Skinner hasmade a career outof managinginformation sys-

tems, implementing andoptimizing technology,and managing change inthe mineral resourcesindustry. He has runinformation systems forCominco, Fording Coal,Elk Valley Coal, Trans -Canada Pipeline andMichelin Tire. Currently,he is an automation,technology and systemsconsultant to the metalsand minerals industry.

Skinner is also anactive member of theSurface Mining Associa-

tion for Research and Technology (SMART). Theassociation, composed of mining companies, was con-ceived to help direct and share research and developmentsthat could improve the technologies and services availableto the surface mining sector. With SMART, he is committedto establishing connectivity and technology standards andopening up access to the mass of information produced bythe technology used at a modern mine site. CIM Magazinerecently spoke to Skinner to get his perspective on the stateand future of operations in the industry.

CIM: There are a number of external forces affecting theextractive sector, including the industrial fortunes of the BRICcountries and the shallow labour pool. What do you see as theinternal influences that are compelling change?Skinner: Internally, there has been a return to operatingexcellence. I think prior to the recession when commodityprices were high, we slipped away from that ideal and hada “production at any cost” mentality, which led tosloppiness and inefficiency. Tires are a good example.People were buying tires at any price. We seemed to forgetwe have our cycles, and so we had a rude awakening. Ithink also, the mining industry had been overly driven bythe financial imperative rather than an operational one.

CIM: Did this affect safety as well?Skinner: No, safety did not get sacrificed; it got increasingattention. Mining continues to be an industry that isleading in safety.

CIM: The profile of the people that make up the skilled miningworkforce is also changing. What are the most significantdevelopments? Skinner: The younger generation of professionals is muchmore technologically engaged, and they have anexpectation that their work environment will reflect this.Also, young professionals have a much more urbanorientation. They want to work in the industry, but theyalso want to work in the city. It still surprises me when Ihear that, but it can be done now. You can take work to thepeople rather than people to the work.

Also, among management there is increasing under-standing and greater awareness of what other industries aredoing with technology and what technology can do for ourindustry. The changing of the guard is underway. If I talkabout autonomous drill operations, people don’t look atme like I’m crazy anymore. They understand that there areopportunities that need to be explored.

CIM: What does the increasing automation of operations meanfor the relationship between operators and equipment andtechnology suppliers?Skinner: As the equipment becomes more automated andintelligent, the operator becomes more of a “pilot” than adirect operator. This requires greater integration of systemsand the interface between the operator and the equipment.A unified presentation and capability needs to be providedto the operator for direct onboard control, as well as acomplete awareness and knowledge of all the externalactivity going on around the equipment. There will be aneed for a common standard framework that will allowvarious monitoring and controls technology to be providedas a single, orchestrated, simple and easy-to-use interfacefor the operator. The technology suppliers must provideand support the standards and interfaces required to enablethe unified operator interface.

CIM: The power of the tools available to mine operators isimmense. Are mines getting the most out of new technology? Skinner: No, they aren’t, for many reasons. One reason isthere are too many visual and audio presentations thatjust create noise and an environment that is moreannoying to the equipment operator than helpful.Operators will sabotage the warning systems, tune themout, or not comprehend and respond due to overload.This is an evolving safety issue that most are not aware of.The challenge is to design an integrated operatorinterface that intelligently presents the importantinformation needed by the operator. The rightinformation is not getting to the right people at the right

upfrontQ & A b y R y a n B e r g e n

A long-lived pioneerInnovators can’t be afraid to take a bullet… or two

time, and then how do you train people for that? At most,simulation technology might include a dispatch systemterminal along with the basic controls from the OEM.That is only one additional systemout of many possible, such as stressor tire monitoring, collisionavoidance, operator fatigue, etc.

CIM: How different do you think amining operation commissioned 10years from now will look? What about20 years from now?Skinner: Ten years from now, we willsee individual selective pieces ofequipment working autonomously –production blast-hole drills and haultrucks. Twenty years from now, wewill probably see the first integratedautomated mine where most primeoperating equipment is workingautonomously together. It will beinteresting to see who does that because you need a lotof buy-in if you have a multi-OEM environment.

CIM: Some OEMs are more protective of their data than others.What case would you make for OEMs to provide greateraccess to the data generated at the mine site? Skinner: First, it is the customer’s data; it is data abouttheir equipment and operation. To limit access isworking against your customer. Second, the end ownerand user is in the best position to understand and usethe data provided to determine and identifyimprovement opportunities for both the equipmentand its application, and thus to the benefit of the OEM. Finally, openness has shownto be the environment that drivesinnovation and improvement. Closedenvironments do not survive.

CIM: On the opposite side of the coin,what challenge would you make to mineoperators about maximizing theirtechnology?Skinner: The challenge is to takeownership of the technology, andprovide the leadership and supportrequired to apply and utilize theavailable technology. The mineoperator is the only who can make thetechnology work alongside the neededprocesses and people changes.

CIM: Why is an organization like SMARTimportant?Skinner: SMART is important because itis a mine operator’s organization. One

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of its prime roles is to address technology and innovationin surface mining. SMART is the only organization thatbrings together mine operators and presents the common

technology challenges and needs ofthe operating industry. Greaterattention and accomplishments areachieved when the industry speakswith one voice.

CIM: When it comes to innovation inmining, the saying goes that pioneersget shot. How do pioneers avoid beingshot? Are there other industries thatmight provide a model?Skinner: You can’t avoid beingshot; it is more a question of ‘isthe shot fatal?’ The only way toavoid being fatally shot is to workwith an organization whosemanagement and seniorleadership are fully supportive

and driving the developments in an evolutionaryimprovement approach. You need an organizationalculture that states that if you are not making mistakes,you are not pushing hard enough. Most other industries– such as manufacturing, petro chemical, financial – arefar ahead of mining, so most can provide a model. Istarted in Trail, British Columbia with Cominco inprocess control in the smelter; a lot of the automationwe were doing then in the 1970s and 1980s had thesame issues that we are seeing now in mining. These arethe same fundamentals, but the industry seemscommitted to the tortuous approach rather than theenlightened one. CIM

“The mine operator

is the only one

who can make

the technology

work alongside

the needed processes

and people changes.”

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mining more, mining safely

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The minerals industry, driven by strong demandfor mineral resources, is testing its limits andopening up new frontiers. Explorers, builders andoperators are digging ever deeper to find newreserves, and venturing into territories previously

considered unmineable, all while confronting the long waittimes for equipment and taking care to guarantee thesafety of its workforce.Suppliers to the industry must work to keep up with

these ambitions. Whether helping customers conservetheir tight supplies and comply with regulations, or design-ing new tools for new conditions, suppliers are key tokeeping mines operating in the face of unique challenges.

Treading lightlyNowhere is the operator-supplier relationship more

clear than in tire development. In this current boom cycle,demand for tires still exceeds production capacity. Tightsupplies and the steep expense of replacing tires as thecosts of raw materials rise give operators strong incentiveto keep their tires in operating condition longer.But it is still a struggle to make those tires last. Even the

factors that seem straightforward — tire pressure, road condi-tions, truck loading — prove challenging to control. In response,industry and suppliers work closely to share their expertise.Barry Rexroad, director of OTR (off the road) engineer-

ing and mining at Bridgestone Americas, says that the

Exploring the limitsNew frontiers of mining a test for both operators and suppliersby Eavan Moore

MDA Corporation has developed uGPS to better monitor and control equipment

movement underground.



company engages in product development, technical serv-ice, training and an industry-leading tire-use tracking soft-ware, TreadStat® to ensure that the best products are get-ting the best use. “Bridgestone uses a technology called G-Hawk that combines GPS measurement along with athree-axis force measurement system to get real-time dataon the forces and stresses that the tires see as a truck runsin the operation,” he says. “We can determine portions of thehaul road or truck operation that could overstress the tires.” Meanwhile, new products reflect research into the tread

patterns and architectural details that hold up best in dif-ferent applications. Bruce Besancon, director of marketingfor Michelin earthmover tires, explains: “Any time Michelinputs out a new product, it’s always going to be on the basisthat we want to increase the productivity. Our newestearthmover tire, the XDR2, runs cooler and has new fea-tures to lessen the impact from rock cuts and other outsideinfluences.”When tire supply was at critical levels between 2007

and 2009, says Bob Dirk, director of mine operations atSuncor Energy, the challenge was met jointly. “We took ona lot of improvement work and set the world record for tirelife for three different sizes. Suncor’s employees can takecredit for half of those improvements, and I would give thetire manufacturers credit for the other half.”

A cleaner work siteThe industry faces another challenge in the environmen-

tal impact of its standard equipment. When diesel fuel isburned, it generates a number of pollutants, including nitro-gen oxides (NOx), which contribute to smog and acid rain,and diesel particulate matter (DPM), which has broad envi-ronmental effects while directly damaging human health.

In response, a numberof jurisdictions have setprogressively tighter limitson emissions levels.Diesel emissions, regu-lated in Canada since2006, would see a furtherreduction starting in 2012under amendments pro-posed by EnvironmentCanada in accordancewith United StatesEnvironmental ProtectionAgency (EPA) guidelines.DPM would be reduced50 to 95 per cent underthese guidelines.The success of these

regulations rides on newengine technologies.Komatsu and Caterpillarare among those suppliersalready offering machinemodels with emissions-

reducing engine add-ons that meet the latest standards. This year and next, Caterpillar will release several

machines that meet the most stringent criteria defined bythe EPA. Each machine will include some combination ofseveral emissions-reducing elements. An NOx reductionsystem diverts and cools some engine exhaust gas, thenreturns it to the combustion chamber to inhibit NOx forma-tion by lowering cylinder temperatures. A diesel oxidationcatalyst breaks down pollutants, and a diesel particulate fil-ter removes soot from the exhaust stream. The self-clean-ing filter uses heat from the exhaust gas to burn off soot. The more advanced technologies require ultra-low sul-

phur fuel, which is mandated in some countries but difficultto obtain in others. “Caterpillar will offer different configu-rations of machines for heavily regulated countries versusless regulated countries,” says spokesperson Mark Sprouls.

Underground hazardsAt Xstrata Copper’s Kidd Mine, diesel regulations are

not the focus for now. The reason is that the ventilationsystems built to deal with the intense heat in the 2,800-metre-deep mine easily dispose of diesel fumes along theway. Deep mines like Kidd represent the future of under-ground mining, expected to continue moving downward assurface resources are exhausted. Their operators havelearned firsthand that heat conditions and rockburst will bemajor safety challenges at greater depths.Seismic activity is a regular presence at Kidd Mine, says

Shannon Campbell, manager of engineering and mineoperations. Normally, it is managed through computermodelling, monitoring and proactive closure of potentiallyrisky areas. But in January 2009, the mine experienced a3.3 earthquake on the Richter Scale that caused ground

OTR tire manufacturers, including Michelin and Bridgestone, are working closely with mine operations to improve tire performance.

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failures on multiple levels, challenging state-of-the-artground-support tendons that had previously had no problems. Turning to the market, the mine needed additional dynamic

loading bolts to supplement its existing ground support.Previously, the mine only had modified cone bolts available.These bolts, developed in 2000 at the Noranda TechnologyCentre, plow through a resin grouting under a dynamic load,absorbing seismic energy and sparing their neighbouringbolts. However, the modified cone bolts are tricky to installeffectively, says Campbell. So Kidd Mine is testing severalnew dynamic supporting bolts, including the D-Bolt and theYIELD-LOK™ bolt. The YIELD-LOK™ boltwas developed by Jennmar Corporation in2009, which combines dynamic load capacitywith rebar-like support. The D Bolt, fromDynamic Rock Support, was invented byCharlie Li of the Norwegian University ofScience and Technology in 2008.Rocky Wu, vice-president of engineering at

Jennmar of Canada, explains that the bolt is called YIELD-LOK™, reflecting its dual functions. A polymer-coated sturdysteel bolt provides reinforcement in static loading conditions.Under a dynamic load, the bolt plows through the polymercoating, transferring its energy. Its performance is more con-sistent and less dependent on the type of grouting materialsand drill hole size. It is suitable to be used as primary supportin dynamic ground conditions. “Our hope is that with a fewextra YIELD-LOK™ bolts, we can reduce the amount of over-all ground support per metre of drift by 25 to 30 per cent,which is tremendous,” says Campbell.However strong the rock supports may be, underground

mines are no place for unnecessary personnel. Majorequipment manufacturers are now offering automationtechnologies that allow teleoperation of equipment; theyinclude Sandvik’s AutoMine, Caterpillar’s MineGem andAtlas Copco’s autonomous load-haul-dump vehicle. All ofthese solutions enable operators to manage undergroundvehicles from the surface; the machines use laser scan-ners to navigate underground tunnels, tramming anddumping autonomously.But there is another thing they have in common, says

Roy Jakola, director of terrestrial applications at MDACorporation, which developed the navigation algorithm forAtlas Copco. “The vehicle doesn’t really know where it isin the mine,” he says. “It just knows that it’s memorized theway from point A to B, and it’s going to do that repetitively.”

MDA’s development team has beenworking to change that for the lastseveral years. The company is nowready to sell the result: a system,dubbed uGPS, in which vehicle sen-sors recognize any spot in the mineand transmit their location informationthrough an interface similar to theGPS system common in cars.“To travel many, many miles in

underground tunnels and come backto the very same spot and know you’re exactly on that spotis a much more challenging physics problem,” explainsJakola. Once solved, the system has numerous potentialapplications, he says. “If you knew where all the vehicleswere in the total underground environment, you would bethinking like an air traffic controller. You could actually becreating path planning for vehicles.”Kidd Mine is looking into automation of some sort, prima-

rily to avoid collisions. But the same solution could also freeup resources that are limited by safety concerns. “For us, thebiggest productivity gain with this type of technology would

be automated muck transfer when the mine is emptied forstope blasting,” says Campbell. “Because of crushing andsqueezing ground, we don’t have a lot of ore passage fromthe top of the mine to the bottom. We’ve got a cascadingseries of ore passes where a scoop is needed to transferfrom one ore pass to another. So when we’re blasting, theseautomated scoops would transfer the muck from the bottomof one ore pass to the top of another. And the ore flow sys-tem would basically continue to flow, as the mine is man-free.”

Exploring Davy Jones’ lockerMining copper and gold three kilometres below ground

is challenging enough, but several companies are makingtruly novel plans: drilling for metals three kilometres belowthe ocean waves. Exploration efforts have hinted atextremely high-grade metal deposits rising from the oceanfloor, piquing the interest of prospective subsea minersaround the globe. But an open pit mine one to three kilo-metres underwater comes with unique challenges. Theeffort to surmount them involves a high degree of cooper-ation among multiple players working to adapt and expandthe tools of other industries.The first challenge is in exploration: both financing and

conducting exploration for undersea deposits have differ-ent requirements than land-based mining. “We have cometo the understanding that arranging for investments is adifficult task for our customers,” says Joyce van Heijzen,

Mine operators at Xstrata Copper’s Kidd Mine are testing dynamic supporting bolts such as the YIELD-LOKbolt to assist existing ground support.

“If you knew where all the vehicles were in the total underground environment, you would be thinking like an air traffic controller.” – R. Jakola of MDA

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marketing representative for IHCMerwede. In response, the dredge-building company joined forces withdredging company DEME to offer acost-per-tonne mining solution asjoint venture OceanflORE. “This is asolution we would like to developfurther,” she says, “because webelieve it will help develop the mar-ket from experimental to industrialand, eventually, mature.” Peter Kowalczyk, co-founder of

the ocean mining exploration com-pany Ocean Floor Geophysics,explains one way in whichOceanflORE’s approach would help. “The big problem forpeople who are exploring submarine deposits is that ifyou drill off the resources to the standards required by NI43-101, you spend too much money doing the drilling,”he says. “It’s not actually necessary in terms of the eco-nomic analysis of the deposit because with ocean miningyou don’t have sunk costs. So, what OceanflORE plans todo is to reduce drilling costs by collecting a bulk samplefor you at an early stage in the exploration process.”But first the deposit must be located, something that

must be done while working, as Kowalczyk points out,more or less blind. His company has been working on sur-veying seafloor massive sulphide deposits. The processbegins with precision sonar and remotely operated vehicle(ROV) missions, long used for academic and recovery pur-poses. To hone in on high-grade copper gold deposits,Ocean Floor Geophysics decided to use electromagneticsurveying tools. Mapping the conductivity of the oceanfloor reveals copper and gold because they’re compara-tively conductive. The company’s latest systems use a coilwrapped around the ROV that transmits an electromag-netic field. Antennas sense variations in the electric fieldas the ROV tracks three to five metres above the oceanfloor. “This system doesn’t penetrate very deeply,” explainsKowalczyk, “but it does map out the area of the conduc-tive massive sulphides quite accurately.”

There remain numerous openquestions and areas of exploration insubsea mining. Today’s subsea miningtool designs use umbilical cords toprovide power and communicationwith the ship above. Ultimately, saysGreg Baiden of Penguin AutomatedSystems, it would be helpful to intro-duce other forms of subsea communi-cation. He is working on an idea firstspurred by the challenges of teleoper-ation in countries where wirelessbandwidth is restricted, and now beingtested by Codelco at both surface andunderground operations.

The system uses light signals transmitted betweenequipment, through air or water. “You have to imagine a ballwhere the lights are arranged in a pattern so they shine outin every direction,” explains Baiden. “What we do is turn thelights on and off at so many cycles per second. And thenyou can encode a signal.” Drilling and transporting ore from the sea bottom brings

a whole new set of challenges. The technologies that dif-ferent players are working on draw from the oil and gasindustry and open pit surface mining, each element need-ing to be adapted to the unique process of cutting andtransporting slurry underwater.The novelty — and difficulty — makes co-operation a key

feature of deep-sea mining efforts, comments PieterLucieer of IHC Merwede. “Designing the system doesn'tmean doing everything on your own account; a big part ofthe job is integrating various, sometimes proven, technolo-gies. This also includes cooperating and building relation-ships. No company in the world can develop a system thiscomplex all by itself.”As mining becomes more challenging and the demand

for commodities continues, this model for collaboration is apowerful one. Operators and suppliers might find this valu-able not just for subsea mining ventures but on the surfaceand underground as well, wherever the objective is to minemore and mine safely. CIM

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The successful development of seafloormining equipment, such as this drum cutter,will rely on collaboration across the industry.

Signals passed by LED lights are one solutionproposed for subsea communications.

A drum cutter feeds slurry to thesurface, where it is dewatered.

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exploiter davantage, en toute sécurité

Dans la foulée d’une forte demande pour lesressources minérales, l’industrie des minéraux estconfrontée à ses limites et se découvre de nou-

velles frontières. Les explorateurs, constructeurs etexploitants creusent toujours plus bas pour découvrir denouvelles réserves, et ils s’aventurent dans des zonesjugées inexploitables il n’y a pas si longtemps. Dans cetteentreprise, ils doivent faire face à de longues attentes pourle matériel et assurer la sécurité de la main d’oeuvre.

Pour être dans le coup, les fournisseurs de cette indus-trie doivent maintenir des flux d’approvisionnement tendusen conformité avec les lois et règlements et concevoir denouveaux outils destinés à des conditions nouvelles. Danstous les cas de figure, les fournisseurs jouent un rôle clédans le maintien de l’exploitation minière en relevant desdéfis inédits.

Mettre la pédale douceLe secteur du développement des pneumatiques illustre

assez bien la nature des rapports entre l’exploitant et lefournisseur. Dans le cycle actuel en pleine expansion, lademande pour les pneus dépasse régulièrement la capac-ité de production. Que peut-on faire pour prolonger leurdurée? Même des facteurs apparemment simples commela pression des pneus, les conditions routières et le charge-ment des camions peuvent s’avérer difficiles à contrôler.

Pour répondre à ces défis, les fabricants etles fournisseurs collaborent étroitement etmettent en commun leur expertise.

