Supporting mining and industry in Queensland and the NTSupporting mining and industry in Queensland and the NT

SPECIAL EDITION

Free map and feature inside

North Queensland mining – where the action is

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THIS EDITION

• Barminco back with a bang in north-west Qld

• Flood crisis sparks push for new discharge rules

• Trailblazing women in resources celebrated

• Bumper 2011 line-up for NT exploration forum

1The Mining Advocate | March 2011 NEWS

All material is copyright and cannot be reproduced in part or in full by any means without written permission of the managing editor. The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher.

CONTACTS

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Email: ...........................................................info@industryadvocate.com.au

Address: .........................................U3/11 Carlton St, Kirwan, Q, 4817

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March 2011

Managing editor: .........................Robert Dark m. 0417 623 156

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Advertising booking deadlineMay edition: April 22www.miningadvocate.com.au

FEATURES

7 Major Projects

8 Industry Update - Hard RockA comprehensive wrap of exploration and operations in Queensland and the Northern Territory.

9 Coal and Gas UpdateNews in brief across the coal and gas industries.

10 Between Shifts

12 Education Feature

14 NQ Mining – Expo Special

20 Townsville Regional Capacity

21 Wet Season

22 Processing

23 Exploration and Drilling

24 Maintenance

25 Shutdowns

26 Living Remotely

27 Safety and Rescue

28 Materials Handling

29 Training

30 Health in Mining

31 Building Mining Communities

We present this feature as a means of adding value to the accurate, up-to-date and relevant information service we strive to provide at Th e Mining Advocate.

Th e information presented on Pages 14 to 19 relates directly to the North Queensland resources map. Th e map is an insert in this edition and is an extension of our regular Industry Update section. It coincides with the Xstrata Mount Isa Mining Expo.

We have been as exhaustive as possible in bringing you a resource that encapsulates the opportunities and eff orts of small and large miners alike in developing the various veins of wealth that run under the great North West and other key hard rock mining areas.

Give us your feedback. We’d love to hear it. (Contact details below.)

Th ere are more maps in the process of being designed:

• May – Central Queensland coalfi elds including the Bowen and Galilee Basins.

• July – Th e Surat Basin.

• September – Expanding and emerging projects Queensland-wide.

Also let us know if you are interested in advertising opportunities.

It is part of our commitment to be the premier source on mining and processing in Queensland and the Northern Territory.

COVER IMAGE: A Liebherr R9800 excavator at work at Burton mine.Photo: courtesy Thiess. Story - Page 7

WelcWelcome to our special edition ome to our special edition with a focus on hard rock miningwith a focus on hard rock mining

Robert DarkTh e Mining Advocate

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3The Mining Advocate | March 2011 NEWS

Queensland’s fl ood crisis has sparked calls for an overhaul of mine discharge rules amid fears further rain could lead to uncontrolled releases from sites continuing to hold excess water.

By early March the Department of Environment and Resource Management had granted Transitional Environmental Programs (TEPs) to 39 coal mines, three metalliferous mines and three coal seam gas sites, with a further six applications from coal mines under consideration.

Th is meant about three out of four coal mines in the state had or was seeking a TEP to allow water discharge from their sites, the Queensland Resources Council (QRC) said.

However, QRC chief executive Michael Roche said the approvals were of limited benefi t to many operations.

“What’s generally happened in the coalfi elds is that the level in local creeks and watercourses has fallen to a more normal or low-fl ow or even no-fl ow situation and the approvals to discharge typically require greater fl ow,” he said.

Mr Roche said many coal companies were having to pump

and shift water around their leases to allow operations to continue – a situation which was hindering production and aff ecting the quality of blended product by limiting the areas of coal accessed.

Th ere were mines with very little headroom to deal with further major inundations, increasing the possibility of “a nasty scenario” of a breach releasing large quantities of water in an uncontrolled fashion, he said.

Th e QRC is working with DERM on a review of the Fitzroy model conditions on water management and water discharge, which has been brought forward due to recent events. It is also working with the Centre for Water in the Mining Industry at the Sustainable Minerals Institute on a feasibility study for a salinity trading scheme for the Fitzroy catchment, based on a scheme operating in the Hunter River catchment in New South Wales.

DERM general manager - coal and coal seam gas operations, Andrew Brier, stressed that the review under way on the Fitzroy model was not about altering the

Coal operations have found the approvals

system wanting as they struggle to shift

excess water and resume production.

Battered industry seeks relief

Michael RocheQRC chief executive

fundamentals of the regulator’s

approach.

“Th at is, this is not about

creating lower standards for

environment protection,” he said.

Mr Brier said DERM offi cers

had been working long hours

over the past few months to

turn around TEPs as quickly as

possible.

“As at March 12, the

department has approved 59

applications for new or amended TEPs – with the majority of approvals provided within a matter of days,” he said.

Mr Brier said some of the issues mines faced could have been minimised through better preparation prior to the start of the wet season, including investment in suffi cient pumping infrastructure and storage capacity.

An upsurge in underground mining activity in north-west Queensland has brought contractor Barminco back into the region with a bang.

Th e company has teams working to restart production at the Mt Gordon and Eloise copper mines, in addition to being selected as the underground development and initial production contractor for Xstrata Copper’s $589 million Ernest Henry Mining extension project.

“We also have two underground diamond drilling contracts, one with Ernest Henry Mining and one with Xstrata Zinc George Fisher,” Barminco chief operating offi cer Mark Adams said.

“In time we expect to be doing underground diamond drilling at Eloise mine and there is a possibility that we will be undertaking underground diamond drilling at Mt Gordon.”

Th e activity represents a signifi cant ramp-up in the region for the Western Australian-based underground mining specialist.

Mr Adams said Barminco had only held two north-west Queensland contracts two years ago – at Osborne and Eloise mines, both of which subsequently ceased operations.

It has its sights fi rmly set on adding to its swag of contracts

MMG has released its Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on the proposed Dugald River project, 65km north-west of Cloncurry.

Chief executive offi cer Andrew Michelmore said the company expected to make the commitment to develop the Dugald River project around the middle of this year.

Subject to that decision and other required approvals, MMG could have the mine in operation during 2014.

“As a result of the impending closure of several major zinc mines over the next few years - including our Century mine, which is expected to close around 2015 - we believe the development of Dugald River to be very timely,” Mr Michelmore said.

It is expected that Dugald River will produce concentrates containing about 200,000 tonnes of zinc, 25,000 tonnes of lead and 900,000oz of silver annually over a 23-year mine life, with the resource open at depth.

Th e release of the EIS follows the completion of a feasibility study in 2008 which was updated in 2010.

The QRC is working with

DERM on a review of the

Fitzroy model conditions

on water management

“It is also unfortunate that, of

those companies storing water

on site, only a small number

sought TEP approvals or

amendments to their discharge

conditions in advance of

signifi cant fl ows and rainfall

occurring, which would have

ensured they could have taken

better advantage of large fl ow

events that were experienced,”

he said.

Concerns about the eff ect of mine discharge on downstream water quality after the 2008 fl oods led to a tightening of regulations for Bowen Basin mines.

Mr Roche said these new conditions had made it virtually impossible for those operations to get rid of water during 2010, so that many had entered the current wet season already holding excess water. Th ey then faced months of high rainfall culminating in the deluge unleashed by Cyclone Tasha.

Coal producers’ ability to take advantage of TEP approvals during higher fl ows in local waterways had been restricted by inability to source pumping equipment and to gain physical access to areas of the mines, he said. Th e QRC had called unsuccessfully for the State Government to make an emergency direction under the Environmental Protection Act to allow mines to get rid of water across the board - within agreed water quality standards - rather than having matters dealt with on a case-by-case basis in such exceptional circumstances.

in the region, including a potential slice of action from Ivanhoe Australia’s substantial portfolio outside Cloncurry and MMG’s Dugald River project.

“We’re bidding for the restart of Osborne under the new owner, Ivanhoe Australia, and there is every indication that the Dugald River project will go out to tender later this year,” Mr Adams said.

“Th ere is quite a big ramp-up in north-west Queensland for underground mining activities.”

Mr Adams said Barminco was “very excited” to be back in the region, which he described as holding a very important place in the

company’s growth strategy.Th e company was generally

undertaking a “measured expansion” out of Australia, including establishing a signifi cant presence in West Africa through African Underground Mining Services (AUMS), a joint venture with Ausdrill, and in its own right in Egypt.

Mr Adams said Barminco off ered a range of services beyond straight underground development contracting and was keen to increase its involvement in major infrastructure construction activities, such as its present project with Ernest Henry Mining.

Barminco is working on Stage 3 of Ernest Henry Mining’s underground extension, with two years to run in a three-year contract worth $171 million.

“During the contract period we will deliver a six million-tonne-a-year underground sub-level caving operation for Xstrata Copper which is something to be proud of,” Mr Adams said.

Mr Adams said Barminco was looking at the feasibility of re-establishing an administration centre at Mount Isa in the near future to support its growing diamond drilling business in the region.

Mark AdamsBarminco chief operating offi cer

Underground revival

Decision mid-year for Dugald River

Site of MMG’s proposed Dugald River project.

4 March 2011 | The Mining AdvocateNEWS

- Specialists in earthmoving, power & light, access, air & portable buildings. Call 13 15 52

Th e Queensland Mines Inspectorate will look to implement recommendations from a recent coronial report regarding fatigue as soon as possible, according to a State safety head.

Commissioner for Mine Safety and Health Stewart Bell was commenting after Coroner Annette Hennessey handed down her fi ndings on two fatal road accidents that claimed three lives in central Queensland in 2005 and 2007. She said driver fatigue was a potential factor in the crashes, near Dysart and Yeppoon, which both involved coal miners driving home from their workplace.

“I’ve asked the chief inspector to arrange a meeting with Coroner Hennessey so we can go through the recommendations and understand clearly what she wants,” Mr Bell said.

Th e Queensland Resources Council has also committed itself to carefully considering the coroner’s recommendations to see what more it can practically do to improve the safety of employees as they travel to and from their work places.

Coroner Hennessey made a number of recommendations regarding policing and road standards in addition to calls for the development of a standardised defi nition of fatigue and a mechanism for the detection of fatigue impairment in drivers.

She has called for investigations into the appropriateness of “competency-based” fatigue training for the mining industry, the staging of a fatigue management forum and further research on the issue of mine shiftwork, fatigue and commuting.

Mr Bell said the coroner’s report had spurred on work the inspectorate was doing with coal and metalliferous advisory committees to develop a fatigue guidance note. While this would take the issue of commutes into account, Mr Bell stressed that the inspectorate had no jurisdiction outside the mine site.

Th e Bowen Basin tended to be the main focus of concern rather than the hard rock mining regions due to the volume of people driving from coal mines to nearby centres, he said.

While many coal companies provided bus services to take

Road safety and mining shiftwork issues have

been placed fi rmly in the spotlight following

court fi ndings on two fatal accidents.

Inspectorate to act on fatigueworkers back to centres such as Mackay, Mr Bell said there would always be workers who preferred to drive their own car.

“It goes back to freedom of choice. People like the independence of their own cars and they are keen to get home to their families - we understand that,” he said.

More targeted awareness campaigns may be required to help convince more mine workers not to drive straight home, Mr Bell said.

Th e inspectorate has initiated

a survey with the Department of Transport and Main Roads to look into the nature of traffi c between the Bowen Basin coalfi elds and the coast.

CQUniversity professor of management Lee Di Milia is leading that survey project to determine exactly who is on the region’s roads in the morning, how far they are travelling and to examine a range of factors aff ecting their psychological wellbeing, including issues relating to fatigue.

Professor Di Milia said

shiftworkers, including miners,

were only a subset within that

group.

“What has been surprising is

how many people who are not

shiftworkers are driving around

with too little sleep, perhaps as a

function of our busy lives,” Prof

Di Milia said.

“You have other people working

long hours, mums with young

kids, people with sleep disorders,

for example.”

