OUR TRACK RECORD
NEWMONT - TANAMI EXPANSION PROJECT
The Details
TIMEFRAME: 2014 – 2018
CLIENT: Newmont
LOCATION: Northern Territory
COMMODITY: Gold
SERVICES: Process Plant Design, Owner's Representative, Process Plant Commissioning
GOLD RECOVERY
Increased by 2%
PROCESSING THROUGHPUT
Achieved 115% of nameplate
OUR COMMITMENT
From Options study through to Commissioning
Project Background
The Granites processing plant at Tanami commenced operation in 1986 treating 0.4Mt/a of ore. By 2014, the plant had been expanded several times and Newmont commenced studies into further increases in throughput beyond its 2.2Mt/a capacity. The Tanami Expansion Project (TEP) subsequently progressed through four studies assessing and defining upgrade options before confirming the business case in 2015 for a plant expansion to 2.6Mt/a.
TEP presented a challenging task to Newmont due to age of the plant, the lack of drawings, and the fact that these upgrades would take throughput to 7 times its 1986 design. To mitigate the significant design risks, Newmont took ownership of the process design and procurement for the project, and Chemech were appointed to key roles in their owner's team. The project was commissioned in 2017 with new circuits for secondary milling, gravity recovery, pre-leach thickening, tails deslime and tails filtration.
The rapid increase in the gold resource for Tanami saw Newmont also commence studies for a second plant upgrade (TE2) before TEP was completed. The studies for a further plant expansion to 3.2Mt/a were completed between 2016 and 2019, and Chemech also played a key role in the successful study outcomes.
Chemech's Contribution
Chemech completed the metallurgy and process design for the TEP options study in 2014, which allowed Newmont to select the most economic comminution circuit upgrade and include opportunities to improve gold recovery by ~2%. The opportunities included installation of a pre-leach thickener, upgrades to the gravity and gold recovery circuits, and addition of tailings filtration to provide material for underground paste fill.
Bewtween 2014 and 2016, Chemech were engaged as Owner's Representatives for the PFS, DFS and detailed design of TEP. In these roles they guided the process plant design, engaged with site stakeholders, and ensured Newmont's criteria and expectations for the expansion project were met.
In 2016, Chemech were engaged to provide commissioning support for TEP. Due to their design involvement, they were able to modify the design in key areas to optimise the commissioning plan and systemisation. They subsequently generated detailed commissioning procedures for each system describing the commissioning sequence, activities required, their pre-requisites, acceptance test standards, and the applicable quality documentation. Specific and detailed test sheets were also generated to specify Newmont’s acceptance criteria and quality surveillance requirements. Chemech then attended site to assist with critical commissioning activities.
The Final Outcome
Tanami Expansion Project (TEP) was completed in August 2017 and included an expansion of the Granites processing facility from 2.2 Mt/a to 2.6 Mt/a. As a result of a thorough and thoughtful commissioning plan and procedures, as well as a competent and committed site team, the new milling circuit received first ore only 3 weeks after construction handover. The expansion of the facility was very successful, and it was treating approximately 115% of design throughput (monthly basis) within a month of commissioning. The circuit upgrades improved overall gold recovery from 96% to 98%. The project also included a unique application of tails filtration to produce material for paste fill, and this facility has operated successfully since commissioning.
Chemech were engaged by Newmont to fill key roles in the owner's team for the Tanami Expansion Project, from the initial Options Study in 2014, to the successful commissioning of the upgrades in 2017. The project was highly successful, with rapid commissioning and ramp-up to a capacity well-in-excess of design, and achievement of the targeted increase in gold recovery. Chemech integrated seamlessly into the Owner’s team, successfully engaged the site stakeholders, and applied their metallurgy and process plant engineering skills and experience to great effect. The diligence, competency, rigor and commitment that they brought to each stage of the project was an important part of its ultimate success.
- Chris O'Brien, Newmont's Project Director – Tanami Expansion Project¹
1: This statement reflects the personal views of Chris O'Brien and does not constitute an official endorsement by Newmont Corporation.