Barry Rexroad, directeur, Génie et explo-ration minière hors route chez BridgestoneAmericas, déclare que son entreprise, afind’utiliser les meilleurs produits de lameilleure façon possible, travaille audéveloppement de produits, de servicestechniques et de formation, ainsi que du logi-ciel de pointe TreadStat® qui mesure l’usuredes pneus. « Bridgestone utilise la technolo-gie G-Hawk qui combine des données GPSà celle d’un système de mesure des forcessur trois axes afin d’obtenir des données entemps réel sur les forces et contraintes quis’exercent sur les pneus au cours des opéra-

tions de camionnage », dit-il.« Ainsi, nous pouvons met-tre en évidence lestronçons des routes detransport ou les opérationsde camionnage qui sontsusceptibles d’exiger uneffort excessif pour lespneus. »

Entre-temps, on voitarriver sur le marché denouveaux produits qui met-tent à profit les recherchessur les profils de bandes de

roulement et sur les structures fines qui se comportent lemieux dans différentes applications. Selon BruceBesancon, directeur des services de marketing chezMichelin, Pneus d’engins de terrassement, « Notre nouveaupneu d’engin de terrassement, le XDR2, chauffe moins enservice et il offre une meilleure résistance aux tailladescausées par les arêtes de roche et aux autres types d’a-gressions extérieures. »

Selon Bob Dirk, directeur de l’exploitation minière chezSuncor Energy, quand l’approvisionnement en pneus étaitdifficile entre 2007 et 2009, on a relevé le défi grâce à uneffort collectif. « Nous avons pris un grand nombre demesures destinées à améliorer nos façons de faire, ce quinous a permis d’établir un record mondial de durée pourtrois tailles de pneus. Les employés de Suncor méritent derecevoir au moins la moitié du crédit pour ces améliora-tions, et je veux bien accorder l’autre moitié aux fabricantsde pneus. »

Les dangers du milieu souterrainLes mines à grande profondeur comme la mine de

cuivre Kidd de Xstrata représentent l’avenir de l'explorationminière souterraine, qui devrait continuer à fouiller lesentrailles de la Terre à mesure que les ressources près dela surface s’épuisent. Ses exploitants, qui travaillent en pre-mière ligne, ont vite appris que les conditions de chaleur et

L’exploration à la limitede la technologieLes nouvelles frontières de l’exploration minière :un test pour les exploitants et les fournisseurs

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Darryl Booth fait de l'arpentage souterrain à la mine Kidd de Xstrata Copper.

les épisodes de coups de mine posent de graves prob-lèmes pour le maintien de la sécurité aux grandes pro-fondeurs.

On note une activité sismique régulière dans la mineKidd, selon Shannon Campbell, directeur des servicesd’ingénierie et d’exploitation minière. Habituellement, ongère la situation à l’aide de modèles informatiques etpar des activités de surveillance, ainsi que par la ferme-ture préventive de zones à risque. Toutefois, en janvier2009, la mine a été secouée par un séisme de 3,3 surl’échelle de Richter, qui a causé des effondrements àplusieurs niveaux et mis à mal les armatures de ren-forcement de pointe qu’on avait utilisées sans problèmejusqu’à ce jour.

Se tournant vers le marché, les entreprises minières ontdemandé des écrous à charge dynamique accrue pourconsolider les armatures de renforcement en place. Avantce jour, on n’avait modifié que les boulons coniquesdisponibles. Sous l’action d’une charge dynamique, cesboulons s’enfoncent dans un chemisage de résine,absorbant ainsi l’énergie sismique et préservant lesboulons voisins. Toutefois, les boulons coniques modifiéssont difficiles à installer efficacement, selon M. Campbell.Pour cette raison, la mine Kidd soumet à l’essai plusieursnouveaux types de boulons de renforcement résistant auxcharges dynamiques, notamment les boulons D-Bolt etYIELD-LOK MD.

M. Rocky Wu, vice-président des services d’ingénieriechez Jennmar Canada, explique que le boulon YIELD-LOKMD est un boulon d’acier robuste revêtu de polymère quiassure un bon renforcement dans des conditions de chargestatique. Sous l’action d’une charge dynamique, ce boulons’enfonce dans le revêtement de polymère, lui transférantainsi son énergie. Sa performance est plus régulière etdépend moins du type de chemisage et de la taille du trou.Il peut être utilisé comme dispositif de renforcement princi-pal dans des conditions de charge dynamique du sol. «Nous espérons que l’ajout de quelques boulons YIELD-LOK MD supplémentaires nous permettra de réduirel’ensemble des structures de renforcement de 25 à 30 %par mètre de galerie d’accès, ce qui est énorme », déclareM. Campbell.

Peu importe la robustesse des renforcements desgaleries, les effectifs doivent être gardés au minimum dansles mines souterraines. Les principaux fabricantsd’équipement offrent maintenant des technologies d’au-tomatisation pour la télécommande des équipements,notamment le système AutoMine de Sandvik, le MineGemde Caterpillar et le chargeur-transporteur autonome d’AtlasCopco. Toutes ces solutions permettent aux exploitants degérer de la surface tout un parc de véhicules souterrains;ces machines utilisent des systèmes à balayage laser pournaviguer dans les galeries, ainsi que pour des opérationsautonomes de transport et de bennage.

Toutefois, selon Roy Jakola, directeur des applica-tions terrestres chez MDA, qui a développé l’algorithmede navigation pour Atlas Copco, elles ont un autre point

commun. « Ces véhicules ne savent pas vraiment où ilssont dans la mine », dit-il. « Ils ne connaissent que leurtrajectoire du point A au point B, qu’ils ont mémorisée, etils peuvent refaire ce bout de chemin autant de foisqu’on veut. »

L’équipe de développement de MDA, qui travaille à desprojets innovateurs depuis bon nombre d’années, se pré-pare à commercialiser son système uGPS - des véhiculeséquipés de capteurs pouvant reconnaître tout lieu dans lamine et transmettre des données de positionnement grâceà une interface semblable à celle des systèmes GPS desvéhicules automobiles.

« Pour voyager des dizaines de kilomètres dans desgaleries et revenir à un même point dûment identifié, il fautrelever un grand nombre de défis de nature physique »,explique M. Jakola. « Une fois éprouvé, ce système aura denombreuses applications », ajoute-t-il. « Si vous saviez oùse trouve chacun de vos véhicules n’importe où dans leréseau souterrain, vous commenceriez à penser comme uncontrôleur aérien. Vous verriez probablement l’intérêt demieux planifier le parcours de vos véhicules. »

Au fond du coffre de Davy JonesDes travaux d’exploration permettent de croire qu’il y

a des gisements de métaux extrêmement concentrésau fond des océans, ce qui suscite l’intérêt d’entreprisesminières sous-marines du monde entier. Cependant,une mine sur le fond marin entre un et trois kilomètressous la surface présente des défis uniques. Pour lessurmonter, il faut faire appel à un niveau élevé de col-laboration entre les nombreux intervenants afind’adapter les outils d’autres industries ou de les utiliserà des fins nouvelles.

L’extraction et le transport du minerai à partir du fondmarin nous confrontent à un ensemble de défis entière-ment nouveaux. Des technologies de l’industrie pétrolièreet gazière, ainsi que de l’exploitation minière à ciel ouvert,doivent être adaptées aux processus d’extraction et detransport des boues en milieu sous-marin.

À cause de la nouveauté - et la difficulté – de ces tech-niques, la collaboration est un facteur clé pour l’explorationminière en eau profonde, selon Pieter Lucieer de IHCMerwede. « Tous les fournisseurs de technologie ont jointleurs forces pour soutenir les efforts des pionniers de l’ex-ploration minière en eau profonde », déclare-t-il. « Desentreprises qui seront probablement bientôt en concur-rence travaillent main dans la main pour résoudre desproblèmes technologiques cruciaux. »

Alors que l’exploration minière nous confronte à desdéfis croissants et que la demande en matériels et servicess’accroît, ce modèle de collaboration s’avère très efficace.Les exploitants et les fournisseurs pourraient bien con-clure qu’il s’agit là d’une approche des plus efficaces, nonseulement pour l’exploration minière sous-marine, maisaussi pour les exploitations en surface et souterraines, quel’objectif soit d’accroître la production ou de garantir desconditions de travail sécuritaires. ICM


exploiter davantage, en toute sécurité

L’Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue(UQAT) et l’Institut canadien des mines, de la métal-lurgie et du pétrole (ICM) vous invitent à Rouyn-Noranda, Québec, Canada, du 6 au 9 novembre2011, à l’occasion du Symposium 2011 sur l’envi-ronnement et les mines.

Le Symposium est le résultat d’une collaboration entrela Chaire CRSNG Polytechnique-UQAT en environ-nement et gestion des rejets miniers, l’Unité derecherche et de service en technologie minérale

(URSTM), l’Association minière du Québec (AMQ), leProgramme de neutralisation des eaux de drainage dans

l’environnement minier (NEDEM), le ministère des Ressourcesnaturelles et de la Faune du Québec (MRNF) et l’industrie.

Les objectifs du Symposium visent à partager les connais-sances les plus récentes et à discuter des expériences pra-

tiques afin de « trouver des solutions pour concilierrentabilité et protection de l’environnement ».

Chaire CRSNG Polytechnique - UQATen environnement et gestion des rejets miniers

Dimanche 6 novembre : Cours intensifLundi et mardi 7 et 8 novembre : Programme technique portant sur :

• Rejets de concentrateur• Remblayage souterrain

• Roches stériles• Politique et réglementation & Mines et société

• Qualité des eaux• Restauration des sites

• Nouvelles tendances

Mardi 8 novembre : Séance plénièreMercredi 9 novembre : Visites de sites

Un salon commercial se tiendra aussi parallèlement au programme technique des 7 et 8 novembre.

Suivez les publications de l’ICM pour plus de détails et visitez notre site web (accessible prochainement) à : www.cim.org/Symposium2011

Pour plus d’information, contactez : Chantal Murphy (ICM) : 1-800-667-1246

SYMPOSIUM 2011 • ROUYN-NORANDASUR L’ENVIRONMENT ET LES MINES • MINES AND THE ENVIRONMENT

À METTRE IMMÉDIATEMENT À VOTRE AGENDAROUYN-NORANDA, QUÉBEC, CANADA — LES 6, 7, 8 ET 9 NOVEMBRE 2011


featured project

IIn October 2008, the management of Copper MountainMining Corporation (CMMC) announced the firm was restart-ing operations at the former Similco mine site, 20 kilometressouthwest of the town of Princeton, in southern BritishColumbia. Today, the Copper Mountain project has moved

into the pre-production mining phase and is on schedule forfull production startup this summer.When CMMC took over the site, it was a returning home

of sorts for CEO Jim O’Rourke. O’Rourke is former presidentof Princeton Mining Corp., which operated the Similco site

The haul fleet at the Copper Mountain Mine is comprised of thirteen 240-tonne Komatsu trucks.

Present perfect for past producer

by | Correy Baldwin

After a 15-year hiatus, commercial production at Copper Mountain insouthern British Columbia will begin this summer. The renewal of thesite with decades of mining history, represents a homecoming forCopper Mountain Mining Corporation’s Jim O’Rourke and a renaissancefor the community of Princeton.

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through much of the 1990s after purchasing it from NewmontMining Corporation in 1988. At the time, Newmont was shifting itsfocus to its gold assets in Nevada, and concluded the Similco Mineonly had a year or two of life left. O’Rourke thought otherwise. “Wehad some ideas about extending its life,” he says. Princeton MiningCorp. went on to continue operations for another eight years.By the mid-1990s, however, copper prices had dropped to

US$2,090 per tonne. Faced with falling metal prices and rising pro-duction costs, combined with an increasing need for additional cap-ital reinvestment, the mine was forced to close in late 1996.It would be another 10 years before the economic climate would

improve enough to start thinking about restarting operations. It wasa long wait, given the resource base at the site. “We believed therewas more copper there, we just had to prove it,” says O’Rourke.

Critical timingToday, copper prices have risen to over US$8,500 per tonne, and

demand is outpacing supply. This is, in fact, an ideal time for theCopper Mountain project to be going into commercial production.“An economic downturn is a good time for a company to begin

construction since you have access to cheaper steel and labour andlower metal prices,” explains Galina Meleger, manager of corporatecommunications for Copper Mountain. “This produced some costsavings for the project.” The site itself provided another major advantage to the Copper

Mountain project: a significant amount of existing infrastructureremained on site from previous mining activity. This helped reducestartup costs (to a relatively low $438 million) and generally helpedthe construction phase go smoothly. Several previous permits werestill in place as well, including a B.C. mines act permit, a waste man-agement act permit, and a water license, but the company still hadto get a permit amendment, which took a year and a half.“As a former mine site, Copper Mountain was able to take

advantage of significant infrastructure in place that supported anopen pit mine,” says Rod Shier, CFO of CMMC. “Both power andwater were also available on site. The property is connected to aprovincial power grid via a 138 KV transmission line. The previousmine operation used water pumped from the Similkameen Riverand the water license remains in good standing: ample to supportan operation in the 25,000 to 50,000 tonnes-per-day range. Andyears of previous geological data allowed Copper Mountain toadvance more quickly than most. One of the important benefits ofbeing a past producer is that there are few surprises.” O’Rourke agrees. “It’s a great site. Right at the outset we had

power, light, heat, water – everything available to us, unlike youwould have at a greenfields site. And the town is so close that we’vehad no need for a camp.”

Top right: Exploration drilling continues on the property; bottom right: CMMC president and CEO Jim O'Rourke

Courtesy of Copper Mountain Mining Corporation

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June/July 2011 | 39

Partnerships restoredCMMC was also able to secure financial stability through

its solid business relationship with Mitsubishi MaterialsCorporation, one of the world’s largest diversified materialscompanies, and a leader in metal smelting and refining.On August 19, 2009, Mitsubishi signed an agreement with

CMMC to purchase a 25 per cent interest in the project for$28.75 million. In addition to the financing commitment,Mitsubishi agreed to purchase all of the copper concentrate pro-duced by the mine. Although operations at one of Mitsubishi’ssmelters in Japan were disrupted by the earthquake, the com-pany has a second copper smelter in southern Japan and a thirdin Indonesia where the concentrate can be processed.The relationship with Mitsubishi goes back many years,

explains O’Rourke. “When we bought Similco in 1988, I wentto Japan and confirmed with Mitsubishi Material that wewould honour all the concentrate agreements [that hadexisted with Newmont], and as it turned out, it was the startof a good relationship,” he says.Mitsubishi thus became Princeton's buyer for its ore. When

the Similco mine closed and Mitsubishi identified a copperresource in northern B.C., they brought in O’Rourke’s com-pany to develop and operate what became the HuckleberryMine. It was only natural, then, that the relationship wouldcontinue with the Copper Mountain project. After all, it wasapparent that the project would be a solid investment.

Journey to a super pitAfter purchasing the site in late 2006, CMMC began one of

British Columbia’s largest drill exploration programs, with thegoal of expanding the Indicated Resource by exploring thearea between the three existing pits on site. The hope wasthat the three pits could be merged into a super pit.The exploration program was a great success, says

O’Rourke. “In January 2007, we had diamond drills on the siteand that year, we drilled 40,000 metres. That confirmed thecontinuity of mineralization between the pits, which was amajor breakthrough for us. On that basis, we did the prelimi-nary economic assessment, which was positive, and thatallowed us to go right into a feasibility study in the beginningof 2008. At the same time, we did another 60,000 metres ofdrilling, which increased our resources by about 45 per cent toa total of five billion pounds of copper.”In total, 106,000 metres were drilled, and in April 2009,

CMMC reported an updated resource of 358,050,000 tons(325, 213 kilotonnes) containing 2.9 billion pounds (1.32 bil-lion kilograms of copper) [Measured and Indicated Resourcesof 256,610,000 tons (232,792 kilotonnes) @0.43% Cu, andInferred Resources of 101,440,000 tons (92,025 kilotonnes)@0.34% Cu]. “The process for creating the super pit involves mining a

series of ‘push-backs’ of the existing pits, progressively target-ing deeper ore zones with higher strip ratios,” O’Rourke


featured project

Project construction began in 2009. Here, workers drill at the site of the primary crusher, which was completed in the spring of 2011.

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explains. “The advantage of mining this way allows upfrontstrip ratios to be reduced and higher profit margin ore to betargeted, thus maximizing the net present value of the proj-ect. The challenges arise as a result of having to mine aroundpre-existing pits with respect to mining widths and access.Careful consideration needs to be given to the design of thepush-backs to ensure that future development is not compro-mised.” The drill exploration program only covered a smallarea of the 7,200-hectare property, and CMMC is planning tocontinue exploring with an aggressive drilling campaign. Copper Mountain will produce approximately 48,000

tonnes of copper a year for the first 12 years. With a projected17-year life, overall copper production of the mine is esti-mated at 682,000 tonnes, with gold credits at 450,000ounces and silver credits at 4.5 million ounces.Once fully operational, the project will make use of a fleet

of thirteen 240-tonne capacity Komatsu haul trucks, whichwill truck ore from the super pit directly to a 1.5-metre pri-mary crusher. Processing will be completed on site in a 35,000tonnes-per-day mill. The copper concentrate will then betrucked to the port of Vancouver and shipped to Japan fortreatment and refining by Mitsubishi Materials.Now, after nearly 15 years of lying dormant, Copper

Mountain has breathed new life into the area by building anew mine on an old mine site.

A good environmental legacyAccording to Peter Holbek, vice-president of exploration,

“no significant environmental issues were identified whenthe mine previously closed, and ongoing reclamation hasrecovered some of the previously disturbed areas.” CMMC isalso able to use the same tailings management facility aswas used previously. “Most of the water used in the plant isreclaimed from the tailings management facility, additional‘make-up’ water is taken from the Similkameen River,”Holbek adds. “About 80 per cent of water needs are metthrough recycling.”

A local successCMMC’s announcement in 2008 that the site would

reopen was welcome news to residents of the Princeton area.The closing of the Similco Mine in 1996 was difficult for thetown, with job losses and the subsequent dependence on asingle industry – forestry. It put the town in a precariousposition.Today Princeton is booming again. The Copper Mountain

Mine is already re-invigorating the economic life of the areaand promises to bring economic growth for 20 years. “We’vemanaged to hire most of our people from the town and thesurrounding area.” says O’Rourke. “The mayor has beenextremely supportive. He’s really bent over backwards to dowhatever he can to help us out on the project.” Many work-

June/July 2011 | 41

featured project

ers who previously worked at Similco are returning toPrinceton. By the time Copper Mountain moves into full pro-duction, the project will provide 270 jobs through directemployment, and spin-off jobs should be at least double that,according to the company.CMMC is also working with local Aboriginal communities,

and signed an impact benefit agreement with the UpperSimilkameen Indian Band (USIB) in July 2010. The agreementsets out, among other things, training and employmentopportunities for USIB members.The economic spin-offs of the Copper Mountain Mine will

be felt much further than just the Princeton area: the minewill be a boost to not only British Columbia, but Canada aswell. Annual global consumption of copper is 18.3 milliontonnes, while production from Canadian mines in 2009 was500,000 tonnes, meeting only 3.3 per cent of global demand.The Copper Mountain project, which is set to become thethird largest copper mine in Canada in 2011, will increaseCanadian annual production of copper by almost 10 per cent,says Meleger.The Copper Mountain project has been aided by a

favourable economic climate, an ideal location with existinginfrastructure and solid business relationships. And yet whenO’Rourke was asked during a talk in Vancouver about thekey components to successfully starting up a venture of thissize, he responded: “People, people and people.”“We werevery fortunate,” he says. “We’ve managed to assemble anexcellent team.” CIM

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projet en vedette

E

Un moment parfait pour un ancien producteur

En octobre 2008, la direction de Copper Mountain MiningCorporation (CMMC) a annoncé que la société allait repren-dre l’exploitation de l’ancien complexe minier de Similco, 20kilomètres au sud-ouest de la ville de Princeton, dans le sudde la Colombie-Britannique. Aujourd’hui, le projet de CopperMountain est rendu à l’étape de préproduction, et le com-plexe devrait être pleinement opérationnel d’ici l’été, commeprévu.