Prof Di Milia is collating

data from 650 drivers surveyed

after being stopped in traffi c

operations on the Peak Downs

and Capricorn highways last year

and hopes to build the sample

number to 1000.

Prof Di Milia, who has been

conducting work in this fi eld for

20 years, said far more studies

were needed regarding fatigue.

A range of contributing factors

was often bundled under the

umbrella of fatigue, he said, and

much debate surrounded how

fatigue was defi ned.

CQUniversity is also working

on an indicator that police could

use to gauge fatigue in motorists

in the same way that breath tests

are used to enforce drink driving

laws.

• Fatigue control tips for

shiftworkers - Page 30

Th e Mackay Road Accident Action Group (RAAG) has been targeting fatigue on the region’s roads, including through a new project to provide rest areas at key points throughout the Bowen Basin.

RAAG road safety co-ordinator Graeme Ransley said gap analysis work to determine where such stops were most needed had been completed.

Th e group was now canvassing mining companies and other groups to sponsor appropriate facilities, he said.

BHP Mitsui Coal had funded the initial analysis work while the Isaac Regional Council had been among the fi rst to jump on board, backing a rest stop near Mackenzie River on the Fitzroy Development Rd, he said.

Mr Ransley said the tremendous growth in the coalfi elds, particularly in terms of traffi c volumes on inland roads, was one of the reasons the rest stop project was so important.

Rest stop campaign

Liquefi ed Natural Gas Limited will pioneer a new low-cost, low-emission liquefaction process at its Fisherman’s Landing project in Gladstone in what it hopes will be the fi rst of many applications of the technology.

Chief technical offi cer Paul Bridgwood believes the savings the Optimised Single Mixed Refrigerant (OSMR) process off ers will make the technology attractive throughout the LNG industry once it has been proven through the Gladstone development.

Th e company believes the OSMR process will halve capital costs compared to competing technologies.

Mr Bridgwood said the process, which Liquefi ed Natural Gas Ltd invented and owns, was not revolutionary as it was a matter of applying known technologies that were already used in other industries.

However, he said the LNG industry generally was very conservative and had not made any great attempt to fi netune the liquefaction process in order to tackle emissions.

“Th ey’ve been using the same processes for the last 40 or 50

by APCI (Air Products and Chemicals Inc) and the Optimized Cascade Process owned by ConocoPhillips.

Th e OSMR process is expected to cut fuel costs and CO2 emissions per unit of LNG produced by about a third.

It is based on a single mixed refrigerant cycle with the addition of conventional combined heat and power technology and conventional industrial ammonia refrigeration to enhance performance.

Liquefi ed Natural Gas Ltd recently announced a share

placement deal with a China

National Petroleum Corporation

(CNPC) subsidiary that will

help fund the development

the planned LNG project at

Fisherman’s Landing.

Th e deal includes an

agreement to negotiate

preferential terms for CNPC and

its affi liates to use the OSMR

process technology.

Liquefi ed Natural Gas Ltd is

continuing eff orts to source gas

supply for its fi rst two proposed

LNG trains, each with a capacity

of 1.5 million tonnes per annum.

Plant to pioneer low-emission process • Dredging is due to begin in

June in a $1.3 billion project to prepare the Gladstone Port to become one of the world’s major liquefi ed natural gas exporters. Th e fi rst stage of the Western Basin Dredging and Disposal Project has been awarded to joint venture partners Van Oord and Dredging International Australia.

• Santos has announced the fi nal investment decision approving development of the $16 billion GLNG project. Th e project is expected to create 5000 jobs in construction in addition to 1000 permanent jobs in production.

• Australia Pacifi c LNG gained federal environmental approval in February for its coal seam gas to liquefi ed natural gas project. Th e project involves the development of CSG resources in the Surat and Bowen basins, a 450km pipeline and a multi-train LNG facility on Curtis Island, near Gladstone.

• Th e BG Group, in its annual strategy report, described plant construction in Gladstone as gathering pace and signalled its plans for a third train in its QCLNG project.

years – there has really been no incentive or interest to improve effi ciency and reduce emissions,” he said.

“Th e level of emissions can be substantially reduced by applying what we’re doing, which is recovering the waste heat and energy in order to make the plant more effi cient, thereby reducing emissions.”

Mr Bridgwood said the two other technologies commonly used in commercial LNG operations globally were the propane pre-cooled mixed refrigerant process owned

An artist’s

impression of

the planned LNG

Limited plant

at Fisherman’s

Landing.

LNG project updates

5The Mining Advocate | March 2011 NEWS

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Th e boom in new coal and gas projects in Queensland presents a road safety time bomb unless the industry gets serious about tackling fatigue, according to a mining union safety representative.

CFMEU Mining and Energy Division industry safety and health representative Chris Gilbert believes issues such as fatigue and the potential eff ects on community safety were not examined thoroughly enough when mines began introducing 12-hour shifts over a decade ago.

Increased traffi c on regional roads as the coal industry went from strength to strength heightened the potential risk presented by tired miners commuting by road after working extended hours and compressed rosters.

“I wouldn’t let my wife drive from Moranbah to Mackay when the shift changes are on,” Mr Gilbert said.

“It’s just alive with people travelling back and forth, either out to the mines or they have fi nished a shift and are driving straight home.”

He said a lack of accommodation in coal mining communities was a major part of the problem.

Mr Gilbert believed the major developments planned for the Bowen, Surat and Galilee basins made this issue a time bomb, “unless they go in there and get serious about implementing some controls and look into the fatigue issue of travel home after extended shifts and compressed rosters”.

Th e Queensland Resources Council (QRC), the Queensland Mines Inspectorate and the major mining unions have been working on a guidance note on fatigue.

QRC chief executive Michael Roche said mining companies had been reviewing fatigue management policies and standards over the last few years, beefi ng up provision of bus services and stipulating the times when people must arrive on site in advance of their shifts.

“One of the issues that is still diffi cult is what controls do you have over your workforce when they fi nish their shift in terms of the desire of people, even where there are facilities provided, to fi nish shift and pile into their high-powered vehicle and race back home - sometimes driving a couple of hours from the mine having worked a fi ve-day or seven-day roster of 12-hour shifts,” he said.

Companies were seeking expert advice regarding best way to design rosters to minimise fatigue both on site and for the trip home, he said.

“A number of companies have done very good work, providing a useful template,” Mr Roche said.

“We are trying to keep it focused on safety and individuals and keep it out of the space of bargaining around workplace conditions and the like.”

He stressed that the overwhelming number of workers on mine sites still lived locally.

Western Downs mayor Ray Brown said discussions had taken place with resources companies involved in development throughout the Surat Basin in relation to accommodation and travel arrangements to limit the distance workers were commuting by road.

“Lessons learned from the Bowen Basin have fi ltered down,” Cr Brown said.

He was hopeful road fatigue would not be as serious an issue in the Western Downs region, which had substantial towns situated more closely together and a large proportion of the mining workforce living locally.

Mr Gilbert said the North Goonyella coal mine, 40km north of Moranbah, had instated basic fatigue controls when it became the fi rst site to move to a working week of four 12-hour shifts in late 1994

Th e operation had bussed its permanent workforce to and from site and off ered “motel-style” sleeping arrangements in controlled blocks to minimise sleep disruptions, along with other fatigue control measures, he said.

Mr Gilbert said many sites were now running rosters with longer blocks of 12-hour shifts and looking into 14 to 16-hour shifts, but off ering the same or lower fatigue control measures.

Fatigue is a potentially deadly risk factor on regional roads. Photo: Stewart McLean

It is feared increased traffi c

from a new wave of mining

growth will heighten the risk

of fatigue-related crashes.

Road safety time bomb

6 March 2011 | The Mining AdvocateNEWS

When Heather Parry saw a proof of the recruitment advertisement planned for the Dawson North coal mine in central Queensland, she knew something had to change.

“Th ere was this picture of a big burly bloke with a goatee,” Ms Parry said.

Th e Leighton Contractors engineer became project manager for the $157 million Dawson North mine project late last year, tasked with overseeing a return to production at a pit that was closed down during the GFC and establishing a satellite pit.

Ms Parry’s input prompted the use of a photograph of a female miner in recruitment advertising for the project to help break down the stereotype and encourage more women to apply. She set a target for her human resources team to recruit at least 20 per cent female operators and has been successful, with a current rate around 19.6 per cent.

“I have a personal target to get more females into the workshop as well – I don’t know how that’s going to go,” she said.

Ms Parry was recently named as overall winner in Queensland’s Resources Awards for Women.

She received the award at the Queensland Resources Council’s annual International Women’s Day Breakfast in Brisbane, where QRC chief executive Michael Roche announced the new target of 20 per cent women in non-traditional roles by 2020.

Although female participation

A project manager taking practical steps to

boost the number of women on her team has

been honoured for her industry contributions.

Employees at Xstrata’s north-west Queensland operations have

claimed a clutch of Resources Awards for Women (RAW) honours.

Th e Queensland Resources Council-run award program recognises

the contribution and achievements of women in the resources sector

and promotes gender diversity within the mining industry.

Th is year’s Lifetime Achievement Award was won by Robyn Wright,

who has worked at Mount Isa Mines for 34 years and holds the role

of marketing and environmental analysis supervisor at the operation’s

laboratory.

Mount Isa Mines copper smelter electrician Amanda Humphrey

was named runner-up in the trade award category behind Simone

Forbes from the Moranbah North coal mine.

Mining technician Kerrie-Lea Nicholas from Xstrata Copper’s

Ernest Henry Mining tied with Sharon Ward from Rio Tinto Coal

Australia’s Hail Creek mine for the operator award.

Xstrata Copper North Queensland Operations safety and health

manager MaryAnn Wipaki was named runner-up in the overall

RAW award for her role in advising management on health and safety

matters and contributing to consistent yearly safety improvements.

Th is year the QRC launched a Gender Diversity Champion Award

to recognise individuals, male or female, who have demonstrated

outstanding eff ort to encourage women within the resources sector.

Mount Isa’s Dick Kostowski received the inaugural award for

his work with Xstrata’s Vocational Skills Development Program,

promoting equal opportunities in the mining industry for young men

and women, including on-the-job training.

Heather Parry from Leighton Contractors was the overall RAW

winner in 2011 with Ms Wipaki and Origin Energy employee Karen

Stanley named as runners-up and Lisa Barter from Santos highly

commended.

Contracting fi rm Th iess won the Best Company Initiative Award

for a program that opens doors to the booming resources sector for

indigenous women while Nanango State High School student Sarah

Coughlan won the junior category.

Th e Queensland Small Miners Council has claimed success in a dispute with the State Government over the implementation of new environmental fees.

Council chairman Ralph De Lacey said some aspects were still being resolved, however the government looked like addressing all key points the miners had raised.

Tenement holders were angered last year by a bungled mass mail-out of invoices for environmental authority payments and the way in which those fees were applied.

Th e council presented a list of demands to the Department of Environment and Resource Management (DERM).

Mr De Lacey, who

is also president of the North Queensland Miners Association, said DERM had agreed to address the issue of fees being triggered by applications for tenements rather than around the time of tenure grant.

Offi cials had indicated DERM would refund annual fees miners had paid in advance for applications, he said.

A 12-month transitional period is being implemented to allow people holding multiple environmental authorities for tenements that could be considered a single mining operation to amalgamate those authorities so they will be subject to a single fee.

Mr De Lacey said small miners had been withholding

such fees in protest to date.“We are now encouraging

our members to amalgamate what tenements they can - and there is a criteria set by DERM stating how they see an integrated project,” he said.

DERM general manager of operations, environmental and natural resource regulation Lindsay Delzoppo said environmental authority fees were brought in after consultation and agreement with the Queensland Resources Council.

“Nevertheless, we are now working to consider a more streamlined arrangement for fees across government agencies, taking into account concerns raised by the small miners council,” he said.

other mums who were project managers or in management positions on mine sites.