Quand CMMC a pris le contrôle du complexe, cela a été unpeu comme un retour au bercail pour le chef de la direction,Jim O’Rourke. M. O’Rourke est l’ancien président de PrincetonMining Corp., qui a exploité le complexe de Similco pendantune bonne partie des années 90 après l’avoir acheté deNewmont Mining Corporation en 1988.

Vers le milieu des années 90, le prix du cuivre a chuté à 2 090 $ US la tonne. En raison de la dégringolade du prix desmétaux et de la hausse des coûts de production, ainsi qued’un besoin croissant en matière de réinvestissement, la minea donc été forcée de fermer à la fin de 1996.

Un moment bien choisiÀ l’heure actuelle, le prix du cuivre a grimpé à plus de

8 500 $ US la tonne, et la demande dépasse l’offre. Il s’agitdonc d’un moment idéal pour lancer la production commer-ciale du projet de Copper Mountain.

« Un ralentissement économique est une période propice au début de travaux de construction pour une entreprise, car le coût de l’acier, des métaux et de la main d’œuvre est

moins élevé », a affirmé Galina Meleger, responsable,Communications d’entreprise, Copper Mountain. « Cela setraduit par des économies considérables pour le projet. »

L’infrastructure existante associée à l’exploitation minièreprécédente avait été laissée sur le site. Cela a contribué àréduire les frais de démarrage (lesquels se sont chiffrés à untotal relativement peu élevé de 438 millions de dollars) touten aidant à ce que l’étape de construction se déroule sansheurt, dans l’ensemble. De nombreux anciens permis étaientencore en vigueur, notamment un permis en vertu de la loiMines Act de la Colombie-Britannique, un permis conforme àla loi Waste Management Act, et un permis relatif à l’eau.

« Comme il s’agit d’un ancien complexe minier, la mineCopper Mountain profite d’une importante infrastructureactuellement en place soutenant l’exploitation minière à cielouvert », a affirmé Rod Shier, directeur des finances deCMMC. « Le site est également approvisionné en électricitéet en eau. La propriété est reliée à un réseau électriqueprovincial par l’intermédiaire d’une ligne de transport d’én-ergie de 138 kV. L’ancien complexe minier utilisait de l’eaupompée dans la rivière Similkameen, et le permis d’exploita-tion hydraulique, qui demeure en vigueur, permettra desoutenir les activités minières à raison de 25 000 à 50 000tonnes par jour. Par ailleurs, les données géologiques desannées précédentes ont permis à Copper Mountain de pro-gresser plus rapidement que la normale. Un des avantagesimportants liés au fait d’être un ancien producteur est qu’iln’y a que peu de surprises. »

La flotte de camions de transport comprend 13 camions de 240 tonnes.

Partenariats rétablisLe 19 août 2009, Mitsubishi a signé une entente avec

CMMC pour l’achat d’une participation de 25 % dans le pro-jet, en contrepartie de 28,75 millions de dollars, et pourl’achat de la totalité du concentré de cuivre produit par lamine.

La relation avec Mitsubishi remonte à de nombreusesannées, a expliqué M. O’Rourke. « Quand nous avons achetéSimilco en 1988, je suis allé au Japon et j’ai confirmé àMitsubishi Material que nous respecterions toutes lesententes relatives au concentré [qui existaient entre cettesociété et Newmont] et, en fin de compte, cela a été le débutd’une bonne relation », a-t-il poursuivi.

Sur la voie d’une méga-minePeu de temps après l’achat du complexe en 2006, CMMC

a commencé un programme d’exploration qui a donné d’ex-cellents résultats, a précisé M. O’Rourke. « En janvier 2007nous comptions des foreuses au diamant sur le site, et cetteannée-là, nous avons foré sur 40 000 mètres. Ces forages ontconfirmé la continuité de la minéralisation entre les fosses, cequi a représenté une importante percée pour nous. En nousfondant sur ces données, nous avons effectué une évaluationéconomique préliminaire, laquelle a été positive, ce qui nousa permis de passer directement à une étude de faisabilité audébut de 2008. Parallèlement, nous avons effectué 60 000mètres de forages supplémentaires, ce qui a accru nosressources de quelque 45 %. »

Au total, 106 000 mètres ont été forés et, en avril 2009,CMMC a enregistré des ressources mises à jour de358 050 000 tonnes (325 213 kilotonnes) contenant 2,9 mil-liards de livres (1,32 milliard de kilogrammes) de cuivre[ressources mesurées et indiquées de 256 610 000 tonnes(232 792 kilotonnes) à une teneur de 0,43 % de cuivre, et desressources présumées de 101 440 000 tonnes (92 025 kilo-tonnes) à une teneur de 0,34 % de cuivre].

M. O’Rourke a expliqué : « Le processus pour la créationd’une méga-mine comprend le forage d’une série d’appro-fondissements des fosses existantes ciblant des zones deminéraux plus profondes avec des ratios de recouvrementplus élevés. L’avantage relatif à une telle méthode d’exploita-tion minière est que cela permet de réduire les ratios derecouvrement initiaux et de cibler du minerai au taux derentabilité plus élevé pour maximiser la valeur nette actuelledu projet. Le défi consiste à forer autour des fosses existantes,en tenant compte des largeurs de forage et de l’accès. Lesactivités d’approfondissement doivent être étudiées avec soinpour ne pas nuire à une exploitation future. »

Le programme de forage d’exploration n’a couvert qu’unepetite partie de la propriété de 7 200 hectares, et CMMCprévoit poursuivre son exploration dans le cadre d’une cam-pagne de forage dynamique.

Copper Mountain produira environ 48 000 tonnes decuivre par année pour les douze premières années. La pro-duction dans le cadre de ce projet, laquelle s’étendra surune durée prévue de 17 ans, est estimée à 682 000 tonnes,la quantité d’or à 450 000 onces et la quantité d’argent à4,5 millions d’onces.

Dans le cadre de ce projet, on utilisera un parc de camionsKomatsu d’une capacité de 13 240 tonnes, qui transporterontle minerai de la méga-mine jusqu’à un concasseur principal de1,5 mètre. Le traitement sera effectué sur les lieux, dans unbroyeur d’une capacité de 35 000 tonnes par jour. Le concen-tré de cuivre sera ensuite expédié au Japon par le port deVancouver.

Il s’est écoulé près de 15 ans depuis la dernière fois où lesite a été exploité. CMMC a bâti une nouvelle mine sur unancien site minier.

Un succès localEn 2008, CMMC a annoncé que le site allait rouvrir, ce qui

a été accueilli favorablement par les résidents de la région dePrinceton. La fermeture de la mine de Similco en 1996 a étédifficile pour la ville, et les pertes d’emploi et la dépendancesubséquente à l’égard d’une seule industrie (l’industrieforestière) ont laissé la ville en situation précaire.

À l’heure actuelle, Princeton est de nouveau florissante. Lamine de Copper Mountain insuffle déjà une vie nouvelle à larégion, et promet de stimuler sa croissance économique pen-dant vingt ans.

« Nous avons réussi à embaucher la majeure partie de nosemployés en ville et dans la région », a indiqué M. O’Rourke.« Le maire a été extrêmement coopératif. Il a déployé desefforts hors du commun pour faire tout ce qu’il pouvait pournous aider dans le cadre de ce projet. » De nombreux tra-vailleurs qui étaient employés par Similco par le passé sontrevenus à Princeton. Quand Copper Mountain sera en pleineproduction, le projet fournira 270 emplois directs et au moinsle double d’emplois indirects, selon la société.

CMMC travaille également avec les communautésautochtones locales, et elle a signé une entente sur les réper-cussions et les avantages avec la bande de la hauteSimilkameen en juillet 2010. L’entente établit entre autres desoccasions de formation et d’emplois pour les membres de labande.

La mine de Copper Mountain a profité d’une conjonctureéconomique favorable, d’un emplacement idéal déjà dotéd’une infrastructure, et de solides relations d’affaires.Toutefois, quand M. O’Rourke s’est fait demander, dans lecadre d’une discussion à Vancouver, quels étaient les élémentsclés pour réussir le lancement d’un projet de cette envergure,il a déclaré : « Les gens, les gens et les gens. »

« Nous avons été très privilégiés de pouvoir réunir uneexcellente équipe », a-t-il conclu. ICM

June/July 2011 | 43

projet en vedette

commodity focuscopper

Playing catch-upCopper’s fundamental place in basic construction and

core infrastructure has made it a key indicator of economicgrowth. When economies grow, nations build. The 2008 eco-nomic recession hammered the construction industry, whichsent copper prices into a tailspin. As global demand plum-meted, mining projects around the world were put on holdand production scaled back. However, demand for copperhas returned with the global economic recovery, so muchso that a supply deficit reached 286,000 tonnes in 2010. “We are in a position of deficit,” says Neil Buxton, man-

aging director at GFMS, a metals research consultancy.“This year, we do not expect production to grow fasterthan consumption. Our numbers are suggesting that, ifanything, the deficit will increase. Last year was excep-tional because of the recovery, and we see healthydemand growth for the next couple of years.” Forecastssee this supply crunch continuing, reaching a possibledeficit of 444,000 tonnes in 2011 and stretching into2012.Most of the growing demand has come from emerging

economies such as China, India and Brazil. China, in partic-ular, has become a major presence, overtaking the UnitedStates in 2002 as the world’s top consumer of copper. From1999 to 2007, China tripled its annual refined copper con-sumption and in 2010, imported 6.47 Mt of copper concen-trate, nearly 40 per cent of the global copper demand. Thisdeficit has prices soaring. Copper prices rose 260 per centover the past two years, reaching a high of US$10,190 pertonne in February. Forecasts for copper demand are strong, although the

market remains jumpy. Investors and traders are keeping aneye on China which, in an attempt to contain inflation andcool growth, has begun tightening its monetary policy. Con-cerns remain about further debt woes in Europe a year afterthe European sovereign debt crisis tripped up global recov-ery in 2010. More recently, the armed conflict in oil-richLibya has sent oil prices up, stalling the global economy andsuppressing demand for copper.There are also natural disasters to contend with. The

massive earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan in March ofthis year paralyzed much of the nation’s business and indus-try, although analysts predict the coming reconstruction toincrease copper demand in the long run.This demand for copper is encouraging global produc-

ers to increase output, and to bring new projects into pro-duction. “There is a push to expand a number of existingmines, although that takes time,” says Michael Chender,


THE BAROMETER OF INDUSTRYby CORREY BALDWIN

Copper has played an integral role in human civilization, beginning with the copper tools that ushered us out of the Stone Age and then moving

forward with the discovery of bronze, the copper-tin alloythat gave us the Bronze Age.Highly malleable, copper is resistant to corrosion, effi-

cient at conducting heat and electricity, and excellent atalloying with other metals, including zinc (to form brass),tin (to form bronze) and nickel. Copper is also highlyrecyclable.Industrial innovation has led to the introduction of copper

in an impressive number of domestic, industrial and high-technology applications and products such as electronics,electrical systems, telecommunications systems, heatingand cooling systems, building construction, plumbing,transportation, industrial machinery and equipment, andhousehold appliances.

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commodity focuscopper

CEO of Metals Economics Group. “All projects that were puton hold during the brief recession for price reasons havebeen restarted.” There has also been a large increase inexploration. “Copper exploration budgets increased 40 percent in 2010 over 2009,” says Chender.However, it will take a while to bring all of this new copper

into the market. “There is a strong pipeline of projects and

we do see mine production growth accelerating over thenext few years to eventually see the market turn to surplus,”says Buxton. “But our latest forecasts only see this happen-ing in 2014.”Andrew Harding, chief executive of Rio Tinto’s copper

unit, agrees. “Given the current market fundamentals ofstrong demand and restricted supply from declining oregrades, we expect a deficit for 2011, and most likely for2012,” he says. “We don’t see the deficit easing until signifi-cant projects like Oyu Tolgoi start commercial production.”Rio Tinto secured management of Oyu Tolgoi, a gold-

copper mine in Mongolia, in December 2010. “Oyu Tolgoiwill be a top-five copper producer when it reaches full pro-duction,” says Harding. Currently, the project is scheduledto begin commercial production in the first half of 2013.The first major copper mine to come into production

since the recession is Antofagasta Minerals’ EsperanzaMine in Chile, inaugurated in April. Antofagasta is alsoexpanding its Los Pelambres Mine in Chile, and hopes todouble its copper output by 2020.

El cobreWorld copper reserves are currently placed at around

630 Mt, with total land-based world copper resources esti-mated in excess of three billion tonnes. Much of this is foundin the vast porphyry deposits in the Andean Mountains ofSouth America, a region that produces the lion’s share ofthe world’s copper. Chile, the world’s largest producer, iswell-positioned. The country contains 150 Mt of reserves, ishome to half of the world’s 10 biggest copper mines, and isresponsible for producing 34 per cent of the estimatedglobal output in 2010. CIM

June/July 2011 | 45

M4S• MINING• MINERALS• METALS• MATERIALS

mININg fOR sOCIEtY

MINE PRODUCTION (thousands of tonnes)

2009 2010 (est) Reserves

Chile 5,390 5,520 150,000

Peru 1,275 1,285 90,000

China 995 1,150 30,000

United States 1,180 1,120 35,000

Australia 854 900 80,000

Indonesia 996 840 30,000

Zambia 697 770 20,000

Russia 725 750 30,000

Canada 491 480 8,000

Poland 439 430 26,000

Kazakhstan 390 400 18,000

Mexico 238 230 38,000

Other countries 2,190 2,300 80,000

Source: USGS

An anti-microbial assetCopper is known as an industrial metal, but it also excels as anantibacterial material. It is already used for some frequentlytouched surfaces, such as brass doorknobs, althoughresearchers have begun looking at more extensive applicationsfor the metal. Copper’s ability to reduce the transfer of germsand disease could help see its adoption throughout thehealthcare industry, as well as in homes, on publictransportation and in other public spaces.

Companies that build a sound reputation for environ-mental stewardship will find it easier to attract investmentcapital and debt financing, as well as be in better position toclose their projects and sell on their properties once miningis completed. They may also find it easier to get regulatoryapproval on their project by considering this key element ofclosure upfront.

Questions about post-closure are becoming more promi-nent as mining seeks deeper deposits and lower grades ofore. Rather than the small, shallow pits that were more com-mon in previous decades and centuries, the sheer size oftoday’s open pit mines – both in width and depth – createspost-closure challenges of a whole new order.

Pit lakes are an increasingly large part of the mining indus-try’s legacy around the world. Much of the focus onpost-closure remediation is on limiting acid mine drainage(AMD) from tailings and mine waste rock. However, even afterthese waste facilities have been stabilized and revegetated, thepit lake often remains as one of the lasting legacies of the mine.As a result, developing better closure outcomes for pit lakes isbecoming an important issue for mining companies.

Additionally, mining now extends into locations thatwere previously considered too challenging, particularly thedrier areas of the world, where water issues come to the fore-front. In some of these regions, evaporation of the water inpit lakes can represent a substantial abstraction of the totalwater resources in the area.

In many parts of the world, pit lakes have no natural coun-terparts. For example, in Western Australia most natural lakesare shallow and seasonal. Pit lakes may be deep and often per-sist year-round; therefore, they may play a significant role incontributing to a novel post-mining environment. Good min-ing practice includes deliberately designing and developing a

Re-defining sustainabilityBetter planning promises better pit lake outcomes

by Clint McCullough

positive outcome for these new landscapes from an environ-mental, social and economic point of view.

Pit lake pros and consPit lakes can produce many effects that are negative,

including:• In arid regions, evaporation may cause a rising con-

centration of salts and metals to the point that thewater becomes dangerous to wildlife or livestock thatdrink it.

• Where acid rock drainage is present, acidic water maycause environmental risk to wildlife.

• Metals, salts and acid in the water may contaminategroundwater, or overflow may contaminate surface water.

• The steep sides of the pit pose a risk of potential collapseand falls by animals and people.

• Pit lakes may support waterborne disease vectors, such asmosquitoes.

Yet, it is often possible for pit lakes to provide positiveoutcomes through beneficial end uses such as:• A water source for wildlife, including waterfowl, at a time

when many wetlands are in decline. • A habitat for game and traditional hunting species, such

as fish, so the lake becomes useful for sport, subsistenceor even tourist fishing.

• A recreational waterbody, for activities such as swimmingand boating, for example.

• A water source for irrigation of surrounding forestry,crops, livestock or aquaculture.

Water in a pit lake may also be useful for other mining oper-ations, either as the pit is filling or following production. Abackfilled open pit mine can be a repository for waste rock and,


mine closure

if locked away from air and water, less prone to generate acidmine drainage. It can also be a final repository for other typesof acid-generating and mine waste materials, such as heap leachpads, provided this is a sound environmental practice.

Planning for closure must include the pit lakeWith the concept of planning for closure now frequently

considered by mining companies at initial conceptual stages, itis important to consider making the eventual pit lake a positivepart of the closed mine. This includespredicting the eventual quality of thewater that will be in the lake by consid-ering factors such as the mineralogy ofthe surrounding soil and rocks, thequality and flow rate of local ground-water, and rates of precipitation andevaporation. Plans can then incorpo-rate mitigation steps to achieve goodwater quality by designing the pit lake around these constraints.

In some cases, engineered aquatic habitats, such as lakes, canbe included in the closure plans. These environmental factorsmay help improve water quality and will also help to providesome environmental benefit as habitat for fauna and flora.

There can never be a one-size-fits-all solution for pit lakes.A location close to inhabited areas will be more viable as acommercial or recreational site than will one in a remote area.Some can be converted into highly beneficial use, while othersmay require more investment in remediation and post-closuremonitoring to ensure risks are minimized instead.

Further study neededOne of the difficulties mining companies face regarding

pit lakes and closure is that there are few relevant stan-dards guiding the required quality of the water in the lake.Most of the standards available are for natural lakes, andpit lakes will expectedly have different ranges for manywater quality parameters. Pit lakes also tend to have onlylimited, if any, ecological processes active in them. There-fore, one area for further study is the degree that regionally

representative ecosystems can be restored in these newwater bodies.

Predictive geochemical modelling is an important toolwhen developing post-closure plans for the mine pit, includ-ing its lake. More work is needed to adapt current models –designed for use in natural lakes – for use in a pit lake envi-ronment, and to use them as a means to learn what keyobstacles to water quality may need to be remedied.

The goal of good mining management is to operate sus-tainably by minimizing risk andmaximizing both short- and long-termbenefits for all stakeholders. This goalalso holds for sustainably closing compo-nents of the final mining landform,including pit lakes.

Not all negative effects from pit lakescan always be removed or mitigated.However, mining companies that mostly

seek just to reduce their liability post-closure may be miss-ing opportunities to build positive relations with thecommunity, regulators, government authorities and otherstakeholders through investing in the best possible out-comes for their pit lakes atclosure.

This article is based on apresentation the author willmake at the Mine Closure 2011conference to be held September18 to 21, 2011 in Lake Louise,Alberta.

CIM

A pit lake at the now-closed Black Diamond coal mine in Western Australia.

“There can never be a one-size-fits-all

solution for pit lakes.”

June/July 2011 | 47

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mine closure

author Clint McCullough is a principalenvironmental scientist in the Perth, Australia,office of Golder Associates Pty Ltd., as wellas a senior research fellow at Edith CowanUniversity, where he is a principal of theinternationally recognized Mine Water andEnvironment Research Centre.