“However I like to think the way I’ve approached a typically male-dominated role without ever considering that I may not belong here may give confi dence to other women,” she said.

Ms Parry has previously been involved in various construction and mining infrastructure projects including acting as project manager for construction of a section of the Rolleston railway.

She has lived in Biloela – about 60km from the Dawson North site outside Moura - for the past six years and said Leighton Contractors had previously employed a “reverse fl y in-fl y out” to get her to jobs.

Ms Parry said local girls often asked her about opportunities for women in the mining industry.

“I encourage them, but do tell them it’s hard work and long hours – they need to be prepared for that,” she said.

“But there are so many benefi ts – fi nancial, job security, career progression – and they are going to be earning what their value is, whereas a lot of jobs that traditionally girls go for, I think, are underpaid.”

Ms Parry cites Anglo American chief executive Cynthia Carroll as being among her inspirations, but concedes that her own career aspirations may be curbed a little by her desire to live in a regional area.

She is hoping the two-year contract to deliver the Dawson North project will stretch into a longer-term arrangement for Leighton and allow her to remain in Biloela for some time.

Heather makes a mark in mining

Strong showing in the north-west

Resources Awards for Women winners MaryAnn Wipaki, Amanda Humphrey,

and Robyn Wright. Photo: Roslyn Budd

Heather ParryLeighton Contractors

project manager

Progress in fee dispute

in the resources industry had risen to 15 per cent in Queensland, participation in areas where women were traditionally under-represented such as operators, trades, engineers, geologists and senior management remained under 11 per cent, he said.

Ms Parry - who has a fi ve-year-old daughter - said she had been both overwhelmed and underprepared for the awards honour, having nominated in order to spur on another woman to apply.

On her nomination form, Ms Parry wrote that she did not believe she was breaking new ground as there were countless

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Thiess is bringing out the big guns as part of its $1.3 billion project to extend mining operations at the Burton coal mine, 120km south-west of Mackay.

Th e mine became the fi rst worldwide to take up Liebherr’s giant R9800 model excavator last year and Th iess is now adding a second to the fl eet, in addition to 11 new 360-tonne dump trucks

New equipment including the world’s largest

backhoe excavator is on order for extension

work at this major open-cut site.

to complement its capacity.Bigger is defi nitely better at

Burton, especially given the bulk earthworks required at the open-pit site, according to Th iess Queensland executive manager for mining Danny McCarthy.

“Although there is a major capitalisation required, the lower unit costs per BCM (bank cubic metre) moved is very attractive,” Mr McCarthy said.

Th e new 800-tonne backhoe excavator was priced between $13 and $14 million at time of purchase. Th e Caterpillar 797 trucks on order to upgrade the Burton fl eet are worth about $6 million each.

Mr McCarthy said Th iess had a long association with Liebherr and had also been the fi rst to use the R996 excavator, the class below the R9800. He said operators at Burton reported that the R9800 was a lot quicker in terms of loading times.

“It has taken them a bit to get used to the sheer size of it, because they are sitting so high (more than 5m above ground). But it’s a great machine – it has been very reliable and very productive,” he said.

Th e second should be “in dirt” at Burton at the start of April.

Th e extension project will prolong the life of the Peabody Energy Australia-owned mine to 2016. It has secured about 500 jobs, while a further 50 to 100 positions have been created in construction.

“Without the widening being undertaken now, the mine would have been winding down around September this year,” Mr McCarthy said.

Th iess started operations at Burton in 1996 and has mined close to 50 million tonnes of hard coking coal and thermal coal for export from various pits within

Dyno Nobel will construct 28 new homes costing $10 million in Moranbah for employees of its new $935 million ammonium nitrate plant.

Th e company said the additional housing was required to ensure that the 80-strong full-time operational workforce could live with their families in Moranbah. Th e housing plans were announced at public information sessions held by Dyno Nobel’s parent company, Incitec Pivot, recently at the Moranbah Community Centre.

While heavy rains in January caused construction delays at the plant site, the company says the project is still on track to be completed in the fi rst quarter of 2012. Construction involves a workforce of up to 600 contractors and is described as being “well past the half-way mark”.

Th e plant will supply ammonium nitrate products for use as explosives at Bowen Basin mines. It is expected to directly contribute $30 million annually to the local economy plus an estimated $40 million to the state and national economies.

Th e new R9800 model backhoe excavator bound for Burton mine is only the third of its kind to come off the Liebherr production line.

Th e fi rst ever released also went to the central Queensland coal mine, while the second world-wide is being operated by Downer EDI Mining at the Fortescue Metals Group’s Christmas Creek iron ore mine in Western Australia.

Liebherr Australia mining manager for Queensland Tony Johnstone said the 800-tonne machine was the biggest backhoe excavator in the world.

Th e R9800 was designed with a standard bucket size of 42 cubic metres, with a target load of 75 tonnes, Mr Johnstone said.

Th e Liebherr R9800 is driven by two 1492kW- 2000 horsepower engines and boasts rapid loading cycles combined with tremendous digging and breakout forces.

Th iess scales up Burton fl eet the 45km site.Th e extension work

will maintain Burton’s annual

production capacity of more

than 2.5 million tonnes of coal.

It will see operations return to

the original mining area, where

high-quality coal will be mined to

a depth of up to 240m - making

Burton the deepest open-cut

operation in the Bowen Basin.

A lift for local housing

A 350-tonne crane lifts the “penthouse”, or head house, to the top of

the 80m prill tower at the ammonium nitrate plant site.

Groundbreaking deliveriesThe fi rst Liebherr R9800 at work at Burton mine.

8 March 2011 | The Mining AdvocateINDUSTRY UPDATE HARD ROCK

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Mount Peake stacks up

Australian resources company TNG

reports positive results from an

independent scoping study to evaluate

the development potential of its

Mount Peake iron-vanadium project

in the Northern Territory. It is based

on a mine life of more than 23 years,

processing about fi ve million tonnes of

ore per annum.

Th e capital

expenditure

estimate for the

fi rst stage of

development, at

two million tonnes

per annum, is

about $370 million

and more than

$307 million for

the second stage to

fi ve million tonnes.

Th e results follow

the company’s success in co-developing

a new patented hydrometallurgical

process which now underpins the

project. TNG has decided to evaluate

the potential for further processing its

vanadium pentoxide product into highly

valuable ferro-vanadium.

Manbarrum joint venture

TNG has signed a joint venture

agreement on its Manbarrum zinc-lead-

silver project in the Northern Territory

with the Sorby Hills Joint Venture

(comprised of Kimberley Metals and

a subsidiary of China’s largest lead

producer, Hunan Yuguang Gold &

Lead). TNG chief executive offi cer

Paul Burton said the transaction would

enable that company to focus on the

continued exploration and development

of its fl agship Mount Peake iron-

vanadium project.

ERA’s wet season woes

Northern Territory uranium miner

Energy Resources of Australia

suspended processing operations from

late January, with the break expected

to last 12 weeks. Th e company said

this was a precautionary measure to

help ensure that levels in the tailings

storage facility remained below the

authorised operating limit throughout

the remainder of the wet season. ERA

recorded a net profi t after tax of $47

million in 2010, down from a record of

$273 million in 2009.

Invictus Gold kicks off

Invictus Gold has started fi eld work on

its Drummond Basin gold projects in

northern central

Queensland,

following the

company’s

successful listing

on the ASX after

an oversubscribed

Initial Public

Off er (IPO). Th e

Drummond Basin

contains three

of Invictus’ fi ve

projects prospective

for world-class

deposits of gold, gold-silver, gold-

copper, molybdenum and tin.

Twin Hills restart on track

Alcyone Resources says it is fully

funded to complete the redevelopment

of the Twin Hills silver mine in south-

east Queensland following a successful

$16.7 million capital raising. Alycone

planned to commence re-irrigation of

the existing heaps during March.

Iron portfolio grows

Eastern Iron has signed a purchase

agreement with RMM Capital for the

Eulogie iron project, 23km south of

Mount Morgan in central Queensland.

Eastern Iron said Eulogie was a great

addition to the company’s growing

portfolio of quality iron ore prospects

in central Queensland, where it is also

exploring magnetite iron projects at

Hawkwood and Auburn.

“Further resource drilling and

metallurgical studies to be carried out in

2011 will assist Eastern in assessing the

potential to develop a large-scale iron

export operation in an area already well

serviced by existing infrastructure,” the

company said.

NT gold project sold

Australian rare earths company Arafura

Resources has executed a contract of

sale with Global Mineral Resources

for the Mt Porter-Frances Creek gold

project in the Northern Territory. Under

the terms of the agreement, Arafura will

receive $1.5 million cash, 7.5 million

shares in Global and 7.5 million options

exercisable at $0.25. Th e transaction

is due to be settled at the time of a

successful ASX listing by Global, which

is expected by mid-year.

Thor picks up Spring Hill

Western Desert Resources has agreed

to the staged sale of its Spring Hill

gold project, about 150km south of

Darwin, to Th or Mining for $1.25

million in cash and shares. Th or will

gain an interest of up to 80 per cent in

the project, which holds an indicated

resource of 274,000oz of gold.

Th or chairman Mick Billing described

the existing resources as signifi cant and

said the company would be actively

assessing the potential for open-pit

production in the near future.

Western Desert Resources, a major

shareholder in Th or, said the sale would

allow the company to focus on the

development of iron ore operations at

its fl agship Roper Bar project, also in

the Northern Territory.

Australian iron ore producer Territory Resources has commissioned a $4.3 million benefi ciation plant at its Frances Creek mine in the Northern Territory.

Th e company has about 800,000 tonnes of scalp ore on stockpiles near the new plant which can be benefi ciated to 60 per cent iron and sold as fi nes.

Th e plant, manufactured by Consulmet in South Africa, has a nominal feed rate of 130 tonnes per hour.

At steady state operation the plant will treat 80,000 tonnes of scalp feed to produce approximately 44,000 tonnes of high-grade fi nes ore every month.

Territory Resources managing director Andy Haslam said the commissioning of the benefi ciation plant unlocked considerable value in the current environment of high iron ore prices.

The new benefi ciation plant at Frances Creek mine.

Value adding

9The Mining Advocate | March 2011 INDUSTRY UPDATE COAL AND GAS

Th e document is available for review

at a number of locations, with public

submissions open until March 28.

Th e Adani Group is proposing to

establish rail facilities and coal mines,

about 100km north of Emerald, capable

of producing 60 million tonnes of coal

per annum.

Thiess wins gas contract

Th iess has won

a $136 million

contract with QGC

for early works

projects near Miles

and Chinchilla in

the Surat Basin.

Th iess will install

fi eld compressor

stations, HDPE

(high-density

polyethylene)

gathering pipelines,

intermediate pressure gas trunklines,

water storage ponds and complete site

preparation for additional compressor

stations. Th e work, part of QGC’s coal

seam gas to liquefi ed natural gas project,

is due for completion in March 2012.

Moorlands maiden resource

Blackwood Coal has announced a

maiden resource of 27.3 million tonnes,

calculated in accordance with the JORC

code, for its Moorlands project west

of Clermont. Th e inferred resource has

been estimated from the geological

desktop compilation of results from

past drilling, including exploration

conducted predominantly by CRA and

the Geological Survey of Queensland.

Th e coal is a high-volatile bituminous

thermal coal.

Blackwood - a Sydney-based private

Australian company - plans to conduct a

12 to 15-hole exploration program with

the aim of corroborating or augmenting

the resource base, and moving a portion

of the inferred resources into indicated

status.

Cougar fi ghts UCG closure

Cougar Energy is challenging the

Queensland Government’s decision

to halt the company’s underground

coal gasifi cation (UCG) activities at

Kingaroy.

Th e company has lodged a submission

with the Department of Environment

and Resource Management (DERM)

setting out grounds as to why the

proposed orders should not be made.