COLUMNS | supply side


Mining is a cyclical industry. Minedcommodity prices go up and down,and the fortunes of mining suppliersfollow. Over the last 40 years, we havehad four boom-and-bust cycles in ourindustry. While the average period was10 years, the periods actually variedfrom six to 12 years.

Not long ago I was writing articleson what marketers could do to miti-gate falling mining markets (CIMMagazine, February 2010, p. 64).Given the situation, I advised that cut-ting back on marketing during slowtimes would lead to a loss of marketshare when markets picked up. How-ever, now that we are on the rising part

of the cycle, it is timely to strategizefor expanding markets.

As it turned out, the recent reces-sion was relatively short for miningsuppliers, and many firms went into itwith healthy backlogs. Starting from alow in February 2009, mined com-modity prices have recovered steadilyand are now at pre-recession recordlevels.

Super cyclesStandard Chartered Bank, a British

financial services company, describesa super cycle as “a period of histori-cally high global growth, lasting ageneration or more, driven by increas-

ing trade, high rates of investment,urbanization and technological inno-vation, first seen in high catch-upgrowth rates across the emergingworld.” The first super cycle to takeplace in modern times occurredbetween 1870 and 1913. The secondfollowed World War II, continuing tothe early 1970s. And, according toStandard Chartered Bank, the thirdsuper cycle is now happening.

The fundamental driver in demandof mined commodities is not so muchmanufacturing as it is urbanization.Buildings and their contents “lock in”aggregates, cement, steel, copper, alu-minum and many of the products of

Mining marketers: prepare for the third super cycle � Jon Baird

A page for and about the supply side of the Canadian mining industry

Celebrating a milestone anniversaryBy Correy Baldwin

This year marksCAMESE’s (Canadian Asso-ciation of Mining Equipmentand Services for Export)30th anniversary. The tradeassociation has become amajor presence withinCanadian industry, havingbeen involved in exportmarketing promotion for theCanadian mining sector forthree decades.Managing director Jon

Baird is proud of his associ-ation’s role. “In Canada,there are very few nationalexport trade associations bysector,” he says, “so really,we are very unique. Thereare all kinds of sectoralassociations, but they don’t do export trade 100 per cent like we do.”Much of this is done through CAMESE’s presence at trade exhibitions, particularly

through organizing Canadian pavilions at these shows – around 10 every year outsideCanada. These pavilions generate substantial traffic for Canadian companies and, inthe words of Baird, assure that Canada makes a splash.CAMESE’s website boasts a searchable database of the more than 300 organiza-

tions and companies that the association represents. It also publishes information ontheir membership in their annual Compendium of Canadian Mining Suppliers.The idea of a trade association began during an Ontario mining sales mission to

Chile and Peru in 1980 (the Ontario trade association OMESE was incorporated in1981). “Five years later,” explains Baird, “they realized that there was benefit in doingthings not just for one province but for all of Canada.” That’s when CAMESE wasformed.“When I joined in 1993, it was just me and a part-time receptionist,” he recalls.

“CAMESE was broke. It had 28 members but half of them hadn’t paid.” Reviving theassociation would be a challenge, but Baird had been hired for the strength of hisvision. “My target was to get it up to 100 members within a year. I spent a couple ofmonths getting the 28 members onside and then virtually a year to the day later, wehad our 100th member.” It took a few more years, but eventually companies werecalling him up, wanting to join.The association’s mission remains straightforward. “CAMESE assists its member

companies in marketing to the mining industry. We want the world to believe thatCanadians are wonderful suppliers to the mining industry, and we bring in businessopportunities for our members.”“We attract companies that serve the mining industry and that are looking for

larger markets,” says Baird, who explains that it is his job to convince those compa-nies that “a little bit of effort put into a collective effort pays off.”After 18 years with the association, Baird has grown accustomed to the boom-

and-bust cycle of the market. “What we do for our member companies in the downtimes is arguably more important than during the times when they’re really busy.”Baird expects good things for the years ahead. “Certainly the mining industry has

a very strong future, as does Canada as a leader in the mining industry, which is whatwe are. Mining technology has progressed tremendously in the last 30 years, and overthe next 30 years I have no doubt that will continue.”

June /July 2011 | 49

the mining industry. In the first super cycle,our North American and European greatgrandparents were moving off the farm totake up jobs in cities. After World War II,much rebuilding was necessary as was therestocking of metals consumed during the war.

Combined, China and India account for athird of the world’s population, and both arenow urbanizing rapidly. Standard CharteredBank believes that the Chinese economy willgrow at an annual rate of 6.9 per cent over thenext 20 years, while the Indian economy willgrow by 9.3 per cent. A huge amount ofurbanization will be needed to house workerswho move from farms to cities. In addition,natural disasters around the globe, includingfloods, landslides, earthquakes and tsunamis,which seem to be increasing in number,would require substantial rebuilding.

While Standard Chartered Bank sees thelong-term trend as growing upwards, thisdoes not mean that growth will be continu-ous, as the business cycle still does exist. Inthe near term, business is on the rise, withsupply deficits foreseen in commodities, par-ticularly copper and coal.

So what should mining supply marketersdo? First of all, review your corporate strate-gies. Perhaps it is time for a new strategicplanning session to set some new goals. Then,ensure that your marketing plans and budgetsare appropriate for you to meet your goals.

Remember the shortage of skilled miningpeople in the 2007-2008 boom? This problemhas not disappeared and it is expected tobecome worse. Perhaps you should be bullishin your hiring plans, particularly for technicalsales people for international markets.

Planning is important: as the saying goes,“If you don’t know where you’re going, anyroad will take you there.” CIM

author

Jon Baird, managingdirector of CAMESEand the immediatepast president ofPDAC, is interested incollective approachesto enhancing theCanadian brand inthe world of mining.

The intrepid founders of CAMESE on the tarmac in Lima, Peru,in 1980. In the front row (L to R): Jon Baird, Scintrex (at thetime); Peter Klopcic, Government of Ontario; Jean-Yves Roy,Jarvis Clark; unknown company; Frank Aimone, Heath &Sherwood. In the back, left to right: Vic Defago, Hepburn;unknown; Bob Parsons, Sr. JKS Smit.

COLUMNS | MAC economic commentary

Finance Minister Jim Flahertytabled federal Budget 2011 on March22 – the sixth budget delivered by theConservative government – at a timewhen the Canadian resource economywas performing strongly. Mineralprices continued to be driven to stronglevels by Chinese demand, and oilprices were escalating due to globaleconomic uncertainty and turmoil in

the Middle East. Canadian employ-ment numbers had returned topre-recession levels and the budgetprojected significant increases in taxand other revenues.

In the lead-up to the budget, theopposition Liberals had indicated theirlack of confidence in the government,while the Bloc Quebecois haddemanded $2.2 billion for Quebec as

HST compensation and the NDPsought support for seniors and otherprograms. The budget was judged bythe parties to be lacking in these andother respects. The non-confidencecontempt of Parliament motions pre-sented the same week added a furtherbackdrop to the decision by the oppo-sition parties to oppose the budget.The Conservative government wasdefeated on the contempt-of-Parlia-ment motion, although subsequentlyreturned to Ottawa with a strongmajority mandate in the May 2 federalelection.

While the March 22 budget was notpassed, all elements of the budget werere-introduced when the governmenttabled its new federal budget on June6. The growth projections were alsothe same as those in the earlier budget.The main areas that were revised donot relate to business, rather theyinclude plans to phase out the per-votepublic support of federal parties, andan allocation of $2.2 billion in HSTcompensation to Quebec. The meas-ures that are most relevant to themining sector in Budget 2012, includethe following: • The temporary 15 per cent Mineral

Exploration Tax Credit is an incen-tive available to individuals whoinvest in flow-through shares thatare used to finance mineral explo-ration. The budget proposed toextend the credit for an additionalyear, until March 31, 2012. Thestructure of this tool means thatfunds raised with the credit duringthe first three months of 2012 cansupport eligible exploration untilthe end of 2013.

• Two years ago, the federal Crowncorporation, Export DevelopmentCanada, was granted powers toprovide financing support to Cana-dian exporters in the domesticmarket. The budget extended these


Federal Budget 2011 and the mining industry� Paul Stothart

RÉSERVEZ LA DATESAVE THE DATE

May 6 to 9, 2012 • 6 au 9 May 2012

www.cim.org/edmonton2012

temporary domestic financingpowers until March 2012 while thegovernment reviews EDC’s regula-tory framework.

• The budget set aside $150 milliontowards construction of an all-season road between Inuvik andTuktoyaktuk to effectively com-plete the Dempster Highway. Thisproject has been identified as apriority by the Northwest Territo-ries government and wouldcontribute to economic and socialdevelopment in the North.

• Budget 2011 proposed to “elimi-nate fossil fuel subsidies” byreducing the 30 per cent deductionrates for intangible capital expensesin oil sands projects to align themwith the 10 per cent rate alreadyapplicable in the conventional oiland gas sector. The budget alsoaligned deductibility rates for pre-production development expensesof oil sands mining projects withthe 30 per cent rate that alreadyexists for in situ projects. Thismeasure also applies to pre-produc-tion development expenses inrespect to oil shale mines.

• The budget outlined an IndiaEngagement Strategy that buildsaround ongoing free trade negotia-tions to include a branding strategy,market development support, aresearch centre and academic net-works.

• Ridley Terminals, a Crown corpora-tion operating a bulk materialshandling terminal in Prince Rupert,B.C., has significantly increased itsbusiness volumes in recent yearsand is approaching capacity. Budget2011 formalized the authority forthe terminal to borrow from capital

markets so it can proceed withfacility expansion plans.

• Budget 2011 renewed funding($870 million over two years) forthe government’s existing cleanair agenda, which includes sup-port for regulatory activities inclimate change, air quality, energyefficiency and energy retrofit,among other activities. Thebudget also provided $200 mil-lion over two years for renewal ofthe Chemicals Management Planand $68 million to remediatecontaminated sites for which thegovernment is responsible.

• The budget did not reverse orhalt the schedule of corporateincome tax reductions, which ineffect means that the corporatetax rate would continue from16.5 per cent at present towardsa 15 per cent level by 2012. In MAC’s view, these measures

enhance what is a relatively positivemining investment environment inCanada. However, we also believethe federal government should startto address the federal deficit situa-tion. Past decades have shown thatweaning governments off debtfinancing can be a difficult politicaltask.The last time Canada entered adeficit situation, it took 22 years toreturn to a balanced budget andseveral more years to restore thecountry’s debt-to-GDP ratio to aposition that instilled confidenceon the part of private investors.Given the looming challenge of anaging society, with increaseddemands on healthcare and otherservices, the government mustmove strongly to avoid a repeat ofthis situation. CIM

author

Paul Stothart is vice-president, economic affairs, at theMining Association of Canada. He is responsible foradvancing the industry’s interests regarding federal tax,trade, investment, transport and energy issues.

CALENDARCALENDRIER

CIM • ICM

Sudbury BranchRudolph Kneer Memorial Golf TourneyAugust 7 | Sudbury, ONContact: Christine BertoliEmail: [email protected]

Toronto BranchFrank Grieco Golf DayAugust 31 | Toronto, ONContact: Rick HutsonEmail: [email protected]

14th Annual Industry Learning SeminarSafe Healthy Mining — Innovations: people & practiceSeptember 23-24 | Edmonton, ABContact: Tanya CouckeEmail: [email protected]

COM 2011 — Conference ofMetallurgists • Congrès desmétallurgistesOctober 2-5 | Montreal, QCContact: Brigitte FarahEmail: [email protected]/com2011

World Gold 2011October 2-5 | Montreal, QCContact: Brigitte FarahEmail: [email protected]/com2011/world-gold.asp

MEMO 2011 — The MaintenanceEngineering/Mine Operators’Conference • Colloque surl’ingénierie de maintenance etl’exploitation minièreNovember 6-9 |Saskatoon, SKContact: Chantal MurphyEmail: [email protected]/memo2011

Symposium 2011 surl’environnement et les mines •Symposium 2011 on Mines and theEnvironment 6-9 novembre | Rouyn-Noranda, QCResponsable: Chantal MurphyCourriel: [email protected]/memo2011


COLUMNS | eye on business

Worksite safety is a top concern formining employers and workers alike.However, despite best efforts, unfortu-nately mining accidents do occur. Insuch circumstances, an employershould take a number of steps to dealwith the consequences of any work-place injuries that have resulted froman accident. In anticipation of the pos-sibility of an accident and injury, anemployer should have protocols inplace, and employees should be famil-iar with such protocols, so as to ensurethat what needs to be done is done,quickly and efficiently.

1. Report the injury to the workers’compensation board

If a worker is injured on the job,he/she should seek immediate medicalattention, if required, and report theinjury to the employer as soon as pos-sible. Next, the worker should reportthe injury to the relevant workers’compensation board by filling out itsstandardized worker’s incident/injuryreport form.

Once the employer becomes awareof the reported injury, the employershould fill out the workers’ compensa-tion board’s standardized employer’sincident injury report form. Employ-ers who fail to report may be subject to administrative penalties. In addi-tion, depending on the scope of theactual accident, the employer may berequired to report the accident towhatever additional insuranceproviders may be providing relevantcoverage. For example, this mayinclude reporting to the employer’sproperty, liability and/or automobileinsurance provider(s).

2. Investigate the events relating tothe injury

Often when there has been a work-place accident resulting in an injury,the workers’ compensation boardrequires the employer to fill out addi-tional forms including, for example,

What to do when a workplace injury occurs� William Duvall

first aid reports, incident investigationreports and accident/witness state-ments. Accordingly, employersshould, as soon as reasonably possi-ble, conduct an investigation into thecircumstances leading up to the injuryitself.

This employer investigation shouldinclude, if possible, interviewing theinjured worker(s), interviewing wit-nesses to the accident, interviewing theemployer’s first aid provider (if one wasinvolved), and examining any physicalevidence that may have played a role inthe accident (for example, a vehicle ora piece of equipment). If possible,depending on the severity of the injury,all relevant physical evidence shouldremain in secured custody until allinvestigations are completed.

3. Perform a root cause analysisFollowing a workplace accident,

the employer should engage in a rootcause analysis. The goal of such ananalysis is to identify the root cause(s)of the problem that led to the acci-dent/injury and to assist in designingeffective corrective actions that willprevent or mitigate the possibility of itre-occurring.

The root cause analysis is often partof the employer’s investigation into theevents relating to the worker’s injury.The analysis should be thorough,objective, provide conclusions andidentify the root causes. There is usu-ally more than one root cause behindworkplace accidents and injuries;identifying all causalaspects is important inorder for the employer,with worker cooperation,to rectify the problemgoing forward.

4. Revise work proce-dures and policy asrequired

Depending on the out-come of the employer’s


author

William Duvall is a lawyerin Vancouver’s FaskenMartineu’s office. Hespecializes in employmentand labour matters,including workplace safety.

own investigation and root causeanalysis, as well as the workers’ com-pensation board’s own investigation,the employer may be required to createnew policies and procedures or, alter-natively, amend old policies andprocedures. The goal of these changesshould be to improve safety manage-ment protocols, which will, in turn,lead to fewer accidents and workplacehazards.

5. Continue to cooperate with theworkers’ compensation board

As a result of the worker’s andemployer’s reports of workplaceinjury, the workers’ compensationboard will conduct its own reviewand determine whether or not theworker was injured while in the per-formance of her/his job. Dependingon this determination, the worker’sclaim may or may not be upheld.Additionally, the workers, compen-sation board may make variousorders against the employer. At thistime, both the worker and employerhave various review and/or appealrights they may choose to exercise,depending on the determination(s)made.

It is often the case that once a sig-nificant accident occurs at a worksite,workers’ compensation board officerswill increase their workplace inspec-tions. Such a response is entirely reasonable and employers should dotheir best to accommodate any suchinspections. CIM

COLUMNS | innovation


In its effort to address the long-termresearch needs of the Canadian miningindustry, the Canada Mining Innova-tion Council (CMIC) has been makingsignificant progress recently on a num-ber of fronts.

CMIC’s six main technical initiativesare led by high-level mining companyrepresentatives, who are supported by acommittee that is comprised of industry,government and research communityrepresentatives. This professional diver-sity ensures that emphasis is placed onthe areas that companies deem criticalto their financial success and on theircommitments to safety and the environ-ment. Subsequent engagement withacademia and other stakeholders willfurther define what research is required,leading to specific research projects.

CMIC initiativesExploration

The CMIC Exploration Initiative iscurrently the most advanced of the pro-grams. It is being implemented by theExploration Initiative Consortium: agroup of 21 companies, PDAC and theGeological Society of Canada. This pastyear, the group has worked on reachinga consensus about what the top priori-ties for mining exploration are, andthey are now in the process of decidingon specific projects to implement.

Mining, Processing and Energy The CMIC Mining Initiative will

address three main areas of research:underground hard rock mining, softrock mining and surface mining.

The CMIC Processing Initiative willconsider three cross-cutting areas ofresearch: crushing and grinding, wateruse and recycling, and northern engi-neering issues. Commodity-specificneeds for gold, uranium, base metals, etc.will also be evaluated.

The CMIC Energy Initiative’smandate has yet to be determined,but it will likely include aspects ofenergy efficiency, alternate fuels and

CMIC activities: a progress report� Tom Hynes

technologies, and demand manage-ment. In addition to focusing onoperations, this committee will likelyinvolve representation from majorhydro suppliers. The champion forthis initiative is John Thompson,vice-president of technology at TeckResources Limited.

These three initiatives are in theprocess of forming their committees.Their first meetings were held during theCIM Conference & Exhibition 2011 inin May.

Sustainable Mining and Tailings The CMIC Sustainable Mining

Initiative will focus on the environ-mental issues of mining and will workwith NRCan’s Green Mining Initiative(GMI) group. It will build onthe work GMI has done byexpanding to include researchfrom academia and otherresearch institutions.

The CMIC Tailings Initiativewill liaise with the researchefforts of the Oil Sands TailingsConsortium (a CMIC member)to share relevant informationacross both programs.

At the time of writing thisarticle, discussions were under-way with potential championsfor both of these initiatives.

Highly Qualified PeopleCMIC has not yet deter-

mined its role in the recruitmentof Highly Qualified People(HQP). The traditional responseto the labour shortage problemhas been to recruit professionalsfrom other countries; however,as Australia, the United States,Chile and others are in the samesituation, a new plan is needed.We are collaborating with theMining Industry HumanResources Council (MiHR) todetermine where we can be ofmost help.

CMIC stakeholders3M • Abitibi Géophysique • Advanced Applied PhysicsSolutions • Agnico-Eagle Mines Limited • Anglo American •Altius • Barrick Gold Corporation • Boart Longyear • Cameco• CAMESE• CAMIRO • Canadian Light Source Inc. • CEMI •CIM • Cliffs Natural Resources • COREM • De Beers Canada• DIVEX • Fugro Airborne Surveys Corp. • Gedex • GoldcorpInc. • Gold Fields • Hatch • HudBay Minerals Inc. • IAMGOLD• Inmet Mining Corporation • Kingston Process MetallurgyInc. • Kinross Gold Corporation • Laboratoire international degéophysique minière • Laurentian University • UniversitéLaval • MAC • Memorial University • MIRARCO • NaturalResources Canada • Oil Sands Tailings Consortium • PDAC •Province of British Columbia • Province of Ontario • Provinceof Quebec • Province of Saskatchewan • Queen’s University• Saskatchewan Research Council • SRK Consulting(Canada) • Teck • Université du Québec à Montréal •University of Alberta • University of British Columbia •University of Toronto • University of Waterloo • University ofWindsor • Ur-Energy • Vale • Western Potash Corp. • Xstrata

* The above listing is accurate as of mid-May.

For the past several years, CMIChas subsidized the hiring of studentsfor summer work terms in mining-related research in an effort to try tokeep students in mining programs, butthis may or may not be the best use ofour funds. We are reviewing this fornext year.