“Cougar Energy believes that DERM’s

proposed amendment to the existing

environmental authority is fl awed and

invalid, and relies on incorrect and

fl awed statements of the Queensland

Government’s Independent Scientifi c

Panel,” Cougar Energy chairman

Malcolm McAully said.

“It must be remembered that Cougar

Energy’s Kingaroy project has never

presented any danger to human health,

drinking water, livestock nor farming

activities in the region.”

Th e Government in January

announced that it would not allow the

suspended UCG trial at Kingaroy to

recommence as Cougar Energy could

not demonstrate that it could do so

without an unacceptable risk of causing

environmental harm.

DERM director general John Bradley

said the agency was not satisfi ed

with two of the three reports the

company was directed to provide

after contaminants resulting from the

underground gasifi cation process were

detected in groundwater monitoring

bores on the Cougar site.

Meanwhile DERM has issued amended

environmental authorities to Carbon

Energy allowing that company to restart

its UCG trial at Kogan in the Surat

Basin following investigations into an

unauthorised discharge of process water.

Signifi cant project status

JFE Steel and QCoal’s proposed

Byerwen coal mine outside Collinsville

has been declared a signifi cant project.

Queensland Treasurer Andrew Fraser

said the $1.5 billion project was

expected to produce up to 10 million

tonnes per annum of high-quality,

metallurgical coking coal over a lifespan

of 50 years.

“Up to 500 jobs could be created during

construction and up to 1000 jobs at its

full operational stage,” he said.

Construction of the open-cut mine and

underground mine could commence as

early as 2012 following state and federal

approvals.

Ellensfi eld moves forward

Sinclair Knight Merz (SKM) has been

commissioned to conduct feasibility

study work for the above-ground

and underground infrastructure for

Vale’s Ellensfi eld coal project in the

Moranbah region.Th e project involves

the development of a greenfi eld

underground longwall coal mine,

producing coking coal and thermal coal

for export.

Vale is aiming for a 2015 start-up for

the mining operation and has allocated

$47 million towards advancing the

project this year.

Poitrel contract extended

BHP Mitsui Coal (BMC) has awarded

Leighton Contractors a three-year

contract extension worth about $225

million to continue mining services at

the Poitrel mine, 35km south-east of

Moranbah. Leighton Mining general

manager Greg Fokes said the company

had been working with BMC at Poitrel

since 2006, providing a range of services

including project management, surface

mining, engineering and maintenance.

Leighton Mining currently employs

about 220 people at the mine.

$145m plant expansion

A Th iess-Sedgman joint venture

has been awarded a $145 million

contract to expand the coal handling

and preparation plant at the Lake

Vermont mine near Dysart in central

Queensland. Th e contract is to design,

procure, construct and commission an

expansion of the plant on behalf of Lake

Vermont Resources to boost production

by up to 4 million

tonnes per annum.

Th e project is

expected to

generate up to

200 new jobs at its

peak. Work is due

to begin in July.

Th iess-Sedgman

designed and

constructed the

original Lake

Vermont coal

handling and preparation plant,

commissioned in March 2009.

Scoping studies released

Endocoal has announced the results of

scoping studies for its Orion Downs

coal projects, Inderi and Meteor Downs

South, located near Xstrata’s Rolleston

operation in the south-west of the

Bowen Basin. Th e company said Meteor

Downs South was anticipated to be an

open-cut, truck-and-shovel operation

and Inderi to be an underground, bord-

and-pillar operation.

Th e operations, to be developed at

a cost of $65 million, would have a

combined production of 2.5 million

tonnes per annum. Th e Endocoal Board

has approved the commencement of

prefeasibility studies for the projects.

Carmichael milestone

Th e Adani Group’s $10 billion

Carmichael coal and rail project has

taken another step forward with the

release of draft terms of reference.

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10 March 2011 | The Mining AdvocateBETWEEN SHIFTS

‘Cairns meets Mount Isa’ networking event

RedEarth Boutique Hotel, Mount Isa

Tiahni Desatge, Peter Gogsch (O’Regan & Partners) and Ariana

Desatge.

June Baker (Star Trophies) with Rene and Deryck Thompson

(Engineering Excellence).

Ross Thinee (Desert Knowledge), Kay Strong (AusIndustry,

Townsville) and Rod Murray (Enterprise Connect, Cairns).

Jennifer Welk (Mount Isa Airport) with Steve Jones (Skytrans).Capt Peter Vesely (Defence Reserve Support), Antonia Moore

(AMM Security Solutions, Cairns), Ian Button (Independent

Aviation, Cairns) and Natalie Siipola (IPA Personnel, Mount Isa).

Jeremy Murphy (CKS Mining Services) with Trish O’Callaghan

(Mount Isa Chamber of Commerce).

PHOTOS: Roslyn Budd

Darwin Mining Club luncheon

Novotel Atrium, Darwin

Owen Pike and Michael Pike (from MMC) with Alan Green and

Joshua Blake (both from IS Australia).

Angela Collard (Tourism NT), Digby Fingers (Specialised Metal

Fabrication) and Linda Young (Darwin Co-ordinators).

Simon Lance (Hays), Brian Gallaugher (Macmahon), Beccy

Partridge (Hays) and Corey Impelmans (Delta Electrics).

Tamara Grothues (Austwide Mining), Richard McKenna (Coff ey),

Marcia Kelly (Skills DMC) and Rosemary Waghorne (Minerals

Council Australia).

Kirsty Champion and Naomi Gearon (Clayton Utz). Tim Walsh (Delta Electrics), Adrian McLay (ThincProjects) and Bill

Kmon (GHD).

PHOTOS: Christopher Knight

11The Mining Advocate | March 2011 BETWEEN SHIFTS

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See us at theMount Isa Mining Expo!

WIMARQ International Women’s Day lunch

Watermark Townsville

Julie Hilder (MMG Century Mine) and Sharon Dawson (Dawsons

Engineering).

Tania Strixner-Harvey and Rachel Leitch (Queensland Nickel). Abby Jensen, Esther Bank and Kelly Stokes (all Townsville Water).

Caroline Wacando and Joan McKay (both from the Queensland

Department of Education and Training). Jim Morrison (AusImm) and Brigette Henderson-Hall (WIMARQ).

PHOTOS: Stewart McLean

Mackay Area Industry Network (MAIN) breakfast

Ocean International Hotel, Mackay

Roger Martin (Aggreko), Margaret Clegg (Haynes Mechanical)

and George Martin (Think).

Greg Murphy (Best Tractor Parts) and Peter Van Iersel (Enterprise

Connect).

Bill Hopton (CTMP) with Lisa Milne and Colin Fairall (both from

Bureau Veritas ITA).

Dean Kirkwood (Mining Logic Solutions), Lizzy Dodo (Enterprise

Connect) and Andrew Duck (Brown and Bird Accountants).

Narelle Pearse (MAIN) and Allan Ruming (Group Engineering). Karen McNally (Enterprise Whitsundays), Murray Gibbs, (Chandler

Macleod) and Kaylene Ascough (Enterprise Whitsundays).

PHOTOS: Damien Carty

WANT BETTER ACCESS TO THEMINING INDUSTRY?

is the KEYContact us now for your promotion solutions

P: 0747 550 336E: info@miningadvocate.com.au

CLAYFIELD COLLEGE ~ Brisbane Queensland ~

GIRLS: PRE-PREP - YEAR 12GIRLS: BOARDING YEAR 5 - YEAR 12

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23 Gregory St Clayfield QLD 4011P 07 3262 0262 F 07 3262 0225 E enrol@clayfield.qld.edu.au

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2012 Year 8 Boarding Scholarships are now available

For an application pack contact Ross Thomson, Director of Marketing & Enrolments on

07 3262 0220 or rthomson@clayfield.qld.edu.au

13The Mining Advocate | March 2011 Education 2011 feature

For further information visit us at the Xstrata Mount Isa Mining Expo or contact the Registrar, Ms Catherine McMahon, on (07) 3834 5200 or email enrolments@brisbanegrammar.com

BRISBANE GRAMMAR SCHOOL - PROVIDING EDUCATION SOLUTIONS FOR THE MINING INDUSTRY

www.brisbanegrammar.com

“I loved my time at Grammar. It provided me with a solid academic grounding from which I was able to go on to tertiary study and pursue a career in the mining industry. They were the ‘good old days’ and I remain connected to many of my Grammar friends, quite a few of whom have made their home in Far North Queensland.” Ross Thomas, Townsville (1969 Old Boy, Executive Producer Beneath Hill 60, Mining Registrar – Charters Towers and Cairns)

MA

311

Brisbane Grammar School has a long tradition of studying the earth sciences, with geology introduced into the curriculum as early as 1879. One hundred years later, the school off ered earth science as a dedicated subject and it remains one of the few still to do so. Regular fi eld trips bring earth science to life, with a bi-

annual excursion to Hawaii a highlight.

On a recent visit, lava had appeared in the crater of Kilauea Volcano for the fi rst time in 40 years and students spent an evening watching (at a safe distance) the lava fl ow down a hillside and into the ocean.

Th ere was more action at the Pacifi c Tsunami Warning

Centre where a lecture on plate tectonics was interrupted when a possible tsunamogenic earthquake occurred in the Aleutian Islands.

Students were escorted to the control room where the earthquake was “processed” - a 5.6 on the Richter Scale – but fortunately no tsunami warning had to be issued.

With experiences such as

this on off er, it is no surprise the subject grows in popularity each year.

Brisbane Grammar students consistently rank among the top earth science students in the state, with 2009 graduate Hawkin Hwang receiving the Gold Medal from the Geological Society of Australia (Queensland Division), having achieved the highest

VHA level in earth science in Queensland. Hawkin accepted a scholarship to the University of Toronto to study a Bachelor of Science.

More than 95 per cent of grammar students proceed to tertiary education, many taking up a career in the science and engineering fi elds, studying throughout Australia and overseas.

Earth science enthrals at Brisbane Grammar

Parents often face the diffi cult decision of whether to send their daughter to a local school or to a boarding school. Unfortunately, this decision can be marred by the traditional perception of boarding houses being mere lodging facilities with unwelcoming environments. Th e Clayfi eld College Boarding House has been laying to rest such perceptions for many years.

Th e Clayfi eld College Boarding House, located in the inner northern suburbs of Brisbane, has a longstanding reputation of providing a safe, caring and

supportive environment for girls as they embark upon their schooling.

With a maximum of 124 girls and more than 20 experienced staff committed to their welfare, the girls quickly acquire an extended family within their home away from home.

What makes the boarding experience so special at Clayfi eld is the “the overwhelming sense of community,” according to Clayfi eld College principal Brian Savins.

New boarders join an orientation program designed to

make their transition as seamless as possible.

A warm and comfortable living space is also created for the girls, with the boarding house accommodation set within beautiful, heritage-listed buildings.

Quality home-style cooked meals are prepared for the girls every day by the professional chefs on staff .

Parents seeking further information should direct any enquiries to director of marketing and enrolments Ross Th omson on (07) 3262 0220.

Sense of community at Clayfi eld

Year 11 boarders from Clayfi eld College - making friends for life.

One of the diffi culties many mining industry families face is giving their children access to a quality education. Whether seeking a larger range of opportunities than local schools can off er, consistency in curriculum or just to broaden their horizons, many mining families turn to boarding school.

As one of Queensland’s largest boarding schools, St Joseph’s Nudgee College in Brisbane has a diverse student body with students from a wide variety of backgrounds, locations and socio-economic levels.

Principal Daryl Hanly said a holistic approach to education, diverse curriculum and modern classrooms that featured the latest in education technology allowed students to develop as a whole person and guaranteed they could follow a variety of pathways.

Many students will start their careers while still at school as a result of the college’s award-winning vocational education program. Construction of a regional Trade Training Centre at Nudgee College will further add to the off ering.

Mr Hanly said the college had

been recognised nationally for

its Vocational Education and

Training (VET) program and its

students were often sought out

by industry leaders.