CMIC websiteOur communication and branding

committee, led by Will Westgate of3M, with considerable assistance fromAngela Hamlyn and Rosy Saadeh ofCIM and from Michel Plouffe ofNRCan, has now put in place our newwebsite. It is still under constructionin certain areas, but is otherwise fullyoperational. Please visit us atwww.cmic-ccim.org. CIM

author Tom Hynes hasworked in the uranium and basemetals industries, and has been aprovincial regulator and a federalgovernment research manager. He is the executive director of theCanada Mining Innovation Council.

The beautiful city of Niagara will host the 51st Annual Conference of Metallurgists (COM2012),

held with Pressure Hydrometallurgy 2012 (42nd Annual Hydrometallurgy Meeting).

The conference theme is Metallurgy and Materials Impact on Society which will be reflected in core programming on:

HydrometallurgyCorrosionClean Metallurgical ProcessingSustainability Issues in Mineral & Metal ExtractionSustainability through Mining

Organized by:

COLUMNS |

Industry collaboration is central toachieving an effective workforce. Sim-ply put, by working together, we canaccomplish more.

The Mining Industry HumanResources (MiHR) Council’s latest ini-tiative is taking idea sharing to the nextlevel. In an effort to facilitate theexchange of ideas, an online collabora-tive platform for sharing innovativepractices in mining HR was developed.Launched last November with a call forcompanies to submit their HR successstories, MiHR Innovate is the first Cana-dian mining-specific HR community.

“We know Canadian mining com-panies are developing some incredibleinnovative HR practices, but theindustry doesn’t hear about them,”explains Ryan Montpellier, executivedirector at MiHR. “The more ideas webring forward, the more we learn fromeach other and strengthen the industrybecause one great idea inspiresanother.”

The following includes excerptsfrom one example of the innovativeHR practices that can be found in theMiHR Innovate compendium.

Case study - De Beers Canada

THE CHALLENGE: A perceived lack ofwork/life balance among the senior man-agement team

Because an issue with work/life balancewas seen as a potential impediment to ourorganization practicing at a high perform-ance level, a workstream (similar to a focusgroup) of six senior managers from a vari-ety of disciplines volunteered to proactivelyaddress this concern. The workstreammandate was to validate, determine and/orsynthesize the issues and common themesthat affect work/life balance at De BeersCanada Inc. and to provide recommenda-tions for improvement.

THE PLAN: To interview a selection ofemployees for their input on work/lifebalance.

A subset of 18 people from all depart-ments, disciplines and levels within theToronto office, which included corporateand exploration employees, were inter-viewed in March 2010 on an individualbasis to ensure confidentiality.

The interviewer asked a series of open-ended questions, with approximately 90minutes each to complete. Individual iden-tification numbers were assigned to theresponse sheets to ensure anonymity.Following the interviews, the workstreamprovided the findings to employees in theToronto office and anyone who had nothad the opportunity to provide input wasinvited to do so either by email or byanonymously depositing the completedfeedback sheets in designated reposito-ries. An additional 18 responses werereceived.

THE FINDINGS: Work/life balance meanssomething different to each person andno “one-size-fits-all” response will meetthe needs of the workforce.

A number of employees indicated thatalthough they had supportive managersand work colleagues, they still did not feelcomfortable leaving on time because somany of their colleagues remained work-ing into the evening. The fact that theexecutive team worked on weekends, i.e.sending emails to colleagues and subordi-nates, left the recipients of the emailsfeeling as though there was an expectationthat they, too, should be working and pro-viding responses to these emails eventhough no such expectation had ever beenindicated. This clearly was the perception.Quite a number of the employees used theword “stressed” when describing themorale of the organization, emphasizingthat they thought other employees seemedstressed but they, themselves, were okay.


COLUMNS | HR outlook

New collaborative platform showcases mining HR practicesTalking work/life balance with De Beers Canada � Lindsay Forcellini

The power of collaboration – by working together we accomplish more.

Credit: MiHR


Thanks to the followingcompanies for their valuable

submissions:

To view the complete compendium of innovativepractices, please visit www.mihrinnovate.ca.

AREVA Resources Canada Inc.Baja Mining CompanyBarrick Gold CorporationBHP BillitonCamecoDe Beers Canada Inc.DMC Mining ServicesGoldcorp

Hy-Tech DrillingIAMGOLDKinross Gold CorporationNoront Resources Ltd.NovaGold ResourcesQuinsam Coal CorporationTeck ResourcesVale

author

Lindsay Forcellini is marketingand communicationscoordinator at MiHR.

THE SOLUTIONS: Employees were also asked to provideenhancing behaviours that would improve relationshipswith supervisors/managers and peers, as well as whatthey would like to see changed to enhance work/life bal-ance at the company.

As a result of the feedback received, De Beers is:• Preparing a policy regarding flexible working hours pro-viding employees a basis upon which they can meet withtheir managers and set up a schedule, addressing boththe individual and business needs of the organization.

• Scheduling time for employees from a variety of disci-plines to meet together as a multi-disciplinary team withone member of the Executive Team for lunch and talkabout issues, concerns and/or successes to helpemployees feel more engaged.

• Members of the workstream decided to remain intactand follow up on the results and impact these changesmay have on the organization going forward.

THE RESULTS: Employees expressed gratitude andenthusiasm for having been given the opportunity toprovide input into not only impacting, but also changingthe culture of the organization. While De Beers is at theinitial stage of implementing the recommendations, it istoo early to fully appreciate the impact this exercise willhave; however, the company is confident this exercisemay very well form the model of future employeeengagement mechanisms at De Beers Canada Inc. andlooks forward to seeing this exercise through to ulti-mate conclusion. CIM

COLUMNS | metals monitor

The 2010 dollar vol-ume of large ($25 millionminimum) acquisitionstotalled $50.7 billion – thethird-highest annual totalin ten years – a whoppingincrease of 260 per centover 2009’s $14 billionand 23 per cent over2008’s $41 billion.According to Metals Eco-nomics Group’s (MEG)recent Strategic Report,the 2010 total signifies ageneral return of confi-dence to the industry aftera period of significantstrategic retrenchmentand caution due to theworldwide recession, andsharply lower metalsprices that began in late2008 and lasted into early2010.

Data analyzed fromMEG’s Acquisitions Serv-ice shows a verysignificant rebound in both base met-als and gold acquisitions spending.The total price paid in base metalsdeals (copper, nickel and zinc)increased 220 per cent to $21.8 billionin 2010 (43 per cent of the year’stotal), and gold jumped 298 per centyear on year to a historical high of$28.9 billion (57 per cent of the 2010total).

Distribution of the 66 base metalsacquisitions targets considered in2010 is almost even among allregions; however, Africa droppedfrom 22 per cent of 2009’s totalacquired base metals in situ value toseven per cent in 2010. The acquiredvalue of reserves and resources in2010 base metals transactions totalled$668.4 billion, with copper company

Metals Economics Group Strategic Report:Base metals and gold 2010 acquisitions spending totals $50.7 billion� The staff of Metals Economics Group

and project acquisitions accountingfor $371.4 billion of the total. Eachregion, except for Europe, hosted atleast one very large deal in terms of insitu value.

Of the 60 primary gold transac-tions, the Australia-Pacific region wastops with ten deals containing $75billion of in situ value – 33 per cent ofthe $222.7 billion gold total. It wasfollowed closely by North America(mostly Canada) with 11 transactionsaccounting for 31 per cent of thetotal.

The price paid as a percentage of insitu value in 2010 averaged 13 per centfor the 60 gold deals – a 71 per centincrease over 2009. The most expen-sive region for gold acquisitions wasAfrica at 26.9 per cent. The least

expensive region for acquiring gold inthe ground was North America, withprices averaging only three per cent ofin situ value.

MEG’s Acquisitions Service givesclients a competitive edge by reportingand analyzing current and historicaltransactions involving advanced-stagebase metals and gold projects, operat-ing mines and companies.

MEG’s Strategic Report providesinformed, insightful analysis for min-ing industry planners, analysts,executives and exploration managers.Published since 1982, the StrategicReport draws on MEG’s wealth ofknowledge and insight in a bimonthlycompilation of timely, informative andanalytical articles on critical supply-side issues facing the global mining


Base metals and gold acquisitions dollar volume, 2001-2010

Data so

urce: M

EG Acquisitio

ns Services. © Metals E

conomics G

roup, 2011

CALENDARCALENDRIER

AROUND THEWORLD • AUTOURDU MONDEISEC 2011 — 19th InternationalSolvent Extraction ConferenceSeptember 3-7 | Santiago, Chilewww.isec2011.com

Mining Electrical Maintenance &Safety Association Annual TechnicalSymposiumSeptember 7-9 | Clearwater, Florida, USAwww.miningelectrical.org

U2011 Uranium Symposium andTrade ShowSeptember 18-21 | Casper, Wyoming, USAwww.u2011.org

Slope Stability 2011: InternationalSymposium on Rock Slope Stability inOpen Pit Mining and Civil EngineeringSeptember 18-21 | Vancouver, BCwww.slopestability2011.ca

Mine Closure 2011September 18-21 | Lake Louise, ABwww.mineclosure2011.com

Association of Environmental &Engineering Geologists (AEG) 54thAnnual MeetingSeptember 19-24 | Anchorage,Alaska, USAwww.aegweb.org

SRMINING 2011 – First InternationalSeminar on Social Responsibility in MiningOctober 19-21 | Santiago, Chilewww.srmining.com

WCSB5 Sampling 2011October 25-28 | Santiago, Chilewww.sampling2011.com


Base metals acquisitions by region, 2010. (Total in situ value acquired = US$668.4 billion)

Gold acquisitions by region, 2010. (Total in situ value acquired = US$222.7 billion)

Data so

urce: M

EG’s Acquisitions S

ervice.

© Metals E

conomics G

roup, 2011

Data so

urce: M

EG’s Acquisitions S

ervice.

© Metals E

conomics G

roup, 2011

author

Metals Economics Group is a trusted source of global mininginformation and analysis, drawing on three decades ofcomprehensive information and analysis, with an unsurpassed levelof experience and historical data.

industry. In addition to original research, articles are drawn fromMEG’s flagship MineSearch database, Corporate Exploration Strategies,Reserves Replacement studies, and Acquisitions and ExplorationActivity services.

For more details on MEG services and subscription information visit the MEGwebsite at www.metalseconomics.com; T.: 902.429.2880; Fax: 902.429.6593;email: [email protected].

CIM

COLUMNS | standards

On April 8, 2011, the CanadianSecurities Administrators (CSA) pub-lished new versions of NationalInstrument 43-101 Standards of Disclo-sure for Mineral Projects, Form43-101F1 Technical Report, and Com-panion Policy 43-101CP CompanionPolicy (collectively NI 43-101). Thenew NI 43-101 will replace the exist-ing 2005 version and, subject toobtaining all necessary ministerialapprovals, is expected to come intoforce on June 30, 2011.

It has been 10 years since NI 43-101 was first adopted in February2001 and this new version representsits first substantive review. In 2009,extensive stakeholder consultationsand focus group discussions wereheld, which helped identify key

issues and concerns. In April 2010,the CSA published proposed changesto NI 43-101 and received 50 com-ment letters from stakeholdersresulting in some non-material revi-sions and clarifications to theproposed rules. The CSA believesthat the new version will continue tobe one of the most effective andtransparent mining disclosureregimes in the world.

The objective of the new version isto maintain investor protection whilemaking compliance easier and lesscostly for mining issuers. CSA has pre-served the core principles of NI 43-101while eliminating or reducing thescope of certain requirements, provid-ing some flexibility to issuers andQualified Persons, reflecting changes

The new NI 43-101Compliance made easier and less costly� Robert Holland, Craig Waldie, Jim Whyte and Luc Arsenault

in the industry, and clarifying areas nothaving the desired effect.

Summary of key changesFollowing are some of the key

changes that will be implanted withthe new version of NI 43-101.Addition or amendment of severaldefinitions including: • Adding “acceptable foreign code,”

and amending “professional associ-ation” and “qualified person” toprovide an objective test.

• Amending “historical estimate” topermit disclosure of third-partyestimates made after 2001.

• Expanding “preliminary economicassessment” to include preliminaryeconomic analyses after the com-pletion of a prefeasibility study.


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Integrating the expertise of engineers, reclamation scientists, sociologists, economists and environmental specialists

Conference program featuring international technical expertise and showcasing industry best practices

Numerous pre-conference workshops

Networking opportunities

Exciting site tours of reclaimed mines

IN COLLABORATION WITH

mineral reserves or preliminaryeconomic assessments.

• Allowing a conditional six-monthfiling delay for a technical reportsupporting mineral resources, min-eral reserves or a preliminaryeconomic assessment if these esti-mates are supported by a currenttechnical report filed by anotherissuer.

• Elimination of the independenttechnical report trigger for produc-ing issuers in most situations.

• Exemption for royalty or similarinterest holders from the require-ment to file a technical report undercertain conditions.

• Elimination of Appendix A as a pre-scriptive list of foreign associationsand designations.

• Revisions to the form for technicalreports to make the form moreadaptable for advanced-stage andproducing properties.

• Substantial changes to the com-panion policy to track thesections of NI 43-101 to which itrefers, remove or update oldguidance and add new guidance.For more information, please see the

April 8, 2011 CSA Notice Repeal andReplacement of NI 43-101 and therevised instrument, form and compan-ion policy posted on the websites of CSAmembers, including: www.bcsc.bc.ca;www.osc.gov.on.ca; and www.lau-torite.qc.ca.

The views expressed in this article are thoseof the authors and do not necessarily repre-sent the views of the BCSC, OSC or AMF.

CIM

standards | COLUMNS

• Incorporating by reference the defi-nitions of “preliminary feasibilitystudy” and “feasibility study” fromthe CIM Definition Standards.

Clarification of existing interpreta-tions applicable to all disclosure by:• Restricting disclosure of economic

analyses of exploration targets andhistorical estimates.

• Restricting disclosure of grossmetal or mineral value and metal ormineral equivalent grades.

• Requiring that disclosure of histori-cal estimates always be accompaniedby cautionary language and certainother information.

• Requiring cautionary language bedisclosed with equal prominence.

• Allowing a qualified person toapprove disclosure as an alternativeto preparing or supervising thepreparation of the information.

Amendment of the obligation to file atechnical report by: • Eliminating the requirement to file

updated certificates and consentsfor subsequent triggers for a previ-ously filed technical report.

• Restricting the trigger for the filingof a technical report with a prelimi-nary short-form prospectus tosituations where there is a materialmineral resource, mineral reserveor preliminary economic assess-ment that is not supported by acurrent technical report.

• Expanding the technical report trig-ger to include any first-time writtendisclosure of mineral resources,


Research for the global communityRoussos Dimitrakopoulos, CanadaResearch Chair in Mining Engineeringat McGill University, was awarded aCollaborative Research and Develop-ment Grant of $2.7 million spreadover five years from the Natural Sciences and Engineering ResearchCouncil, and co-funded by six majorglobal mining companies, namelyAnglo Gold Ashanti, Barrick Gold, BHPBilliton, De Beers, Newmont and Vale.The new uncertainty models of minemanagement will promote more sus-tainable development and use ofmineral resources, while managingand reducing risks and maximizingthe return on investment.

Tops in NASDAQ’s booksGoldcorp Inc. was recognized byNASDAQ as one of the top 100 com-panies in the world for its sustainabilitypractices as part of its NASDAQ OMXCRD Global Sustainability Index. Theindex is made up of 100 companiesthat lead in measuring and reportingtheir carbon footprint, energy usage,water consumption, hazardous andnon-hazardous waste generation,workforce initiatives and communityinvesting. As a signatory to the UNGlobal Compact, Goldcorp hasadopted Corporate Social Responsibil-ity and Human Rights Policies and hasadvanced the Extractive IndustriesTransparency Initiative internationally.

Zero’s the way to goAs of May 12, 2011, the employees atSt. Andrew Goldfields Ltd. haveworked one million man hours withouta lost time accident. “Zero lost timeaccidents over the course of one mil-lion man hours is a significantmilestone,” said Duncan Middlemiss,vice-president of East Timmins Opera-tions. “This formidable achievement isdue to the entire SAS team who remaincommitted to operating in a safe way.”

ACHIEVEMENTS

authorS Robert Holland is chief mining adviser with the British Columbia SecuritiesCommission. Craig Waldie and Jim Whyte are both senior geologists with the OntarioSecurities Commission, and Luc Arsenault is a geologist with the Autorité des marchésfinancier. The authors are responsible for NI 43-101 compliance reviews of prospectuses,technical reports and other regulatory filings of mining companies connected to BritishColumbia (Holland), Ontario (Waldie and Whyte) and Quebec (Arseneault).

Upcoming 2011 SeminarsNEW — Certification in Ore Reserve Risk and Mine Planning Optimization (in collaboration with AusIMM)Spread over a period of four months, this four-week course is designed for busy mining professionals who wish to updatetheir skills and knowledge base in modern modelling techniques for ore bodies and new risk-based optimizationmethodologies for strategic mine planning. Gain practical experience by applying the following hands-on concepts andtechnical methods: methods for modelling ore bodies; stochastic simulations, case studies and models of geologicaluncertainty; and demand-driven production scheduling and geological risk.Instructor: Roussos Dimitrakopoulos, McGill University, Canada • Dates: Week 1 – August 22-26, 2011; Week 2 – September 12-16, 2011; Week 3 – October 17-21, 2011; Week 4 – November 7-10, 2011 • City: Week 1 – Perth, Australia; Week 2-4 – Remote • Info:www.mcgill.ca/conted/prodep/ore

Strategic Risk Management in Mine Design: From Life-of-Mine to Global OptimizationLearn how you can have a significant, positive impact on your company’s bottom line by utilizing strategic mine planningmethodologies and software; improve your understanding of strategic mine planning and life-of-mine optimization concepts,as well as your understanding of the relationship of uncertainty and risk, and how to exploit uncertainty in order to maximizeprofitability. Note: The strategic mine planning software used is Whittle; an optional half-day skills refresher workshop onWhittle may be available.Instructors: Gelson Batista, MPX Energia, Brazil, and Roussos Dimitrakopoulos, McGill University, Canada • Date: September 21-23, 2011 • City: Toronto

An Introduction to Cutoff Grade Estimation: Theory and Practice in Open Pit and Underground MinesCutoff grades are essential in determining the economic feasibility and mine life of a project. Learn how to solve most cutoffgrade estimation problems by developing techniques and graphical analytical methods, about the relationship betweencutoff grades and the design of pushbacks in open pit mines, and the optimization of block sizes in caving methods.Instructor: Jean-Michel Rendu, Executive Consultant, Snowden, Australia • Date: September 7-9, 2011 • City: Montreal

Geostatistical Mineral Resource/Ore Reserve Estimation and Meeting the New Regulatory Environment: Step by Step from Sampling to Grade ControlLearn about the latest regulations on public reporting of resources/reserves through state-of-the-art statistical andgeostatistical techniques, how to apply geostatistics to predict dilution and adapt reserve estimates to that predicteddilution, how geostatistics can help you categorize your resources in an objective manner, and how to understand principlesof NI 43-101 and the SME Guide.Instructors: Marcelo Godoy, Golder Associates, Chile, Jean-Michel Rendu, Executive Consultant, Snowden, Australia, and RoussosDimitrakopoulos, McGill University, Canada • Date: September 12-16, 2011 • City: Montreal

Mineral Project Evaluation Techniques and Applications: From Conventional Methods to Real Options

Learn the basics of economic/financial evaluation techniques, as well as the practical implementation of these techniquesto mineral project assessments, how to gain a practical understanding of economic/financial evaluation principles, and howto develop the skills necessary to apply these to support mineral project decisions.Instructor: Michel Bilodeau, McGill University, Canada • Date: October 24-27, 2011 • City: Montreal

In 1915, prospector TomCreighton brought hisprospecting team to the

shores of Ross Lake, Manitoba,where he had found a promis-ing ore deposit. The depositwould eventually come to sup-port one of Canada’s mostimportant and prosperous cop-per mines. However, when itcame time to naming the prop-erty, Creighton’s mind was noton copper, but on the moreglamorous gold – and adven-ture novels.