“Th ese new facilities will

allow Nudgee College to

off er a further 60 students

the opportunity to gain their

Certifi cate I in Construction

and/or Engineering,” he said. A construction student at Nudgee College.

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Stepped up activity throughout the North West Minerals Province has led to keen interest in booth space at the 2011 Xstrata Mount Isa Mining Expo.

Mount Isa Chamber of Commerce manager Patricia O’Callaghan said strong demand for expo space had seen organisers reconfi gure the fl oor plan to increase booth numbers from 168 to almost 200.

“At the moment the country has its eyes on the activity out here,” she said.

“Th ere have been a number of signifi cant company announcements and businesses in the industry feel that if they want to get their name out there and promote their organisation 2011 is the year to do it.”

A new half-day conference on the expo program had also drawn a good response, she said.

Ms O’Callaghan said the fact the chamber had been able to secure fi nancial commentator Michael Pascoe to MC and facilitate the event had helped raise its profi le.

Speakers will include representatives from Legend International Holdings, Xstrata Copper, Xstrata Zinc and MMG.

Th e interest in the conference, which evolved from the popular

All eyes are on north-west Queensland in

2011 thanks to a raft of mine expansions,

restarts and new projects in the pipeline.

Keen expo interest as region lifts

Mining the Carpentaria

breakfast, left no doubt that it

would grow to become a full-day

event in 2012, Ms O’Callaghan

said.

Th e Mining the Carpentaria

Conference will be held at the

Mount Isa Civic Centre on April

4 to kick off expo week activities.

Th e 2011 Mount Isa Mining

Expo will be held from April 5

to 7, with the trade exhibition

located at Buchanan Park and

associated networking events at

various city venues.

Patricia O’CallaghanMount Isa Chamber of Commerce

manager

Th e Xstrata Mount Isa Mining Expo is hitting new heights this year thanks to the arrival of Australian helicopter company Heliwest in the region.

Expo visitors will be off ered a special deal on joy fl ights in the company’s Bell LongRanger craft, which has been based in Mount Isa since mid-February under an arrangement that guarantees the local NQ Rescue service access to the helicopter.

NQ Rescue chief executive offi cer Alex Dorr said mining companies had started using the Heliwest craft for site visits and he expected business to increase as more operations resumed their exploration programs following the wet season.

Mr Dorr – who is also local base manager for Heliwest - planned to use the expo to promote the service, including its tourism potential in terms of running joy fl ights around the Mount Isa district.

Th e helicopter was recently involved in a rescue - locating a vehicle which had become bogged during a trip to Doomadgee, stranding a man who required dialysis.

Mr Dorr said an intensive care paramedic had

joined the fl ight due to concerns about the man’s

condition.

Th e helicopter team located the man with his

son and fl ew to Century mine, where the Royal

Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) was able to use the

airstrip and transfer the sick man to Townsville for

treatment.

“It showed how well the helicopter service links

in with the RFDS,” Mr Dorr said.

“We were able to go up and get them out of an

area inaccessible by road and get them back to

the nearest airstrip, where the RFDS could come

straight in.”

NQ Rescue is awaiting the outcome of a

Queensland Health review that will determine if

it will receive State Government support to off er

a fully fl edged aero-medical and search and rescue

service for the region.

Joy fl ights herald newIsa helicopter venture

NQ Rescue chief executive offi cer Alex Dorr and crewman Ash Milroy. Photo: Roslyn Budd

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NQ hard rock mining special As the North gears up for this year’s Xstrata Mount Isa Mining Expo,

The Mining Advocate presents an overview of signifi cant operations

and projects throughout the region.

This special feature relates directly to the North Queensland

resources map produced as an insert to this edition.

Balcooma mine – this underground mine is the primary source of copper production for Kagara in North Queensland, with ore processed at the Mount Garnet copper plant. It also produces zinc and lead.

Kagara also produces base metals from the Mount Garnet and Mungana underground mines as well as the newly opened Vomacka open pit.With three treatment plants in operation, the company is targeting zinc production of 41,000 tonnes of concentrate and copper production of 23,000 tonnes in the 2010/11 fi nancial year.

Black Star mine – Xstrata Zinc last year approved a $133 million expansion of the Black Star open-cut mine to extend its life to 2016. Th is is expected to add about 14 million tonnes of ore to the production profi le at a rate of up to 4.6 million tonnes per year.

Cannington mine - BHP Billiton is investigating a multimillion-dollar project to extend the life of this north-west Queensland silver-zinc-lead mine beyond 2019. It has released an environmental impact statement for the project, which would involve a mix of underground and open-cut operations.

Cape Flattery sand mining - Cape Flattery Silica Mines, wholly owned by Mitsubishi Corporation, is the world’s largest silica sand producer.

Signifi cant mining and processing operations

Century mine - operated by MMG, a

member of the Minmetals Resources

group of companies, Century is Australia’s

largest open-pit zinc mine, producing

some 500,000 tonnes of zinc annually. Th e

lower Gulf operation is expected to close

around 2015.

Collingwood tin mine – owners Metals X

placed this far north Queensland mine on

care and maintenance in 2008. Th e asset,

including a crushing and processing plant,

is available for sale.

Dry River South – this polymetallic

underground mine, owned by Kagara,

remains on care and maintenance.

Eloise mine – this underground copper-

gold mine, owned by FMR Investments,

is returning to production after a period

of care and maintenance. Contractors

Barminco began work at the site, about

70km south-east of Cloncurry, in

December.

Ernest Henry mine – A $589 million

project is under way to extend the life of

mine at this Xstrata Copper operation to

2024 through the transformation of open-

pit mining to underground mining and

magnetite processing. (See story Page 16)

George Fisher mine – Construction is

under way in a $274 million expansion

project at this Xstrata Zinc mine to

increase production by 30 per cent from

2013. New $35 million crushing facilities

are also under construction.

Great Australia mine - CopperChem purchased this site in 2009 and has upgraded processing facilities with works including installation of a concentrator. (See story Page 17)

Handlebar Hill – Xstrata Zinc operates Handlebar Hill outside Mount Isa as a swing mine with the Black Star open cut, sharing fl eet and personnel to support production throughput in the Mount Isa zinc-lead concentrator.

Imperial mine (Charters Towers Gold Project) – operator Citigold Corporation has recently opened up multiple ore headings in the Sons of Freedom cross reef in addition to continued mining on the Warrior reef within the Imperial mining area (formerly known as Warrior Mine).

Lady Annie mine – CST Minerals, the Australian arm of CST Mining Group, restarted mining at this site north of Mount Isa last year. Copper cathode production, which resumed in November, is expected to ramp up to a rate of 30,000 tonnes per annum by late 2011 or early 2012.

15 NQ MINING – EXPO SPECIALNQ MINING – EXPO SPECIALThe Mining Advocate | March 2011 15

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Commissioning has begun at Xstrata Copper’s new $79 million magnetite plant at Ernest Henry Mining (EHM), outside Cloncurry.

Th e EHM orebody is an iron oxide-copper-gold (IOCG) deposit and the operation produced 74,595 tonnes of copper in concentrate and 91,259oz of gold in concentrate in 2010. While magnetite has traditionally been discarded as tailings, the construction of the new extraction plant alongside EHM’s copper-gold concentrator allows it to be captured and sold as a by-product.

Th e magnetite extraction plant is comprised of fi ve main circuits including a rougher magnetic separator circuit, primary cyclone cluster, regrind mill circuit, cleaner magnetic separator circuit and dewatering circuit. Th e fi nal product is a premium grade iron ore concentrate containing about 90-98 per cent magnetite.

EHM general manager Myles Johnston said magnetite processing was an important part of a $589 million extension project which would extend the life of the EHM operation to at least 2024.

“Th e transformation of open-pit mining operations to a major shaft underground mine is on budget, with the shaft scheduled to be commissioned in the fi rst quarter of 2013,” he said.

$79m plant online(From top to bottom)

Concentrator manager Matt

Magee, magnetite project

manager John Twomey,

Xstrata Copper chief executive

offi cer Charlie Sartain, Xstrata

Copper North Queensland

chief operating offi cer Steve

de Kruijff , Ernest Henry

Mining general manager

Myles Johnston and refi nery,

port and logistics general

manager Mark Roberts

inspect the cleaner magnetic

separators in the new plant.

Leichhardt copper operations – Cape

Lambert Resources aims to sell or spin off

this asset, purchased after former owner

Matrix Metals went into administration.

It includes the Mt Cuthbert processing

plant and Mt Watson open-pit mine.

Mount Garnet mine – zinc and copper

ore from this underground operation is

processed at Kagara’s adjacent Mount

Garnet treatment facilities.

Mt Gordon mine – this underground

copper mine and concentrator plant,

130km north of Mount Isa, is returning

to production after being placed on care

and maintenance in 2009. Contractor

Barminco has been working on site since

late last year and owner Aditya Birla

expects to gain State approval by mid-

April to start full mining operations.

Mount Isa acid plant - Incitec Pivot

produces about one million tonnes of

sulphuric acid each year for use in the

manufacture of ammonium phosphate

fertilisers.

Mount Isa Mines copper operations -

Xstrata Copper’s Mount Isa operations

include two underground copper mines

- Enterprise and X41 - from which

6.2 million tonnes of ore is mined per

annum. Th e operations include on-site

concentrator and smelter facilities.

Mt Moss magnetite mine – Mt Moss

Mining, owned by Curtain Bros, began

lump iron exports in 2010 and expects to

ship 500,000 tonnes in 2011.

Mungana polymetallic mine – this

underground mine produces zinc, lead,

copper and gold, with the ore processed

at Kagara’s Mount Garnet treatment

facilities.

Osborne mine – Ivanhoe Australia is

investing $30 million on work to allow

mining to restart in 2012 after purchasing

this copper-gold operation, 195km south-

east of Mount Isa, in 2010. Former owners

Barrick Australia completed 2.35km of

decline development, with only 150m

remaining to reach the Kulthor ore body, when the project was abandoned in February 2009. Ore from that deposit, the Osborne underground mines and their extensions are likely to provide the initial feed for the restarted concentrator.Ivanhoe Australia is also examining the possibility of sourcing additional ore from the Starra 276 and Starra 222 deposits and the existing Osborne open pit.

Pajingo mine – Conquest Mining gained 100 per cent ownership of this gold operation through its recent acquisition of North Queensland Metals and Heemskirk Consolidated. It is looking at strategies to lift production from an annual rate of

around 50,000-55,000oz.

Signifi cant mining and processing operations - continued

16 March 2011 | The Mining AdvocateNQ MINING – EXPO SPECIALNQ MINING – EXPO SPECIAL

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Phosphate Hill - Incitec Pivot mines phosphate rock at its Phosphate Hill operation, where the company manufactures about 975,000 tonnes per annum of ammonium phosphate fertilisers (MAP and DAP).

Queensland Nickel refi nery – purchased by mining magnate Clive Palmer from BHP Billiton in 2009, this plant produces about 30,000 tonnes of nickel and 2000 tonnes of cobalt annually for export.

Ravenswood gold operations – Resolute Mining is assessing a $72 million plan to expand the Sarsfi eld open pit, to be mined in conjunction with ongoing production from Mt Wright.

Sun Metals refi nery – this Korea Zinc-owned refi nery outside Townsville produces about 210,000 tonnes of zinc ingot annually and 410,000 tonnes of sulphuric acid. Th e operation has recently diversifi ed its output to include exports of zinc ferrite and other mineral by-products from the refi ning process.

Townsville copper refi nery – Owned by Xstrata Copper, this electrorefi ning plant has the capacity to produce 300,000 tonnes of copper cathode per annum.

Twin Hills mine – new owner Conquest Mining has approved trial mining at this former BMA Gold operation as a satellite feed source for its Pajingo processing plant. First ore is due to be

delivered by mid-2011. Th e capital cost of the redevelopment will be about $6 million.

Vomacka mine – Kagara began production from this open-pit mine in October last year and expects to produce 20,000 tonnes of zinc concentrate from this source in 2011/12. Th e ore is processed at Kagara’s Th alanga polymetallic plant.