The site reminded him of apaperback adventure novel that hehad come across earlier while on aportage – The Sunless City by Britishwriter J. E. Preston Muddock. In thenovel, a prospector named JosiahFlintabbatey Flonatin pilots a sub-marine through a bottomless lake toa magical land where gold is so plen-tiful that it is used to pave thestreets. Creighton named the siteFlin Flon’s mine, shortening thename of the main character, andthereby sparing the future city ofFlin Flon from having a moreunusual title.

It was not copper but gold thatoriginally brought people to the area.Two years earlier, Creighton was partof the team that discovered gold in thequartz veins of nearby Amisk Lake,also known as Beaver Lake. The result-ing gold rush brought over a thousandmen to the remote area, and the townof Beaver City sprung up.

But Beaver City’s days were num-bered. The demand for gold wouldwane in the wake of World War I,when base metals were required formunitions and armaments. After 1914,

The Flin Flon copper deposit� Correy Baldwin

already had financial back-ing from a Torontobusinessman. Jack Hammellhad invested heavily inBeaver City, which wasquickly becoming a ghosttown, and he was searchingfor investments that wouldbring in larger returns.Mosher invited Hammell toassess the value of the FlinFlon property. The sheersize of the deposit impressedHammell and, given the ris-ing price of copper, hequickly backed the venture.

Developing a mine, however,would not be so easy. Although plenti-ful, the ore was low grade and thecopper-zinc mineralization was toocomplex to be separated without con-siderable expense. The site could notbe developed without access to asmelter, but the location was remoteand transporting the ore by wintersleigh and summer barge to The Pasand then by rail was not financiallyfeasible.

But Hammell was convinced that amining venture would pay off and hebegan raising funds and looking forinvestors. He would persevere untilthe late 1920s, when developmentbegan to seem feasible, thanks to theHudson Bay Mining & Smelting Company (HBM&S).

HBM&S invested heavily in theproject, constructing a smelter, a railline in 1928, a hydroelectric powerplant on the Churchill River in 1929and, finally, a mine. In 1930, produc-tion finally began. The Flin Flon Minewas as prosperous as expected and thearea continues to be an important min-ing centre to this day. CIM

prospectors were more often on thelookout for copper than gold. By 1918,Beaver City was all but abandoned.

Creighton himself began venturingfurther east. In December 1914, he vis-ited a local trapper named DavidCollins, who showed him samples of asulphide ore that he had gathered onhis trap line on the shores of nearbyRoss Lake. Collins took Creighton tothe site and after examining thedeposit, Creighton staked a claim.

Creighton then returned to BeaverCity to contact his fellow prospec-tors, the same members who haddiscovered the gold at Amisk Lake:brothers Dan and Jack Mosher, andLeon and Isadore Dion. They werejoined by a sixth member, Dan Milli-gan. Together they returned to thesite, which they would name the FlinFlon property, and staked 16 claims.Reports vary on whether the teamwas originally interested in the ore’strace gold or in the copper-zinc sul-phide, but it was the copper thateventually became the focus.

The group did not have to look farfor an initial investor, as Dan Mosher

Tom Creighton and his prospecting team

Archives of M

anito

ba: N25242


Bernhard KleinUniversity of British Columbia

Vancouver, BC

Energy Efficiency in Mining

Efficacité énergétique

dans l’industrie

de l’exploitation minière

Barbara Kirby Mining Industry Human Resources

Council, Ottawa, ON

Canadian Mining Credentials Program – Certification:

Recognizing and Retaining Skills

Programme des titres de compétences

de l’industrie minière canadienne – certification :

reconnaissance et la retention des compétences

CIM Distinguished LecturersÉminent conférenciers de l’ICM

2011-2012

Klaus KacyABB Automation-Canada

Westbank, BC

Modern Hoisting Systems

Systèmes de treuils

modernes

William Westgate3M

St. Paul, MN, USA

Processes and Collaboration

Propelling Innovation

through Execution

Processus, collaboration

et exécution : un passeport

pour l’innovation

BOOK NOWRÉSERVEZ DÈS MAINTENANT

www.cim.org

Jim UtleyTeck Resources Limited,

Vancouver, BC

A. Hamid Mumin Brandon University

Brandon, MB

Iron Oxide Copper-Gold

Deposits in Genetic Context

Gisements de type

oxyde de fer-cuivre-or dans

un contexte génétique

cim news

The future of mining in Canadarelies on the next generation: theirskills, education and passion willdetermine the success of the industry.

Bill Steer, the general manager and“originator” of the Canadian EcologyCentre – a leading environmental sci-ence and outdoor education centre –recently created a unique program thathe hopes will have a hand in the futureof mining. Unlike so many workshopsthat focus on students, Steer hascrafted a different approach: educatingtheir teachers.

The Teachers Tour program aims tohelp educators make informedchoices about what they teach. “Overthe lifetime of the working teacher,think about how many students theymight affect in a year,” says Steer.“Now, imagine over a lifetime.”

The program includes visits to thesites and businesses that are shapingthe mining industry, so that theknowledge gained can be incorpo-rated into the curriculum. Now in itssecond year, the five-day program willbegin on August 15 in Mattawa,Ontario. Thirty participants from ele-mentary and secondary schools willvisit historic and modern mine sites,equipment manufacturers, listen toguest speakers and meet professionalsin the industry. They will learn aboutreclamation projects, green initiativesand how the industry has improvedfrom an environmental standpoint.They will also gain a better perspec-tive on the economic and socialimpact that mining has on Canada, byseeing what mining can do for North-ern communities.

Ann Jackson, the science programleader and lead teacher for the Envi-ronment – Specialist High Skill MajorProgram at St. Thomas AquinasCatholic High School in Russell,Ontario, participated in last year’sprogram. “The tour gave really good

examples of the vast range of jobs andskills that are required in the miningindustry, and how so many of theseskills are transferable to other fields,”she says. “Students in the classroomdo listen when a teacher is knowl-edgeable about something – espe-cially if they have some photos toback it up.”

Educate the public – get involved today! The Teachers Tour program requires full sponsorship, and CIM hopes its members will consider donating in any way that they can:

• Sponsor an individual teacher• Provide materials that might be helpful• Donate to an aspect of the program

(such as transportation or meals)

Contact Bill Steer at [email protected] or 705.744.1715, ext. 570

Steer says that for the teachers, see-ing is believing. “Their first reaction isusually ‘I didn’t know that,’ or ‘now Iunderstand about modern sustainablemining,’” he explains.

Last year’s tour received a generous$5,000 donation from CIM’s MetalMining Society, which will support theTeachers Tour again this year. CIM

June/July 2011 | 65

Seeing is believingA new approach to educating the public about mining

By Hartley Butler George

Teachers receive a safety briefing before entering Xstrata’s Nickel Rim South Mine located within the City of Greater Sudbury.

cim news

Abou Gharam, Ahmed, OntarioAdelakun, Adekunle, SaskatoonAittie, Daniel, GhanaAksak, Meral, QuebecAlaterre, Arnaud, FranceAlhamed, Hamza, QuebecAl-Shaibani, Waeel, British ColumbiaArruti, Luis, OntarioAshcroft, Greg, ManitobaAsuncion, Nicholas, OntarioBailey, Ian, Nova ScotiaBanks, Kristin, New BrunswickBateman, Kelly, OntarioBatson, Benjamin, OntarioBeaumont-Smith, Chris, ManitobaBell, Robert, British ColumbiaBishop, Richard, Ontario

Bryan, Anthony, USABurdett, Mark, AustraliaBurke, David, OntarioCarter, Aaron, OntarioCoulibaly Yaya-Oye, Abdul-Aziz, QuebecDargie, Dan, OntarioD’Elia, Francesco, OntarioDeschamps, Sara, OntarioEamer, Douglas, Nova ScotiaElder, Sam, OntarioEl-Marassi, Mohamed, OntarioElsayed, Abdallah, OntarioFairfax, Ashley, Nova ScotiaFrancis, Victor, OntarioGagnier, Jeff, OntarioGajonera, Desiree, OntarioGhafari, Nima, Phillippines

Gray, Donald, USAGuillermo Cruz, Luis Rico, OntarioHammoum, Salim, QuebecHatt, Emily, Newfoundland and LabradorHirschmiller, John, AlbertaHonickman, Hart, OntarioHoover, Cash, Newfoundland and LabradorHuffman, Dale, SaskatoonHussain, Azhar, PakistanIbrahim, Abdulwahab, Nova ScotiaIslam, Aquidul, OntarioJim, Justin, SaskatoonKam, Tik Lun, QuebecKapuku Bwapwa, Joseph, South AfricaKlue, Richard, British ColumbiaKozovski, Aleksander, OntarioKrumins, Tom, Ontario


By all accounts, the launch of theCIM McGill Student Chapter was anunmitigated success. More than 100students packed a room at the univer-sity’s Frank Dawson Adams buildingto hear guest speaker Bryan A. Coates,vice-president of finance and CFO atOsisko Mining Corporation, deliver apresentation entitled “Mining, morethan tonnes, grade and recoveries:Challenges of modern mining opera-tions.”

“We filled up the room, which is agreat thing considering we were in thelast week of school where everyonewas stressed with exams,” saysStephen Coates, who, along with FaresNasrallah, Gustavo Marquez and Clau-dia Macedo, organized the chapter’sinaugural event.

The CIM McGill Student Chapter isthe fourth in Canada; the other threeare at the University of Saskatchewan,Queen’s University and Cégep del’Abitibi-Témiscamingue (in Rouyn-Noranda). All are part of an initiative byCIM to create chapters in universities

Students taking chargeFourth CIM student chapter opens

By Marlene Eisner

CIM welcomes new members

and colleges across the country. Thegoal is to provide networking opportu-nities for mining students and for stu-dents in other faculties to discoverwhat the industry has to offer.

“The first one was launched inDecember 2009 in Saskatoon,” says

CIM executive director Jean Vavrek.“Now that we have a full-blown mem-bership department within CIM, wedetermined what we needed and we’repretty well in full flight.” Vavrekattended the April 7 McGill chapteropening and says he was impressed

Claudia Macedo, Fares Nasrallah, Stephen Coates and Gustavo Marquez

cim news

with the turnout. “I thought it was a great event,” he says.“We really want the students to own this and, in the process,have them develop leadership skills and make some solidconnections.”

Coates, 21, is a second-year mining engineering studentand the son of Bryan Coates. Becoming involved in a CIMstudent chapter was a no-brainer for Coates, who comesfrom a mining family. He says a student chapter is good fornetworking opportunities, but it is also a good way for stu-dents from other faculties to learn more about mining.

“The first time I was able to get involved with people out-side of mining was with a group of environmental studentssigning a petition for Bill C-300,” he says. “I sat down withthem and said, ‘mining is not what you guys see in the press.’There is something missing here to connect with these stu-dents.”

Nasrallah, 20, who came from France to study miningengineering, agrees that one of the main objectives of thestudent chapter is to educate other faculties about the reali-ties and benefits of mining.

“The overall goal is reaching out to students from outsidethe mining and metallurgical circle. We want to involvemore students from areas such as mechanical and chemicalengineering, management, HR, humanities – there is a placefor them in the industry.”

As the semester comes to a close, Nasrallah and Coates,along with a handful of other students, will start hammeringout the details of the chapter. “We are still the interim com-mittee,” says Nasrallah. “What we are planning to do over thesummer is to discuss what has to be done, which is every-thing: the bylaws, structure, goals, plans, which events wewant to have and how we are going to organize them.”

Marjolaine Dugas, CIM’s new director of membership, isthrilled to see so many students wanting to get involved

with CIM. “Students are an important part of the sector andthere is an opportunity for CIM to support their initiativesand help them build strong careers in this industry,” shesays.

The future looks good, adds Vavrek, with lots of new ter-ritory to tap. “We are now looking into how we will proceednext year, with a potential 40 more chapters across Canada,”he says. “There is also an opportunity to have chapters out-side of Canada where Canadian companies are operating.Except for the United States and Australia, there is no otherplace that has student chapters like we do, so if we don’t create them, they won’t happen.” CIM

June/July 2011 | 67

Lashgari, Ali, IranLee, Jiangtao, ChinaLee, Wayne, OntarioLehoux-Gagnon, Virginia, QuebecLei, Mengda, QuebecLemon, Alexander, United KingdomLiang, Jialing, AlbertaMarston, Jeremy, USAMcCallum, Brent, OntarioMcCullough, Rebecca, OntarioMcKown, John, USAMcNeil, Willie, Nova ScotiaMisic, Radovan, OntarioMiyouna, Jean Claude, Congo Moradipour, Roja, OntarioNazemi, Navid, OntarioNicholls, Ken, Alberta

Nkum, Francis, GhanaNormandin, Stephane, QuebecOpio, Faith, OntarioPadula, Mike, British ColumbiaPatel, Nikesh, OntarioPerez, Carlos Guzman, SaskatoonPeterson, Nolan K., British ColumbiaPourestarabadi, Marziyeh, IranProbert, Greg, Newfoundland and LabradorRahman, Wasiur, OntarioRashed Hossain, Mirza, Newfoundland and Labrador

Rice, Craig, British ColumbiaRickleman, Daniel, AustraliaRoomy, Ahmed, OntarioSaleem, Arham, PakistanScott, Julia, British Columbia

Shepard, Barbara, USAShort, Wade, SaskatoonShukla, Richa, AustraliaSingh, Tristan, Newfoundland and LabradorSomanathan, Mayooran, OntarioSuarez, Steve, OntarioTirona, Christian, OntarioTremblay, Pierre, QuebecTunnicliffe, Matthew, British ColumbiaTurek, Christopher, OntarioUllah Khan, Atta, PakistanUrrego, Alfonso, QuebecVan Den Berghe, Shane, SaskatoonWedgewood, Dylan, AlbertaWightman, John F., Nova ScotiaWong, Ian, OntarioYan, Haixing, British Columbia

CIM branch newsCIM’s Toronto Branch had a field tour on May 4 to the rich inpegmatites Bancroft area. About 30 people participated in thetour to several sites, including the old McDonald Mine (an oldfeldspar mine), the Princess Sodalite Mine and the SGS LakefieldMineralogy Centre. By Steve Williams, Field Trip Committee Chair

Stev

e W

illia

ms

ObituariesPeter Alfred Cain became a member of CIM in 1946 and a lifemember in 1982. He died on November 21, 2010.

Rene F. Jooste joined CIM in 1950 and became a life memberof CIM in 1986. He died on April 12, 2011.

cim news | scholarship winners

The McIntosh Engineering Scholarship supports studentspursing an engineering or technical degree in mining, with aspecial emphasis on underground mining. Through theCanadian Mining and Metallurgical Foundation (CMMF),eight scholarships are awarded annually to second-year stu-dents.

Below are the technical college or CEGEP recipients forthis year. In the next issue, we will introduce you to the fiveuniversity-level winners.

Brendan Moloney – Cambrian CollegeBrendan Moloney spent several

years on the West Coast, working asa pipe layer and machine operatorwith Whistler Excavations. “I lovedmy job but was having difficultieswith being laid off through the win-ters,” he says. “That’s when I startedlooking into going back to schooland found the mining engineeringtechnical program at Cambrian College.” With his work experience it

seemed like an obvious transition. “Cambrian College was agreat way to get involved in mining,” he says, “and the Sud-bury Basin, with the vast amount of mining taking place inthe area, was a perfect location to learn about geology.”

Last summer, he worked with Minto Explorations in theYukon, a copper and gold mine north of Whitehorse. “I can’twait to get back out there,” he says.

Moloney is looking forward to having a career in somethingthat he thoroughly enjoys and that could allow him to live backon the West Coast, which, he says, is where he feels he trulybelongs. “All and all I’m stoked about my future in the indus-try,” Moloney says. “The ability to work around the world andmeet new people is something I am really looking forward to.”

Marc Bédard – Cégep de l’Abitibi-TémiscamingueMarc Bédard grew up in the small town of Malartic,

Quebec. “The mining industry is a huge deal here in Abitibi-Témiscamingue,” says Bédard, whosefather, grandfather, sister and uncle allwork in the mining industry. Origi-nally, he was on a different career path,studying computer science at a collegein Rouyn-Noranda.

“I worked for two years in that field,but I never felt I was at the right place,”Bédard says. Then, the small companyhe was working for went bankrupt. “Ihad to decide between going back toschool to study something else or moveto a big city like Montreal or Quebec to

CMMF scholarships awardedBy Correy Baldwin

pursue my career with computers. I like where I live so I tooka chance and went back to the same college in Rouyn-Noranda,and that’s when I decided to go into mining. Two years later,”he says assuredly, “I know I made the right choice.”

Bédard has worked underground at Wesdome Gold Mine’sKiena Mine, and last summer at Agnico-Eagle’s Lapa Mine,where he has returned this summer. “I did many differentjobs and that’s what I want,” he says. “I want to see as muchas I can to learn as much as I can.”

“I will probably do five years of technical services andafterwards work as a supervisor or something similar,” headds. “I want to be an important part of a company. I wouldlike to be a mining rescuer, too.”

Ingrid Lahaie – Haileybury School of Mines, Northern College

Mines have always been a part of Ingrid Lahaie’s environ-ment, having grown up in the mining town of Rouyn-

Noranda, Quebec, and later living inTimmins, Ontario. She began hercareer, however, as an insolvency con-sultant. “Pretty far from the miningindustry,” she admits. “After workingfor almost 10 years in the bankruptcyfield, I moved on to work for XstrataNickel’s Raglan Mine, where I workedwith the geology department.”

A conversation with an engineer atRaglan about geology and rock engineering led Lahaie toreconsider her career path, and eventually she went back toschool to pursue what she calls her life-long passion for rocks.“Haileybury has allowed me to discover various possibilitiesin the mining industry, some of which I had never thoughtof,” she explains.

Meanwhile, Lahaie continues to work at Raglan Mine as aground control mining technician, continuing her studiespart-time. “I am very excited about this new position andsure hope that it will lead to a successful career,” she says.

“I intend to join the on-site Emergency Response Team asa way of participating and making sure the site benefits froma team of well-trained rescue members,” she adds. “I valuesafety and the environment aspects of mining. To me, theymust always constitute priorities.” CIM


Technical ProgramMining, geology, metallurgy – it’s all in here� World Gold 2011 – Geology, Hydrometallurgy, Pyrometallurgy,

Mining and Mineral Processing of GoldThis will be the largest gathering of gold producers in 2011. Now, after three suc-cessful events with SAIMM and AusIMM, the World Gold Conference is back toCanada for the 50th Anniversary of MetSoc.

� Light Metals 2011Québec is an international leader in the production of aluminum, with many majorinternational companies having operations in Montreal. Rio Tinto Alcan, ALCOAand Aluminerie Alouette, who also have several Europe- and Australasia-basedcompanies – are actively participating in this unique international symposium.

� Waste Recycling in Mineral & Metallurgical IndustriesThis symposium will focus on recent advances in the development and applicationof technologies for wastes and by-products, and development related to the mining, mineral, metallurgical and petroleum industries.

� New Technology Implementation in Metallurgical ProcessesNew technology implementation is a critical step in the overall improvement of processes. This symposium will bring together individuals who have accomplished the implementation of new technologies, from complete plants tominor modifications of existing operations, to speak about difficulties encountered,successes and failures.

� Materials – Innovations in Joining of Advanced MaterialsTopics will include welding of aerospace and automotive alloys, materials in the oil, gas and petrochemical industries, and advanced materials (such as nanomaterials and composites).