Weipa bauxite operations - Rio Tinto Alcan is conducting a feasibility study to extend its Weipa bauxite operations in an area south of the Embley River. Th e $1.5 billion South of Embley project would progressively replace depleted bauxite reserves at the East Weipa and Andoom

mining areas, increasing life of mine

by about 40 years. Th e project involves

a staged increase in capacity up to a

possible 50 million dry product tonnes

per annum. Construction could start

in 2012, depending on regulatory and

internal approvals.

Wolfram Camp mine – majority owner

Planet Metals (previously Queensland

Ores) is reconsidering the future of

this tungsten-molybdenum project

west of Cairns against a background of

strong tungsten prices after Hazelwood

Resources advised it would not proceed

with a purchase deal. Th e site includes a

150,000 tonnes-per-annum processing

plant under care and maintenance.

Signifi cant mining and processing operations - continued

CopperChem is set to commission a new concentrator in March/April, giving its Cloncurry operation the capacity to process about 600,000 tonnes of copper sulphide ores annually. Bringing that plant online will cap off a multimillion-dollar expansion program for CopperChem, a privately owned Australian company which purchased the Great Australia Mine site in June 2009.

Th e operation already treats oxide ores to produce a distinctive blue copper sulphate crystal for use in mineral processing, agriculture and timber treatment. Managing director Stephen Wolfe said CopperChem had upgraded that aspect of its processing operations in the fi rst half of 2010, doubling plant capacity.

Completion of the new grinding mill and froth fl otation concentrator in 2011 would allow CopperChem to substantially increase its output. “It will allow us to treat probably two or three times the ore quantities we are currently treating,” Mr Wolfe said.

Th e new circuit will produce about 30,000 tonnes of copper concentrate per annum for export. Mr Wolfe said CopperChem was increasing its Cloncurry workforce from about 30 to 50 to operate the new plant.

Mr Wolfe said the established resources and reserves at the Great Australia Mine, about 2km south of Cloncurry, would support operations for a further seven years. Th e company is confi dent continuing exploration close to the mine will further extend the operation’s life.

Processing boost

Erection of the fl otation plant roof at the CopperChem site outside Cloncurry.

17 NQ MINING – EXPO SPECIALNQ MINING – EXPO SPECIALThe Mining Advocate | March 2011 17

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Agate Creek project – majority

stakeholder Renison Consolidated Mines

is continuing to increase the resource base

for this proposed gold mining operation.

Th e capital cost of developing the project

is expected to be around $60 million.

Aurukun bauxite and east coast

refi nery project - Chalco Australia last

year allowed its $2.5 billion development

deal with the Queensland Government

to lapse due to adverse conditions in the

aluminium sector. Th is project would

involve the development of a new bauxite

mine at Aurukun on Cape York and an

alumina refi nery, which was proposed to

be based at Abbot Point outside Bowen.

Baal Gammon – this advanced copper-

tin project was subject to a recent sale

agreement between Conquest Mining

and Monto Minerals, along with related

Herberton tin tenements.

Bauxite Hills project - Cape Alumina

has shifted its focus to developing this

bauxite project after a Wild Rivers

declaration brought its Pisolite Hills

proposal to a standstill. Scouting

exploration results confi rmed a high-

grade bauxite discovery and drilling work

is planned throughout 2011.

Cape York Mineral Sands project – Metallica Minerals subsidiary Oresome Australia is carrying out environmental impact statement, bankable feasibility and metallurgical development test work this year for this rutile-zircon project.

City Mine (Charters Towers Gold Project) – Citigold Corporation is seeking a joint venture partner to help re-establish a “super mine” complex in this historic gold hub, with an expected development cost of more than $70 million.

Cloncurry copper project – Exco Resources is completing a defi nitive feasibility study with the aim of taking a three million-tonnes-per-annum operation into production by 2012.

Dugald River project – Th is new zinc-lead-silver mine proposed by MMG (part of the Minmetals Resources group of companies) is expected to cost $700 million to develop. Th e feasibility study is complete and an environmantal impact statement was released in early 2011.

Einasleigh project - Copper Strike has completed a feasibility study for the joint development of copper and zinc-lead deposits within this project, at an expected cost of $122 million, and aims to obtain a mining lease this year. Th e company recently announced a fi nancing deal with two Chinese groups to fund the bankable feasibility study and development of the Einasleigh deposits.

Elaine/Mt Dorothy prospects - China Yunnan Copper and its joint venture partner Goldsearch are continuing drilling on these north-west Queensland rare earth, copper and cobalt prospects after recently reporting a signifi cant heavy rare earth element and yttrium intercept at Mt Dorothy.

Hodgkinson Basin gold projects – Republic Gold is considering options to farm-out or divest its assets in this area, which include the Northcote and Tregoora projects, in order to focus on its fl agship project at Amayapampa, Bolivia.

Kalman South – joint venture partners Syndicated Metals and Cerro Resources (formerly named Kings Minerals) hold

this advanced molybdenum-rhenium-copper-gold project.

Korella deposit – Krucible Metals has applied for a mining lease after a positive scoping study into a potential high-grade rock phosphate operation to be developed at a cost of about $45 million.

Lady Loretta – Xstrata Zinc recently acquired sole ownership of this project, about 140km north-north-west of Mount Isa, by purchasing the remaining 25 per cent interest held by Cape Lambert Resources for $30 million. Cape Lambert gained its joint venture interest in the lead-silver-zinc project as part of its acquisition of CopperCo assets in June 2009. Lady Loretta’s resource has been estimated at 13.6 million tonnes with 17 per cent zinc and 6 per cent lead.

Liontown, Waterloo, Orient and West 45 deposits - Kagara expects to mine these deposits in the Charters Towers region from 2012 to feed its polymetallic concentrator nearby at Th alanga once the Vomacka site has been depleted.

Lucky Break – Joint venture partners Metallica Minerals and Metals Finance aim to start commissioning in the second quarter of 2012 for this North Queensland nickel laterite project. Th e mining and heap leach processing operation is expected to cost about $12.5 million to bring online.

Merlin project – Ivanhoe Australia expects to begin mining in late 2011 at this molybdenum and rhenium project, which includes the Little Wizard deposit. With a capital cost around $200 million, the project includes construction of a fl otation plant and roaster at the nearby Osborne mine site.

Mount Carbine project – Icon Resources expects to begin construction of a tailings processing plant mid-year at the Mount Carbine tungsten project in far north Queensland. Th e company said recent test results supported Icon’s concept of a staged development of Mount Carbine beginning with the re-treatment of tailings, followed by the processing of low-grade stockpiles and the resumption of mining at the site. Th e project life would extend beyond 15 years based on

the present understanding of resource

potential, Icon Resources said.

Mt Carlton project – owner Conquest

Mining has approved development of

this new gold-silver-copper operation,

south-east of Charters Towers, with fi rst

production expected in 2012. Capital

costs are expected to reach $126.9 million.

Mt Dore copper and polymetallic

project – Ivanhoe Australia has studies

under way for a potential heap leach SX/

EW (solvent extraction-electrowinning)

operation at this site.

Mt Elliott/SWAN – Ivanhoe Australia has

a scoping study under way to evaluate

an underground and open-pit mining

operation at this copper-gold project, with

potential to process ore at its Osborne

complex.

Mount Garnet project – Consolidated

Tin Mines has started feasibility studies

for the establishment of a new tin

operation, with an expected development

cost of about $124 million. Th e company’s

Mount Garnet project area includes the

Gillian, Pinnacles and Windermere tin

projects.

Mt Oxide project – Perilya expects to

make a development decision on this

former copper operation, north-west of

Mount Isa, in the second quarter of 2011.

Mt Remarkable/Barbara project –

Syndicated Metals achieved a substantial

resource upgrade for this project in

2010. Preliminary pit optimisation and

scoping study work is under way for the

development of a copper mining and

processing operation.

Mungana and Red Dome gold projects

– Mungana Gold Mines, a Kagara

subsidiary, is targeting a resource capable

of sustaining an operation producing

150,000oz of gold and 15,000 tonnes of

copper annually in the Chillagoe region.

More than $130 million worth of mine

infrastructure and underground access has

already been developed at Mungana.

Advanced mineral projects

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Mt Freda and Mt Norma gold projects - Queensland Mining Corporation intends to develop these projects by way of joint venture or by spinning the asset out as a new company. Th e site includes a large amount of infrastructure from earlier mining operations.

NORNICO polymetallic project – Metallica Minerals hopes to begin production in late 2013 at this nickel-cobalt-scandium project north-west of Townsville. Stage 1 is to be a tri-metal mining and processing operation, currently costed at $132 million, based around mining of the Greenvale-Lucknow deposits.

Paradise phosphate project - Legend International Holdings aims to start production in 2013 from this project, expected to cost more than $800 million to develop over fi ve years. Th e project involves multiple phosphate rock mining sites and a Mount Isa-based fertiliser manufacturing complex. Th e company has been investigating an expanded production scenario, which would see the complex churning out around 1.2 million tonnes of diammonium and monoammonium phosphate (DAP/MAP) annually.

Pisolite Hills project - Cape Alumina believes this proposed $500 million bauxite mine and port development on western Cape York is no longer economically viable due to the impact of the Wenlock Wild River Declaration.

Rocklands copper project - CuDeco aims to begin production from this site

outside Cloncurry from late 2012 and

expects to mine about three million tonnes

of copper-gold-cobalt ore annually.

Roseby copper project – Altona

Mining (formerly Universal Resources) is

revisiting the Roseby defi nitive feasibility

study published in 2009. It aims to

increase the Roseby resource beyond one

million tonnes of contained copper and

double the proposed mine’s production

target to 40,000 tonnes per annum.

Skardon River bauxite project – Gulf

Alumina aims to begin mining at its

Skardon River project in 2012, with an

expected output of 1.5 million tonnes of

bauxite annually.

Starra Line project – Ivanhoe Australia

is examining the potential to process ore

from this string of abandoned copper-gold

mines, particularly Starra 276 and Starra

222, at its Osborne complex.

Valhalla/Skal uranium project – Paladin

Energy and its majority-owned subsidiary

Summit Resources are continuing work to

build resources at this advanced uranium

exploration project. Valhalla and Skal

are the major deposits within a regional

cluster of tenements holding more than

128 million pounds of uranium oxide.

Th ese include the Odin, Bikini, Watta

and Anderson uranium deposits within

the associated Mount Isa North uranium

project as well as uranium prospects

within the Valhalla North uranium

project, which Paladin Energy acquired

when it took over Fusion Resources in

2009.

Watershed tungsten project – Soaring tungsten prices have sparked renewed interest in this proposed mine, expected to cost about $70 million to develop. Vital Metals is revisiting its 2009 prefeasibility study for the project.

Westmoreland (Lagoon Creek) uranium project – Laramide Resources is continuing environmental baseline studies for this uranium project following positive scoping study results. Th e proposed mine development, with a capital cost of more than $200 million, has been stymied by Queensland Government policy against uranium mining.

White Range copper project – Queensland Mining Corporation is working to advance this project, formerly held by Matrix Metals. It includes the Greenmount, Mt McCabe, Vulcan, Mt McNamara and Hampden mining leases.

Woolgar gold project - Strategic Minerals plans extensive drilling in 2011 (focusing on the historic Mowbray mining area) following successful drilling programs in 2009 and 2010 to build on its gold resource base at this project north of Richmond. Th e company hopes to move into a feasibility study later this year for a potential open-pit mining operation if that drilling and subsequent modelling prove positive.

Young Australian copper project - Queensland Mining Corporation is involved in joint venture and fi nancing negotiation for the development of this project, which includes Kuridala mining leases.

Th e Sims Review, jointly commissioned by the State Government and the Queensland Resources Council (QRC), in 2009 recommended a competitive process for proponents to bid to provide a long-term energy solution for the Mount Isa region. Th e north-west’s major miners are still weighing up the relative merits of three major proposals. Th e equation is complicated by uncertainty over how potential funding from the Federal Government will come into play.