� Managing through RecessionLearn from companies operating in the mining sector as they share stories of challenge, resilience and success following the recent global economic recession.

Student ProgramGet noticed at COM!Posters in conjunction with

Present your poster to peers and industry professionals. Sponsored by Vale, the competition offers a $500 prize to the winner. Act fast, as the deadline for submissions is August 1.

Bowling PartyMeet fellow student delegates for an evening of free bowling, drinks and food.

Student-Industry MixerStart building your network of contacts at the Student-Industry Mixer, sponsored by Barrick Gold Corporation. The event’s informal atmosphere is a great opportunity to speak with industry leaders and get career advice – and maybe even secure a summer work term. The prize for the best student poster will be awarded during this event.

Industrial TourThis year, a free Xstrata – CCR plant tour in Montreal has been organized exclu-sively for students. See industrial tours section for further details.


Organizing Committee

Conference ChairCesar InostrozaRio Tinto Alcan

Technical Program ChairAndré AllaireBBA

World Gold ChairGuy DeschênesCANMET-MMSL

Light Metals ChairMario FafardAluminium Research Centre - REGAL

Special Event ChairJoël KapustaBBA

Poster Session ChairGraeme GoodallNRCan – Materials Technology LaboratoryCANMET

Short Course ChairPeter LindBarrick Gold Corporation

Publicity Chair – World GoldYeonuk ChoiBarrick Gold Corporation

Sponsorship ChairMichael KingMetSoc of CIM

Waste Processing & Recycling ChairS. R. (Ram) RaoMcGill University

New Technology Implementation ChairBoyd DavisKingston Process Metallurgy Inc.

ISAM ChairMathieu BrochuMcGill University

Management ChairDaniel BrosigHatch

www.metsoc.org/com2011www.metsoc.org/com2011

Short CoursesGold, aluminium and more!

The conference will be preceded by a number of excellent short courses, planned by experts in their field.Note: You are not required to be a conference delegateto register for the courses.

� Gold Processing CourseThis one-and-a-half day course will provide attendeeswith a refresher course on current unit operations in thegold processing flowsheet, plus an update on emergingtechnologies and their likely integration into existing andproposed gold plants. Speakers will also cover sustain-ability and environmental issues such as cyanide usage,waste management and energy conservation.

� Strategic Risk Management in Ore Reserves and Mine Planning OptimizationThis one-day course will allow attendees to discover hownew technologies for risk-based mine planning optimiza-tion help capture the “upside potential” in mine designsand production schedules, minimize “downside risks,”as well as increase cash flows through the effect of themining sequence and “risk blending.” Real-world appli-cations from major gold mines demonstrate the practicalaspects of the methods.

� Workshop on the International Cyanide Management CodeThe Cyanide Code is an important global initiative toimprove the gold industry’s collective environmental andsafety performance in its management of cyanide and indoing so, enhance its credibility with the public and keystakeholder groups. Paul Bateman, president of theInternational Cyanide Management Institute, the organi-zation that administers the Code program, and his col-league, Norm Greenwald, the Institute’s vice-president,will brief the workshop.

� Asset Integrity Management Short Course The content of the course is adapted to the mining andmetals industry with a specific focus on the challengesof gold mining and milling and processing.

� Aluminum Production This course has been designed for engineers and scien-tists who are interested to learn more about the Hall-Héroultaluminium production process. Topics covered: introductionto Hall-Héroult; anode materials and fabrication processes;dynamics of the bubble layer under the anodes; multivari-ate analysis and its application to aluminium smelters;advanced modelling of the Hall-Héroult cell.

� Aluminum Transformation This course applies to students, engineers and scientistsinterested in the fabrication of aluminium structural com-ponents and their mechanical behaviour. Topics covered:aluminium castings; fatigue and failure of aluminium components; joining aluminium monolithic alloys and com-posites; design of aluminium components and products.

� Reducing/ Inhibiting Sulphide Oxidation FacilitatingSustainable Decommissioning of Mine Wastes and WaterThis one-day course will provide attendees with theopportunity to hear about field work, where sulphide oxi-dation was reduced resulting in effluents with low acidityand neutral pH from sulphidic tailings and waste rock.The fundamental processes that reduce or inhibit sul-phide oxidation within the mining wastes are presented.Results of ongoing research are discussed. Theseprocesses, together with the promotion of bio-mineraliza-tion within the mine waste management areas, makedecommissioning economical and sustainable.

June/July 2011 | 71

www.metsoc.org/com2011www.metsoc.org/com2011

Plenary SessionA distinguished lineup of guest speakers is being assembled.To date, speakers include: Chris Twigge-Molecey, boardmember at Hatch and the 2010-2011 president of CIM; FathiHabashi, professor at Université Laval; David Cox, seniordirector, NRU Operations, AECL; and Barbara Kirby, seniordirector, workforce development, MiHR.

Register early and save $100!Early-bird rates (before August 3):CIM national members and sister societies $ 800CIM life members freeCIM retired members $ 200Authors, presenters and sessions chairs $ 800Students and student presenters $ 50Non members $ 965

Register online atwww.metsoc.org/com2011

Event Sponsors

In-kind SponsorsCo-sponsoring Sister Societies & Media Groups

SponsorsTo those who make it all possible — thank you!

Several sponsorship opportunities are still available.Contact Michael King at [email protected].

Financial Sponsors

Exclusive Platinum Sponsor

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www.metsoc.org/com2011www.metsoc.org/com2011Industrial ToursBeyond the conference centre walls

Four industrial tours are planned for October 6, to beheld in conjunction with the conference. All are limited incapacity, so register early.

Aluminerie AlouetteFounded in 1992, Aluminerie Alouette is an independentcompany that produces aluminum. As the most impor-tant employer in Sept-Îles, Quebec, and the biggest alu-minum smelter in the Americas, it has 1,000 employeesand a capacity of 575,000 tons of annual output. TheSept-Îles plant is a global reference in energy efficiency.It is at the cutting edge of technology, which operateswell within government environmental standards.

Xstrata-CCR (exclusive to student delegates) The CCR refinery located in Montreal, Quebec, has beenin operation since 1931. The plant is equipped to processanodes that are high in bismuth, antimony, lead andnickel. CCR refinery’s products include copper cathodes,gold, silver and other specialty metals and chemicals,including selenium, tellurium, copper sulphate, nickel sulphate and a concentrate of platinum group metals.

Gold Mining UndergroundVisits include IAMGOLD’s Westwood project and Agnico-Eagle Mines’ LaRonde 2 Mine.

Gold PlantsVisits include Agnico-Eagle Mines’ Goldex and LaRondemills, and Osisko’s Canadian Malartic mill and open pit.

Gintsvetmet Institute

At this year’s gala, we will celebrate andrecognize excellence in our industry, look back atachievements of the past 50 years and work toinspire the next generation. We will also honourpast MetSoc presidents and pass the torch on toa new generation of members.Jeux de Cordes musical group and magician/performer/comedian Alain Choquette will providethe entertainment for the evening. Join us onMonday, October 3, at the historic Windsor TrainStation for an unforgettable evening.

Updates to this schedule can be found at www.metsoc.org/com2011Social Program

We’re more than just a technical conferenceSunday, October 2 Welcome Reception

All delegates are invited to attend the WelcomeReception sponsored by SNC-Lavalin.

Monday, October 3 MetSoc Annual General Meeting & MetSoc Awards Luncheon

The society will hold its Annual General Meeting, feature the inauguration of the new MetSoc president,and honour its outstanding members with the SocietyAwards.

Tuesday, October 4 World Gold Luncheon

The World Gold organizing committee will hold aluncheon featuring an invited speaker.

Scotch Tasting Fundraiser Network with industry leaders while enjoying finescotch. All of the money from this fundraising eventwill go towards the MetSoc Student Fund and theendowment fund of the Canadian Mining andMetallurgy Foundation (CMMF). Tax receipts will be given to participants.

Wednesday, October 5 Historical Metallurgy Lunch Box

The Historical MetallurgyCommittee of MetSoc will host a box lunch featuring guestspeakers Hugh J. McQueen,professor emeritus at ConcordiaUniversity, and Larry McNally,Science and Medical Archivist,Archives Canada. The presentation will be on“Metal industries aroundMontreal – 1760 to 1910.”

Luncheon honouring Laxman Amaratunga

The Environment Section ofMetSoc will host a lunch to honour the accomplishmentsand dedication of LaxmanAmaratunga, professor atLaurentian University. Join family, friends and colleagues to celebrate his achievements.

1st Conference of Metallurgists held in Hamilton, Ontario, in 1962. From left to right: R. D. Hinson, COM co-chair; J. Convey, COM chair; J. R. Bradfield, president of CIM; and J. S. Kitkaldy, COM Technical Chair

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economic geology


The foundations of modern economic geology (Part 4)By R. J. (Bob) Cathro, Chemainus, British Columbia

Mineral deposit models have become increasingly important in exploration fordeeper targets. Better models depend on an improved understanding of theprocesses involved in the origin (genesis) of the mineralizing fluids. It is hard toimagine that the leading geologists in the world were still arguing about the fun-damentals of genesis as recently as 1890. It is impossible to discuss the pioneergeologists who led the discussions on ore genesis without starting with FranzPošepny. It is sad that his name is almost forgotten today.

Pošepny was born in 1836 at Jilemnice, Czech Republic (formerlyStarkenbach, Bohemia), which is located near the borders of Poland andGermany, about 100 kilometres northeast of Prague. Bohemia was part of theHapsburg Empire until 1867, when it became part of the Austrian half of theAustro-Hungarian Empire, which existed until 1918. He was educated at thePolytechnical Institute in Prague and at the Mining Academy in Príbram until1859. After graduation, he entered the State service. Pošepny was one of the lastinfluential economic geologists who spent most of his career in central Europeand was largely unknown in North America. It is interesting to compare his briefeducation with the leisurely international one enjoyed by Rothwell, Raymondand Emmons.

Early in his career as a government geologist, Pošepny worked in relativeobscurity under incredibly difficult conditions. He was first assigned, withoutpay, to a government bureau in Romania. A year later he was transferred, at asalary of less than 50 cents US per day, to an interesting geological district wherehe was restricted to auditing the accounts of abandoned mines. His superior dis-couraged underground studies, telling him that he had much more importantthings to attend to than going down into old mines where he would only see rub-bish and dirt. He was obliged, therefore, to pursue underground mapping in hisspare time when no one was watching. His special aptitude for economic geologywas eventually recognized and he was transferred to Rodna, now situated innorthern Romania near the Ukraine border, to examine lead-zinc ore deposits andabandoned mines – at an increased salary of 75 cents a day.

After 11 years of service, while still only an “expectant” without a title andwith only a meagre salary, he was offered the position of economic geologist forHungary. That included six years of work (1873-1879) in the Tyrol and Salzburgdistricts in Austria, and an extended tour of the United States. It was followed byhis appointment in 1879 as a professor at the Imperial and Royal School ofMining at Leoben, southwest of Vienna. There, he began to compile his fieldnotes into lectures, integrate them with current European research, and developa new genetic classification scheme.

However, he was soon transferred back to Príbram to teach at the MiningAcademy and to supervise a special investigation at the Adelbart shaft, the deep-est in the world at about 1,100 metres (Cathro, 2006). The silver-lead-zinc veinmineralization was strongly oxidized to a depth of 135 metres, although somesulphide minerals were still present in the oxide zone. The reason that the minewas chosen for special study was that it was completely dry below 800 metres,making it an ideal place to prove that the deep mineralization must have beendeposited from ascending hydrothermal solutions.

Kemp (1920) summarized the opposing views on mineral deposit genesis atthe end of the 19th century as follows: “In the late 1870s, the investigation ofProfessor Fridolin Sandberger of the University of Wurzburg upon the relations of

“The best work of education is the ‘drawing-

out’ of faculties which the pupil does not

know or believe to be in him. … There is

nothing that contributes more potently to

success in life than the subjection of young

(people) to work which they do not like, and

in the knowledge of which they are, conse-

quently deficient. … Those who are confined

by their duties to one locality might learn

from the example of Pošepny� that the thor-

ough study of one locality is the most valu-

able contribution that can be made to general

science. On the other hand, the authors of

theories may profitably note that Pošepny´

himself, as the result of wider observations,

was obliged to change the views he had

expressed, under the influence of precon-

ceived impressions, in early years”.

~Kemp, 1902

074-076 Historical Geology_Historical Geology 11-07-06 12:12 PM

wall-rocks to the minerals oftheir veins, and his develop-ment of strongly emphasizedsupport for the old-time theoryof ‘lateral secretion’ hadaroused much interest in thegeneral topic of the origin ofores. The geologists at theFreiberg Mining Academy, rep-resented in this instance byProfessor Alfred Stelzner, werenaturally opposed to theseviews and supported the theoryof uprising solutions. Face toface every day with deep fis-sure-veins in several successiveseries, each connected with anoutbreak of igneous rocks, they had favoured these views evenas early as Agricola. The quaint and curious thesis of Werner inthe closing years of the 17th century, that the fissures had beenfiled by precipitation from an overlying ocean, was but a tem-porary departure from the well-nigh inevitable interpretation.Hence, between Sandberger, the ‘lateral secretionist’ on the oneside, and Stelzer, the ‘infiltration ascensionist’ on the other, avigorous controversy raged.”

Pošepny recognized that mineral deposits formed abovethe water table were probably as a result of descendingwaters from the surface and could be described as lateralsecretion. Then, he considered the processes of solution anddeposition through subterranean water circulation in deeperzones. This was a refinement, based on a thorough review ofthe literature, of a theory advanced by the French geologistA. Daubree in 1887 and took into account numerous obser-vations of underground springs in mines of the Erzgebirgeand elsewhere by H. Muller.

Because deposits containing metals could be observedforming from mineral springs, it was obvious to Pošepnythat circulating solutions were the key. Common sense toldhim that symmetrical crusts of argentiferous galena found ata depth of 1,100 metres (564 metres below sea level) in theAdelbert shaft, which had been mined continuously fromsurface, could only have been deposited from ascending min-eral solutions. He concluded that all mineral deposits foundin deeper zones must have been precipitated from ascendingsolutions. “The miners themselves have always held this opin-ion; in other words, they have all been ascensionists,” he wrote.

After his retirement to Vienna, Pošepny travelled widelythroughout western and southern Europe and to the UnitedStates, and continued to publish steadily. No complete list ofhis publications has been found but it is believed to bebetween 100 and 200 papers.

The Chicago Exposition of August 1893 was the occasionof a special AIME meeting as part of the InternationalEngineering Congress. By a fortunate coincidence, FranzPošepny submitted his manuscript, in German, for

presentation at the Chicagomeeting and publication inthe Transactions of theInstitute. It summarized hislife’s work and conclusionsabout the origin of mineraliz-ing fluids. Fortunately, thesecretary, Rossiter Raymond,recognized its importanceand translated it into a mas-terpiece of lucid English. Itwas soon recognized as alandmark paper. BecausePošepny had suffered an acci-dental fall that prevented himfrom writing the text, he dic-tated it to his wife Clotilde,

who had been his constant helpmate. Early in their mar-riage, they had decided to jointly specialize in European lan-guages, she becoming fluent in those of western Europewhile he learned those from the east. Neither was fluent inEnglish.

The Pošepny paper was published in the Transactions in1893 and was so popular that it was included in a separatevolume titled “The Genesis of Ore-Deposits,” which wasissued by AIME in 1895 as a teaching aid for instructors andstudents. It contained the original paper, the criticisms thatit elicited, and Pošepny’s reply. Unfortunately, he died onMarch 27 of that year and never saw the volume, which soldout quickly.

His 1893 paper continued to arouse so much interest thatit became the catalyst for a long overdue debate by eminenteconomic geologists, most of whom worked for the U.S.Geological Survey mapping the new mining districts in thewestern United States. Most of their results were publishedby AIME and led to an additional series of extremely impor-tant papers on ore genesis at a meeting held in February1900. They were collected and edited under Dr. Raymond’sguiding hand and published in 1902 as an 805-page secondedition (known as the “Pošepny´ Volume”) titled Genesis ofOre Deposits. This important book included papers by C. R.Van Hise, S. F. Emmons, Walter Harvey Weed, WaldemarLindgren, J. H. L. Vogt, J. F. Kemp, William P. Blake, and T.A. Rickard.

As Raymond put it, “From the bare outline of his life thatI have given, it is evident that (Pošepny) trod no easy path toeminence and fame. For many years he was utilized withoutbeing adequately appreciated; ordered from place to place;scantily paid and arbitrarily overruled; his far-reachingplans thwarted by short-sighted officialism intent upon moreimmediate practical results. For this, government bureausare not necessarily to be blamed. Pošepny was, heart andsoul, not a government official, but the lover and slave of sci-ence. And governments do not exist for the promotion of sci-ence. The utmost which they can legitimately do in that

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Samuel Franklin Emmons (1841-1911)

Franz Pošepny (1836-1895)

➙

➙


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direction is to assist the progress of science on grounds ofpolitical economy.”

Dr. Raymond also praised Pošepny’s “free dedication tothe Institute (of his treatise) … In estimating the generosity ofthe author, it must be borne in mind that the copyright of sucha work, the fruit of years of study and of practice as aninstructor, is of no little value to a European professor, andconstitutes one of the legitimate rewards of his (otherwise nothighly-paid) labor.”

In the words of Kemp (1920), “[the decade followingthe publication of the Pošepny Volume was] extremely fruit-ful in new ideas. The part played by igneous phenomena,whether in the way of direct magmatic crystallizations or ofafter-effects; the contact-zones and their elucidation; theactual processes of replacement and the changes in wall-rocks;the phenomena of secondary enrichment; the restriction indepth of the meteoric ground-water – one fundamental ques-tion after another crowded to the front. Dr. Raymond … wasfully alive to the interest and importance of it all, and con-ceived the idea that (another) volume under the immediateoversight of Samuel Franklin Emmons would adequately sum-marize the rapid evolution of ideas. … (Emmons) undertookthe task, selected the papers, wrote the very valuable introduc-tory review and, alas, passed away just before the manuscriptwent to press. It thus became the Emmons Memorial Volume(1913), and took its place on every mining geologist’s book-shelf beside the Pošepny Volume.”

It is quite ironic that Pošepny and Emmons ended up asneighbours on library shelves because their careers were sodifferent. Emmons was born in 1841 into a wealthy familyin Boston and was named after an ancestor who was relatedto Benjamin Franklin. After earning a BA degree fromHarvard, he studied for two years at the Imperial School ofMines in Paris, another year at Freiberg, and then travelledin Europe for another year. Beaumont, Daubree and vonCotta were among his professors. On his return home in1867, he joined the Geological Exploration of the FortiethParallel under Clarence King, the first geological surveyfunded by the U.S. government. When the U.S. GeologicalSurvey was created in 1879, Emmons was one of the firstscientists hired. The next year, he began a landmark studyof the Leadville district and became one of the most prolificand eminent of the early USGS geologists (Becker, 1911).

Acknowledgments Back in early 2003, when I was still bemoaning the lack

of published information on this topic, I mentioned toBrian Skinner of Yale University that he was the obviousperson to write about the history of economic geology (hewas the editor of the journal Economic Geology from 1969to 1996). He replied that he had so many things he wasworking on that he doubted he would ever get around to itand he encouraged me by providing a short list of the refer-ences I should read. One of the first authors was FranzPošepny and I have been grateful to Dr. Skinner ever since

for bringing him to my attention and filling a big hole in myeducation. CIM

ReferencesBecker, G. F. (1911). Biographical notice of Samuel Franklin Emmons. In (S. F.Emmons, ed.), Ore deposits. New York: The American Institute of Mining Engineers,xxix-xlvii.

Cathro, R. J. (2006). The central European silver deposits. CIM Magazine, 1(2), 65-67.