APA Group power station – APA is proposing development of a new 240MW gas-fi red power station to supply Mount Isa customers. Th e company owns and operates the Carpentaria Gas Pipeline. It also operates a 30MW plant supplying power to Xstrata.

CopperString project – CuString and Leighton Contractors plan to give major energy users in the north-west access to the national electricity grid by constructing a transmission line from Woodstock to Cloncurry. Th e $1.5 billion project would also provide opportunities for renewable energy ventures along the transmission line.

Mica Creek Power Station upgrade - CS Energy proposes a $150-$200 million upgrade to its existing gas-fi red plant in Mount Isa. Th e project would involve retiring four of the power station’s 10 generating units and replacing them with 120MW of high-effi ciency, combined-cycle gas generation plant.

Advanced mineral projects - continued North West Minerals Province energy options

19 NQ MINING – EXPO SPECIALNQ MINING – EXPO SPECIALThe Mining Advocate | March 2011 19

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Th irty years after the birth of the breakthrough Isa Process, Xstrata Technology engineers in North Queensland are continuing to make advances in copper refi ning technology.

A robotic cathode stripping machine developed by the Townsville team has attracted keen interest from delegates at copper industry conferences overseas, according to Xstrata Technology development technician Tony Ruddell.

Th e fi rst commercial production model is due to be delivered to the CST Minerals Lady Annie operation in north-west Queensland in April, while a second order is pending from a site in Europe.

“Th e machine is a world fi rst,” Mr Ruddell said.

“It is our latest development - extending the concepts and

designs of Xstrata Technology’s robotic handling system that was fi rst introduced into South Korea in 2005.”

While the concept and design is Xstrata Technology’s, the robots are “off the shelf ” items from Fanuc Japan.

Th e newly developed machine uses two 600kg payload robots with patented end-of-arm tooling for cathode plate handling and stripping.

Th e model being delivered to the Lady Annie operation has a capacity of 150 cathode plates per hour. A prototype remains on site at the Townsville copper refi nery for trials and display.

Mr Ruddell said the machine was developed in response to client demand for a “smarter” cathode stripping system that required less maintenance.

It would increase throughput,

A Townsville team is behind a world-fi rst

robotic cathode stripping machine that is

about to make its mine-site debut.

Still on top for technology

The robotic

stripping station in

the manufacturing

workshop in Japan

during fi nal testing

before shipment.

A Townsville-based conference organiser aims to deliver what she believes is a long-overdue local event with broad appeal across the minerals and energy sector.

Th e inaugural North Queensland Mining, Processing and Energy Conference will be held at the Rydges Southbank Convention Centre on May 9-10.

Elizabeth Hanson, who kicked off her Australian Professional Conferences and Seminars (APCS) business in Townsville late last year, said the May conference was already attracting wide interest and was destined to become an annual event.

“Th is is the fi rst conference of its kind in Townsville and is the key event targeting some of the major industries that are critical to Townsville’s economy,” she said.

improve safety and enhance

product quality by removing the

risk of damage through manual

handling.

Xstrata Technology Townsville

is the home of the Isa Process,

fi rst developed at the local copper

refi nery in the late 1970s.

“Th is revolutionary process

eliminated the need for ‘copper

starter sheets’ and over the

ensuing years has come to

dominate the world of electro-

refi ning and electro-winning,” Mr

Ruddell said.

“Importantly, the technology

enabled relatively small tonnage

projects like Lady Annie

to produce refi ned copper

economically on site.”

Xstrata Technology combined

the Isa and Kidd process

technologies in 2006 and now has

100 plants under licence around

the world, accounting for about

60 per cent of global refi ned

copper.

More than 1.6 million stainless

steel cathode plates required

for the technology have been

manufactured and exported out of

Townsville, generating more than

$750 million in income, since the

technology was commercialised.

Processing and Energy Industries”. Confi rmed speakers include leaders from Queensland Nickel, Sun Metals,

MMG Century, Ergon, Port of Townsville, Metallica Minerals and the Australian Mines and Metals Association (AMMA).

Townsville Enterprise has launched a Heavy Industry Portal for businesses seeking information on projects under way or about to start in North Queensland.

Developed with the support of the Queensland Government, the portal will feature opportunities for local suppliers to access tenders, funding and grants opportunities or training to further develop their business capabilities.

Townsville Enterprise general manager of economic development Ross Contarino said a key feature of the portal was the ability for businesses to create a listing in a local supplier directory.

Th e portal can be accessed by visitinghttp://townsvilleenterprise.com.au and following the links from the “Invest in NQ” tab.

New event has broad resource industry focus

Ms Hanson said she had focused on the resources industry for her fi rst major event as many of her professional contacts had made it clear they were fed up

with having to travel to Brisbane or interstate for such conferences.

“Also, because only bigger companies could aff ord to send multiple staff to these conferences, a lot of regional people were missing out on development opportunities,” she said.

Townsville already hosts the annual Queensland Mining Industry Health and Safety Conference, and Ms Hanson said there were other industry forums, often involving one major company and its preferred partners.

She wanted to run a forum that was broad enough to draw a range of major companies and key industry leaders, she said.

Th e theme for the 2011 conference is “Future Economic Challenges for the Mining,

Elizabeth HansonAustralian Professional Conferences

and Seminars conference manager

Portal for project updates

21The Mining Advocate | March 2011 WET SEASON

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Phosphate Hill became a safe haven of sorts as Cyclone Yasi bore down on the Queensland coast recently, with employees’ families invited to the remote north-western mining site.

Th e Incitec Pivot-owned operation hosted 47 family members who chose to join a skeleton crew of about 40 operations personnel and 40 camp support staff on site rather than remain in Townsville.

Th e scale of the cyclone and the safe location of the phosphate facility had prompted the off er, Incitec Pivot (IPL) vice-president – north Australia manufacturing, Gerrish Burstow, said.

“Th e thing that struck me during preparations for the cyclone is that we wanted to allow people to go back from site to be with their families, but that meant people were heading back into the cyclone zone. Th at’s how the concept came about,” he said.

Mr Burstow said the company had ensured those on site were well looked after.

“Th ere was plenty to do. We had our leisure offi cer there to organise activities for the kids,” he said.

“It was like a Big4 caravan park but with all food laid on as well.”

Townsville resident Amber Turnbull spent four nights in the Monument accommodation village along with her three children - including then six-week-old baby Gemma – and mother Barbara, who was visiting from New South Wales.

She had felt it would be safer out at the Phosphate Hill site with husband Mark, a process technician, than sitting out the cyclone at home, she said.

“Th e kids loved it – they didn’t want to come home. Th ey had a ball,” she said.

Th e Turnbull family’s Annandale home escaped damage in the storm, although a fence and some trees were knocked down.

Mr Burstow said the operation would make the same off er in future crises.

“It was highly regarded by our staff . Th ere was a real family component to it as well,” he said.

Th e company also tasked a small team of employees with checking absent workers’ homes before and after the cyclone crossed the coast and with assisting partners who had been left home alone, he said.

“After the cyclone we tried to contact all employees and for those we couldn’t contact we got

An Incitec Pivot initiative helped workers’

families stay together and out of harm’s way

during the threat of a category-fi ve cyclone.

them to go to their homes to ensure they were okay,” he said.

He was not aware of anyone suff ering serious injuries as a

result of Cyclone Yasi, although many had experienced some damage to their homes.

By the time Yasi reached

Phosphate Hill and Mount Isa, where IPL has a sulphuric acid plant, it had weakened to become a tropical rain depression.

Mine off ers shelter in the storm

Amber and Mark Turnbull with children Gemma, aged 2 months, Ben, 11, and Leah, 2, outside their Annandale home.

The family stayed at the Phosphate Hill operation, where Mark works, during Cyclone Yasi. Photo: Stewart McLean

Recent coal export fi gures show the Queensland industry is operating at around two-thirds of its capacity compared with a year ago.

Queensland Resources Council chief executive Michael Roche said that in February 2011 Queensland exported about 8 million tonnes of coal compared with 12 million tonnes for February last year.

“Th is is only one month’s worth of exports, but the numbers are consistent with company reports and the QRC’s own estimates of a 30 million-tonne downturn in coal production in 2010/11 caused by wet season fl oods,” Mr Roche said.

Th e QRC predicts a minimum impact of $5 billion in lost production due to the extreme and prolonged wet season. Its high-impact estimate is a production downtown of 53 million tonnes, with $9 billion in lost production.

“You would be hard-pressed to fi nd more than 15 per cent of (coal) mines in full production,” Mr Roche said in early March.

“Most mines are dealing with the impact of

water and we still have four mines with no rail service.”

Th ey included three mines aff ected by fl ood damage to the line around Toowoomba and Xstrata’s Rolleston operation, which suff ered severe damage to a rail spur.

However Mr Roche said the biggest hurdle to recovery was the inability of coal mines by dent of regulation and other factors to rid themselves of large build-ups of water trapped in dams and pits. Th e coal seam gas industry had been relatively unscathed compared to coal, with the greatest enduring problem being disruption to drilling programs, Mr Roche said.

Meanwhile, a senior resources lawyer says the recent wet season battering of key Australian energy and mining operations should trigger a complete rethink on force majeure provisions.

Minter Ellison Lawyers senior associate Stephanie Rowland said the widespread enactments of such provisions had catapulted force majeure issues to a “top of mind” consideration.

Coal production lagging

22 March 2011 | The Mining AdvocatePROCESSING

Th e Sun Metals refi nery outside Townsville has begun exporting zinc ferrite and other process by-products in a diversifi cation initiative expected to earn an extra $60 million per year.

Th e Korea Zinc-owned operation has also ordered a 7.6 megawatt steam turbine generator which will see it producing its own power in 2012 and will install a second reverse osmosis plant this year to further reduce the site’s reliance on town water supplies.

Newly appointed chief executive offi cer Young-Min Park said maximising by-product value while cutting water and power costs at the zinc refi nery would be a key focus in 2011.

Th e zinc ferrite cake the plant

is now exporting is a form of intermediate process material generated in the refi ning process.

Th e substance, which has previously gone into tailings, is now being recovered and exported to Korea Zinc’s Onsan refi nery, where Top Submerged Lance (TSL) technology is used to treat it.

Mr Park said Korea Zinc had initially planned to conduct such treatment at Townsville.

However studies had proved this option would not be economically viable due to the construction and operational costs involved.

Th e refi nery exported about 140,000 tonnes of zinc ferrite, copper cake, cadmium and lead/silver cake in 2010. Sun Metals

A key North Queensland processing operation

enters 2011 with a change of leadership and a

fresh product line, writes Belinda Humphries.

plans to export about 210,000 tonnes of zinc ferrite and 6000 tonnes of copper/cadmium cake and nickel/cobalt cake this year.

Mr Park said work was continuing to fi ne tune aspects of plant design, particularly in the drying and transportation process, to suit these lines.

Th e Sun Metals refi nery will continue to produce about 210,000 tonnes of zinc ingot

the installation of the new $7 million turbine, which will supply about 10 per cent of the plant’s electricity needs from next year by harnessing the power of gas generated in the refi ning process.

Mr Park said installation of a second reverse osmosis plant at the site, at a cost of $1.6 million, was expected to reduce the plant’s use of town water from 2000 kilolitres a day to about 500 kilolitres a day.

Water supply and the relatively high cost of electricity, in the absence of a major base-load plant in Townsville, have been key constraints to the planned expansion of the plant, which Mr Park describes as being a long-term rather than medium-term goal at this stage.

Another major factor is the availability of zinc concentrate for treatment, with a world-wide shortage driving up prices, according to Sun Metals sales and logistics manager Paul Ryan.

Mr Park, who took over in January from retiring Sun Metals chief executive Sang Bum Lee, said his management approach was very much focused on “strengthening and improving our operation through our people”.