Emmons, S. F. (1913). Ore deposits. New York, The American Institute of MiningEngineers, 954p.

Kemp, J. F. (1920). Reminiscences. In (T. A. Rickard, ed.), Rossiter WorthingtonRaymond: a memorial. New York: The American Institute of Mining Engineers, 43-52.

Pošepny, F. (1893). The genesis of ore-deposits. Transactions of the American Instituteof Mining Engineers, 23, 197-369. This paper was reprinted in 1902 as part of a spe-cial volume titled The genesis of ore-deposits, second edition, R. W. Raymond (ed).New York, The American Institute of Mining Engineers, 806p.


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Copper workers’ revolt in Krompachy, Czechoslovakia (1921)

After World War I, the metallurgical plant in Krompachyin the present-day Slovak Republic shut down putting 3,500people out of work. The backlash that ensued was com-memorated in a stamp issued by the former Czechoslovakiain 1971 (entitled "History of the Communist Party") show-ing a painting by a Czech artist depicting the workers’bloody revolt.

South African gold mining strike (1922)In 1922, in the gold mining region of Witwatersrand,

mine owners formulated a plan to reduce wages by replacingwell-paid white workers with black workers. White SouthAfrican workers went on a strike that quickly escalated to aviolent rebellion – known as the Rand Revolt. Strikersformed commandos and in response, the government sentin troops from the Active Citizens Force and declared mar-tial law. The ensuing violence resulted in hundreds ofinjuries and deaths. Authorities arrested thousands of work-ers; four were put to death. The negative reaction to the gov-ernment's actions cost Prime Minister Jan Smuts and hisSouth Africa Party the 1924 election.

Steel workers strike in Nova Scotia (1925)In Sydney, Nova Scotia, steel workers went on strike in

early March 1925 against the British Empire Steel Corpora-tion. On June 4, the union pulled its men from a companypower plant in New Waterford. More than 50 companypolice, many on horseback, occupied the plant on June 11.An estimated 700 to 3,000 miners and supporters marchedto the power plant. As the crowd arrived, police opened fire,killing a miner and wounding several others. In retaliation,the miners sabotaged the power plant. Police and companyofficials that did not escape the battle were locked up in thetown jail. On the following nights, company stores wereraided and burned, including the colliery building. TheCanadian Army deployed thousands of soldiers to the area.The strike lasted throughout the summer.

Columbine Mine massacre in Colorado (1927)For the 50 years prior to 1927, the Colorado mines were

a hotbed of unrest, marked by poor labour relationsthroughout the mining industry, strikes, aborted uprisingsand confrontations between miners, mine owners and thestate militia. Following the attack at Ludlow in 1914, thestate was home to one of the largest uprisings of workers in

Social problems in the mining industry: a historical essay (Part 4)By Fathi Habashi, Laval University, Quebec City

American labour history, with entire towns being occupiedby armed miners.

Miners in Colorado participated in a three-day strikecalled by the Industrial Workers of the World in 1927, inprotest of the pending execution of anarchists FerdinandoNicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti. About 8,400 strikingminers successfully shut down the coal mines in northernColorado. Although mainly owned by Rocky Mountain FuelCompany, the Columbine Mine was kept running by scabs.These “imported” scabs were housed in the town of Serene,which had been turned into a fortress with barbed wirefences and armed guards at the gates.

In the southern part of the state, Colorado Fuel and Ironowned most of the local mines. The company had been atthe bargaining table with the company-controlled “union”that was put in place after the Ludlow strike. Mass rallieswere held by workers outside the Columbine Mine for sev-eral weeks and on November 21, about 500 miners and theirfamilies marched towards the north gate of the town. Ontheir arrival, they were met by plain-clothed militiamen withrifles, blocking the entrance. A battle soon ensued and even-tually, the miners forced their way through the gate. Policefired, killing six people, and an additional 60 were injured.A couple weeks later, another two strikers were killed, thistime in Walsenburg. The owner of the Rocky Mountain FuelCompany brought an end to the strike several weeks laterwhen he declared that henceforth, the union was to be affil-iated with the American Federation of Labour. Eventually,the company would come to recognize the United MineWorkers of America.

Coal miners’ strike in Harlan, Kentucky (1931-1937)A violent labour dispute broke out between the United

Mine Workers and strikebreakers in Harlan County, Ken-tucky, in 1931, which lasted several years. The events leadingup to the strike included wage disputes, dangerous working

Stamp depicting a painting of the workers’ revolt in 1921 in Krompachy, Slovakia.

conditions, unsatisfactory living conditions, the forming ofunions and economic hardships affecting the town.

In the summer of 1937, workers at the Duke Power-ownedEastover Coal Company's Brookside Mine in Harlan Countyvoted to join the union. Eastover management refused to signthe contract and the union went on strike. Duke Powerbrought in replacement non-unized workers, many of whowere subsequently attacked, arrested, hit with baseball bats,shot at and struck by cars. One striking miner was shot andkilled by one of the replacement workers. Three months afterthe union returned to work, the national contract expired.

Gold miners' strike in Kirkland Lake (1941-1942)Failure to recognize a union and collective bargaining, as

well as firing miners participating in union affairs led to astrike in Kirkland Lake, Ontario, from 1941 to 1942. On theevening of November 18, 1941, the night shifts in eight ofthe mines failed to report for work. Both the federal andOntario governments refused to intervene. By February 12,1942, the Kirkland strike was lost and the humiliated minersreturned to work. The strike was a turning point in Cana-dian history, resulting in legislation in 1944 similar to that ofthe 1935 legislation in the United States that recognizes theright of workers to form a union.

Strike in Arvida, Quebec (1941)In July 1941, Canada's largest aluminum plant, located on

the Saguenay River in Quebec, stopped production. Ministerof Munitions and Supply C. D. Howe quickly concluded thatsaboteurs were responsible and sought military intervention torestore order. Prime Minister Mackenzie King and other Cabi-net colleagues shared the desire to keep workers producing forthe war effort, but hesitated to send in troops against strikers.

African miners' strike (1946)African workers were introduced to trade unions through

witnessing the struggles that British workers underwent inan effort to form trade unions, as far back as 1880. There wasno solidarity among black and white workers. The organiza-tion of African miners was one of the most difficult tasks fac-ing the trade union and national movement in South Africa.Workers were housed in prison-like compounds, speakingmany different languages, guarded and spied upon.

On August 12, 1946, the African mine workers of the Wit-watersrand went out on strike in support of a demand for higherwages. They continued the strike for a week despite savagepolice terror. On what became known as Bloody Tuesday(August 13), a peaceful procession of workers began to marchto Johannesburg; they wanted to get their passes and go backhome. However, police opened fire on them and a number ofworkers were killed. In protest against these brutalities, onAugust 14, a special conference of the Transvaal Council of Non-European Trade Unions decided to call a general strike in Johan-nesburg. The weakness of the unions and the failure to reachfactory workers resulted in only a partial success of the strike.

Many unsuccessful attempts were made to form a tradeunion prior to August 3, 1941, when a miners’ conferencewas called by the Transvaal Provincial Committee of theAfrican National Congress. The conference was attended byworkers from many mines and by delegates from a largenumber of African and Indian organizations, but speakerswere arrested and meetings broken up. With the formalestablishment of the union, organizational work began in theface of increased harassment, arrests, dismissals and deporta-tion. Nevertheless, the union grew in strength and influence.

Asbestos strike in Quebec (1949)At midnight on February 14, 1949, miners walked off the

job at four asbestos mines near Thetford Mines and Asbestosin Quebec. The union demanded that asbestos dust be elim-inated both on the inside and outside of the mill, as well asa wage increase and a social security fund to be administeredby the union. The demands were rejected.

Quebec Premier Maurice Duplessis sided with the com-panies, due to his hostility to all forms of socialism. Theprovincial government sent police to protect the mines.Duplessis' Union Nationale party had long been closelyallied to the Catholic Church, but in this case, the Churchsupported the workers. The population and media of Que-bec were sympathetic to the strikers. Pierre Elliott Trudeau,future Canadian Prime Minister and then-journalist, alsocovered the strike in a sympathetic manner.

Six weeks into the strike, Johns Manville hired strike-breakers to keep the mines open. In response, the striketurned violent as the 5,000 strikers fought back anddestroyed the property. More police were sent to protectthe strikebreakers and hundreds of miners were arrested.Some of the incidents included a dynamite explosion thatdestroyed part of a railroad track that led into the JohnsManville property and the overturning of a company jeep,injuring a passenger. On March 5, Archbishop JosephCharbonneau delivered a fiercely pro-union speech askingall Catholics for donations to help the strikers. PremierDuplessis asked the Church to transfer the archbishop to

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metallurgy


Asbestos mine workers on strike

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June/July 2011 | 79

Vancouver because of his pro-union stance, but hisrequest was refused.

Archbishop Maurice Roy of Quebec City served asmediator. In June, workers agreed to return to work withfew gains. In the long term, both conditions and wages ofthe workers considerably improved. Trudeau edited TheAsbestos Strike, a book portraying the strike as a violentannouncement that a new era had begun.

San Juan massacre in Bolivia (1967)A meeting of miners had been planned for June 24,

1967, at the mining camps of Siglo XX (20th century)near Oruro with a goal of demanding an increase in wages.The government and the armed forces heard about themeeting and rushed to occupy the mining centres. Theysurrounded the miners and opened fire; 20 were killedand 70 wounded. Electricity was cut off to the unionheadquarters and the Voice of the Miner radio station, andthe union leader was murdered. The massacre was carriedout under orders from President René Barrientos Ortuño,whose government forbade union activity. In addition, thegovernment launched a furiously cruel persecutionagainst political and union leaders in an effort to break theresistance of the labour movement.

The massacre was followed by repression and the firingof the so-called agitators. The military captured the mainleaders of the underground unions on July 29 and dis-posed of them without a trace.

Coal miners’ strike in Britain (1984-1985)The miners' strike of 1984-1985 was a major event

affecting the British coal industry, which was nationalizedand heavily subsidized. The government was looking toclose a number of mines that were either unsuccessful orin need of an upgrade (through increased mechanization)to become profitable. Many unions resisted, as it wouldresult in job cuts.

The strike ended with the defeat of the National Unionof Mineworkers by the Conservative government. Someyears later, the Labour Party moved away from its tradi-tional socialist agenda. The dispute exposed deep divi-sions in British society and caused bitterness in northernEngland and South Wales where several mining commu-nities were destroyed. Ten deaths resulted from events sur-rounding the strike. CIM

Suggested ReadingsHabashi, F. (2009). Science, Technology, and Society. Quebec City: Métallurgie Extrac-tive Québec. Distributed by Laval University Bookstore. www.zone.ul.ca

Habashi, F. (2010). Mining and Civilization. An Illustrated History. Quebec City: Métal-lurgie Extractive Québec. Distributed by Laval University Bookstore. www.zone.ul.ca

Habashi, F., Hendricker, D. & Gignac, C. (1999). Mining and Metallurgy on PostageStamps. Quebec City: Métallurgie Extractive Québec. Distributed by Laval UniversityBookstore. www.zone.ul.ca

T E C H N I C A L A B S T R AC T S

CIM journal


Kupol mill leachoperation in 2008-09J. Rajala, Kinross Gold Corporation,Toronto, Ontario, G. Deschênes,CANMET, Ottawa, Ontario, and A. Romanov and G. Kolosay, KinrossGold Corporation, Kupol Mine, Russia

Higher classificationefficiency byhydrocyclone control T. Neesse, University Erlangen-Nuremberg, Erlangen, Germany, M. G. Farghaly, Al-Azhar University,Qena Branch, Egypt, M. A. Hararah,Al-Hussein Bin Talal University, Maan,Jordan, G. Proellss, UniversityErlangen-Nuremberg, Erlangen,Germany, and W. Rubarth and P. Kaniut, AKW Apparate + VerfahrenGmbH, Hirschau, Germany

Toward the optimizationof flotation columnoperationA. Desbiens, R. del Villar, UniversitéLaval, Quebec City, Quebec, M. Maldonado, McGill University,Montreal, Quebec, and J. Bouchard,GENIVAR, Montreal, Quebec

ABSTRACT The Kupol project, located in Far East Russia, treats a high-grade, free-milling ore containinggold, silver and pyrite. Most of the gold occurs as electrum and the silver is predominantly present in theforms of acanthite, stephanite, pyrargyrite, and proustite. The mill reached the design throughput of 3,000tpd six months after startup. Leaching of gravity tailings is performed with the CANMET Enhanced LeachProcess. The precious metals are recovered by counter-current decantation and the Merrill-Crowe process.By August 2009, the mill processed 1.42 million tons of ore. CELP performance was not affected by changesin feed grade and ore mineralogy. Additional modifications to the leaching strategy allowed further reductionin cyanide consumption and effluent treatment costs.

RÉSUMÉ Le projet Kupol, situé en Extrême-Orient soviétique, traite un minerai libre de haute teneur con-tenant Au, Ag et pyrite. La plus grande partie de l’or se trouve sous forme d’électrum et l’argent est surtoutprésent sous forme d’acanthite, de stéphanite, de pyrargyrite et de proustite. L’usine a atteint sa capaciténominale de 3000 t/j six mois après le démarrage. La lixiviation des résidus du circuit de gravité est effec-tuée selon le Procédé avancé de lixiviation du CANMET. Les métaux précieux sont récupérés par décantationà contre-courant et par le procédé Merrill-Crowe. En août 2009, l’usine avait traité 1,42 million de tonnesde minerai. Le rendement du CELP n’a pas été affecté par des changements à la teneur de la charge d’al-imentation ni à la minéralogie. Des modifications additionnelles à la stratégie de lixiviation ont permis deréduire encore plus la consommation de cyanure et les coûts de traitement de l’effluent.

ABSTRACT Two new options for hydrocyclone control are presented. Volume split control using a controlvalve in the overflow is applied for the stabilization of separation results at changing feed conditions. Con-trolled water injection to the conical part of the cyclone leads to the reduction of fine particles in theunderflow. Hydrocyclone monitoring in both cases is performed by optical sensors that indicate the sprayangle of the underflow. Applications in mineral processing for desliming, classification in closed-circuit grind-ing, and dewatering are demonstrated.

RÉSUMÉ Deux nouvelles options pour le contrôle des hydrocyclones sont présentées. Un contrôle de frac-tionnement du volume au moyen d’une vanne de régulation dans la surverse est appliqué pour stabiliser lesrésultats de la séparation lors de changements de conditions d’alimentation. L’injection contrôlée d’eau dansla partie conique du cyclone permet de réduire la quantité de particules fines dans la sousverse. Dans lesdeux cas, des capteurs optiques indiquant l’angle du jet à la sousverse surveillent les hydrocyclones. Desapplications en traitement des minerais sont présentées : le deschlammage, la classification lors de broy-age en circuit fermé et l’assèchement.

ABSTRACT Despite many years of practical applications in mineral processing plants, the full potential ofcolumn flotation has still not been fully exploited. The challenge in measuring some key variables is animportant contributing factor. Reliable online measurement of variables, such as the froth depth, bias, gashold-up, frother concentration, bubble surface area flux, and bubble size distribution, provides opportunitiesfor the application of various advanced control strategies and real-time optimization based on an economiccriterion. Université Laval’s Laboratoire d’observation et d’optimisation des procédés researchers have beenworking on these opportunities. This paper describes the most recent advances and current research trends.

RÉSUMÉ Malgré de nombreuses années d’applications pratiques dans les usines de traitement des min-erais, le plein potentiel de la flottation en colonne n’a pas encore été pleinement exploité. Le défi de mesurercertaines variables clés est incontestablement un facteur qui contribue à cette situation. La mesure en lignefiable de variables telles que la profondeur de l’écume, le différentiel d’eau, la concentration d’air dans lazone de récupération, la concentration des agents moussants, le flux surfacique des bulles et la distributionde la taille des bulles, sont autant de possibilités pour l’application de diverses stratégies de contrôle et une

optimisation en temps réel basée sur un critère économique. Leschercheurs du Laboratoire d’observation et d’optimisation desprocédés de l’Université Laval travaillent sur ces possibilités. Leprésent article décrit les plus récentes avancées et les ten-dances actuelles en recherche.

Excerpts taken from abstracts in CIM Journal, Vol. 2, No. 2.Subscribe—www.cim.org

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One of the outcomes of the recent global recessionwas a renewed interest in breaking free of oldideas and embracing new, strategic ones that

reduce investment risk and add value to society.Concurrently, there has been a push to promote a moresustainable use of mineral resources, especially as thedemands of emerging economies and the developingworld increase.

In response, novelconcepts and ideas, newframeworks and break-through technologiesare being developed toaddress market andsupply uncertainties inthe context of mineplanning. Uncertainty,driven by fluctuatingmarket demand for raw materials as well asthe ability to mine orebodies to meet thatdemand, impacts strate-

gic planning and sustainable resource development. InCanada, where the economy relies heavily on mineralresources and is inevitably impacted by commoditycycles, there is a growing interest in ideas and tools thataccount for and manage uncertainty in mine modelling,optimal mine planning and production forecasting.

Advances in computing and new mathematicaltechniques in the last decade have challenged the long-standing traditional set of analytical, mathematical andstatistical methods used for mine planning, productionscheduling and forecasting. For example, the develop-ment of a new paradigm of stochastic mathematicalmodels pushes the limits of the conventional optimiza-tion used in strategic planning. This advance enablesplanners to assess ahead of time the interactions of theability of a mineral deposit to supply raw materials,operational mining uncertainties, and fluctuating mar-ket demand. These new models enhance the ability tooptimize mineral resource development under uncertainconditions and this, in turn, has dramatic effects on pro-duction management and cash flows, asset valuation,option selection, mine planning and operation, whichultimately affect the maximum return on investment,resource utilization, productivity and rehabilitation.

Earlier this year, six of the world’s largest miningcompanies with long-term records of supporting R&Din this area – namely, AngloGold Ashanti, Barrick GoldCorporation, BHP Billiton, De Beers Canada, NewmontMining Corporation and Vale – helped to develop andco-funded a new five-year $2.7 million grant alongwith the Natural Sciences and Engineering ResearchCouncil (NSERC) of Canada (in one of the largest NSRCgrants ever). This research surpasses past efforts toimprove long-term strategic mine planning by usingcomputer models to simulate supply and demanduncertainty. These models are founded on stochasticcombinatorial optimization and “high-order” simula-tion methods that integrate multiple mines, materialtypes, ore/waste processing streams including stock-piles, and generate different product specificationssuitable for a diverse group of commodities and miningcomplexes. In addition, the research will be put in thepublic domain through a unique agreement with themining companies, making all results accessible topractitioners and academics worldwide. This pledgereinforces the industry’s commitment to sustainabilityand social responsibility.

The planned outcome of this joint research is to con-tribute new methods to the Canadian and global miningindustry that will change the way problem-solving in thefield is approached. It will impact: sustainable utilizationof mineral resources; risk management and maximizationof return on investment; social responsibility throughimproved financial performance; objective and technicallydefendable decision-making; production and product supply; management of mine remediation; and the train-ing of highly qualified personnel that can then facilitateknowledge transfer and mobilization.

Industrial implementations of this new stochas-tic mine planning optimization method have shown adrastic improvement in matching forecasts to pro-duction performance and a higher total cash flowvalue and quantity of metal to be produced. Whetherthese methods will be fully embraced industry-wideremains to be seen; however, they highlight that thecurrent generation of strategic mine planning meth-ods need to be revisited, if not rewritten, from thestart. Radically different approaches to how andwhen minerals are extracted will revitalize the miningindustry and will provide a buffer from future economic bumps. CIM

Moving out from inside the boxStrategic mine planning, sustainability and computingBy Roussos Dimitrakopoulos, Professor and Canada Research Chair (Tier I) in Sustainable Mineral Resource Development under Uncertainty

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