New era for refi nery

Sun Metals chief executive offi cer Young-Min Park with a stockpile of zinc

ferrite cake. Photo: Stewart McLean

Sun Metals has launched an exploration joint venture with Korean

company Cores in a bid to discover new feed sources in the face of a

global shortfall in zinc concentrate.

Sun Metals sales and logistics manager Paul Ryan said the partners

were beginning a $5 million fi ve-year drilling program in the Boulia area

in a bid to secure a new source of zinc for processing.

“It makes sense for smelters to have vertical integration, to have their

own source of supply - that way you are not reliant on other parties,” Mr

Ryan said.

Half of the Sun Metals plant’s feedstock is imported – about 200,000

tonnes of zinc concentrate per year.

Th e bulk of its Australian-sourced zinc concentrate is drawn from

BHP Billiton Cannington, MMG Century and Golden Grove, Xstrata

Zinc and Kagara’s North Queensland operations.

CuDeco has contracted Chinese corporation Sinosteel to supply all of the process plant components and structures for its $200 million Rocklands copper project near Cloncurry.

Announcing the deal recently, CuDeco said it had completed a four-year metallurgical test work program and was now entering the fi nal design phase.

CuDeco aims to begin production at Rocklands from late 2012 and expects to produce about 130,000 tonnes of copper concentrate with gold credits and 180,000 tonnes of cobalt/pyrite concentrates annually.

Th e fully automated process plant on order will

have a capacity of three million tonnes of ore per year. It will include circuits for native copper metal recovery and fl otation circuits for the supergene and primary sulphide zones.

Th e native copper circuit includes High Pressure Grinding Rolls (HPGR) technology to enable clean separation of the gangue material from the native copper.

To achieve the clean separation required, a jig from German company, allmineral, is used following the HPGR and wet screening.

CuDeco is continuing negotiations with various groups in relation to off -take agreements for the Rocklands concentrates.

annually and 410,000 tonnes of

sulphuric acid.

Electricity is a major input

cost for the plant, which uses

about 2500 megawatts per day,

resulting in an annual power bill

of about $50 million.

Th is will be reduced with

CuDeco reveals process plans

Exploration venture to secure further feedstock

23The Mining Advocate | March 2011 DRILLING AND EXPLORATION

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Th e Northern Territory is attracting record levels of mineral exploration expenditure, sparking high hopes of a fresh round of discoveries.

Over a fi ve-year run of growth, the Territory has seen exploration spending setting new records annually, culminating in an investment of almost $150 million in 2009-10 despite the prolonged wet season.

Th at run looks set to continue, with exploration spending exceeding $55.8 million in the fi rst quarter of this fi nancial year – easily beating previous quarterly results, according to Northern Territory Geological Survey director Ian Scrimgeour.

“Th e fact that the fi rst quarter

was a new record suggests we’re on track for another good year,” Dr Scrimgeour said.

“Importantly, a lot of junior explorers are fi nding it easier to raise capital and are planning very large explorations programs for 2011. We’re very excited about the upcoming potential for major new greenfi elds exploration projects over the next year.”

Th e greenfi elds component of the exploration spend in the Top End has risen over the past fi ve years from around 30 per cent to 60 per cent. Th is boded well for the chances of major new discoveries, Dr Scrimgeour said.

He believed the boost in NT exploration investment from resource companies, including

A signifi cant increase in the greenfi elds

component of the exploration spend is just

part of the good news from the Top End.

NT attracts record investmentMines and Energy

Minister Kon

Vatskalis with

Northern Territory

Geological Survey

director Ian

Scrimgeour.

A key Northern Territory exploration

forum has been expanded this year to

showcase new deep crustal seismic data and

interpretation from the southern Georgina

Basin and eastern Arunta Region.

Th e 12th Annual Geoscience Exploration

Seminar (AGES) will be held from March

21 at the Alice Springs Convention Centre.

Th e technical program has been stretched

to two full days to include a workshop

centred on recent interpretation from a deep

seismic survey section completed in 2009,

according to Northern Territory Geological

Survey (NTGS) assistant director, regional

prospectivity Dorothy Close.

“It’s our fi rst opportunity to image

the deep crust of central Australia and it

transects the Georgina Basin and Arunta

Region – so it’s showing some of the

major crustal-scale structures that we’re

interpreting to understand the geology and

some of the mineral systems,” she said.

Th e 370km vibroseis seismic section was

undertaken as part of Geoscience Australia’s

Onshore Energy Initiative, with the NTGS

also providing funding.

Ms Close said the AGES 2011 program

on the afternoon of March 23 would be

dedicated to a special workshop featuring six

presentations on that seismic line.

“Th e major take-home message is that

there are large-scale structural controls

tapping the deep crust that can assist with

understanding mineral systems and can be

targeted for exploration,” she said.

A joint NTGS-CSIRO project over the

Ngalia Basin, about 200km north-west of

Alice Springs, will be another major focus at

AGES 2011.

“Th e project was designed to look at

the architecture of the Bigryli (uranium/

vanadium) deposit and project that into

a basin-scale regional study of potential

mineral systems throughout the Ngalia

Basin,” Ms Close said.

Ms Close said the seminar would

include a presentation on the Territory’s

new HyLogger scanner, including the

information that could be derived from

spectral analysis of drill core.

Th e NTGS will also present new fi ndings

and understandings of the geological

framework in the south-eastern Arunta

Region, which Ms Close said would change

the way people viewed the prospectivity for

copper-gold systems in the area.

Other program highlights include the

latest information on Rum Jungle Resources’

phosphate and potash discoveries in central

Australia and Territory Uranium’s Quantum

rare earths and uranium discovery beneath

the Daly Basin.

during the GFC (Global Financial Crisis), was due in part to the Territory Government’s

geoscience information in underexplored areas in addition to co-funding selected drilling and geophysics programs in greenfi elds areas, he said.

Investment had been particularly strong in areas prospective for gold, copper and uranium, with strong interest also for iron ore, rare earths and phosphate, Dr Scrimgeour said.

Th e Rover fi eld, about 70km south-west of Tennant Creek, had been a leading hub for exploration eff orts, he said.

He believed there was a potential for a “snowball” eff ect in terms of new mineral discoveries encouraging increased interest and investment from further explorers.

In a global market, Dr Scrimgeour said it was important to highlight the fact that the Territory was not a mature exploration destination.

“Th ere are still plenty of opportunities for new discoveries and we need to highlight those opportunities,” he said.

Bringing Forward Discovery

initiative.Th is was delivering

an increasing amount of new

AGES 2011 boasts bumper program

24 March 2011 | The Mining AdvocateMAINTENANCE

Australia

Group Engineering in Mackay is driving an initiative to help small to medium enterprises work together to secure mine maintenance and project work at a time when coal companies are increasingly cutting back their supplier lists.

Th e proposed consortia business model will allow the smaller fi rms to seek project work under the umbrella of a mining industry-approved single entity with established safety standards and operating procedures.

Group managing director Allan Ruming said the initiative would target turn-key project work up to $2 million initially with a focus on maintenance and process improvement work.

Th e development follows work the Mackay Area Industry Network (MAIN) carried out last year with the help of industry clusters expert Rodin Genoff .

Mr Ruming was hoping to begin introductions to potential clients within the month to gauge response to the idea.

Mr Ruming said small to medium-sized operations were fi nding it increasingly diffi cult to win work from major mining companies, who were paring down their supplier databases.

Th e big miners were opting for larger suppliers who could provide all the services required themselves or subcontract features of the work, he said.

A consortia business model is proposed to assist

smaller central Queensland suppliers in cracking

the mining market, writes Belinda Humphries.

Xstrata Zinc’s Mount Isa operations have recently benefi ted from their continuous improvement focus and consultative management style.

Over the past 12 months employees have been invited to submit improvement suggestions under the Xstrata Zinc’s Innova system – with many of the ideas adopted by the company and put into practice.

Innova is an incentive program designed to encourage employees to participate in continuous improvement by sharing their ideas on improving safety and productivity.

Employees are encouraged to put forward proposals which will reduce expenditure, improve safety or increase operational effi ciency.

Th e system is credited with contributing to a 7 per cent reduction in the total recordable injury frequency rate last year and a 23 per cent drop in the operations’ lost-time injury frequency rate.

Xstrata Zinc Australia chief operating offi cer Brian Hearne

said also the introduction of quarterly meetings with all supervisors, superintendents, managers and general managers had been eff ective in keeping the focus on team-based action to ensure the safety of all employees and contractors remained the operation’s highest priority.

At the last safety leaders’ meeting, Black Star open-cut mine manager Bryant Schwengler provided an overview of the innovative solutions put forward through the Innova suggestion system.

One of the most eff ective suggestions was for the installation of hand rails for the back of light vehicles.

Th e suggestion has now been implemented, resulting in the creation of a safe work platform.

Employees can make suggestions online, in person, in writing or via a voicemail box at the George Fisher Mine.

Xstrata Zinc donates 2 Euros per suggestion considered to the United Nations Children’s Fund, UNICEF, whether the suggestion is adopted or not.

Suggestion system pays off for Xstrata

Hand rails installed on light vehicles are providing a safe work platform.

should translate into increased capacity and capability.

Group Engineering provides expertise in project concept, design, management, commissioning and supervision.

“What we can add to that is a small experienced team that can get to a site and deliver the project in terms of engineering, construction and project management,” Mr Ruming said.

It was hoped that the business consortia would eventually gain preferred supplier status with various companies for small to medium projects, he said.

“Ultimately we should be able to keep a number of smaller companies engaged that would otherwise go off and work as subcontractors all over the place or disappear entirely because they’re not winning the sort of work they want,” Mr Ruming said.

“It’s just another way of doing business as we see it.”

While the initiative was still in its infancy, he believed it would be assisted by the increasing demands on a limited skills pool.

“We see the consortia model we’re putting together as having a lot of application outside the resources industry as well,” Mr Ruming said.

“Th e consortia model will allow us to be more eff ective and effi cient than a straight subcontractor model because there are other drivers and benefi ts to the participants such as cost reduction, risk management and sharing as well as the ability to attract skilled staff via our personal networks and contacts.”

By decreasing the number

of suppliers they had to deal

with directly, these companies

were reducing the management

eff ort for issues such as ensuring

those who performed work for

them met requirements such as

safety standards. Simplifying the

supply chain in this way was also

expected to bring cost benefi ts,

Mr Ruming said. However, he

said there were many smaller

operators throughout the Mackay

region with very worthwhile

talents and services to off er. Th e

consortia model he is developing

will bring together a number of

businesses with synergies and

some areas of competition, which

Fresh approach

to project work

Allan RumingGroup Engineering

managing director

25The Mining Advocate | March 2011 SHUTDOWNS

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Biloela / Blackwater / Bowen / Bundaberg / Cairns / Darwin / Emerald / Gladstone / Innisfail / Mackay / Moranbah / Mt Isa / Phosphate Hill / Rockhampton / Townsville

The reliability team at Incitec Pivot’s Phosphate Hill site in north-west Queensland is working to enhance shutdown planning as part of a wider “road map to improvement” in its maintenance systems.Th e company carries out a combined maintenance shutdown every three years across its Phosphate Hill and Mount Isa sites.However there are also three or four smaller shutdowns annually to work on various plants within the Phosphate Hill fertiliser manufacturing complex, 160km south of Mount Isa.Th e team’s current shutdown project is a “mini-shut” scheduled to run from March 28 to April 7 for the ammonia plant.Reliability manager for Incitec Pivot’s Phosphate Hill

operations, Tony Puglisi, said a major focus of the improvement process was ensuring only “must do” jobs were included in order to minimise the time any plant was offl ine.“Th is is an important shut for the site from an operational, production and maintenance point of view,” he said. “Th ere has been a lot of planning taking place over the last six months to get us in a position to run a lean shut, with only critical maintenance jobs planned.“Th e scope of work is now locked, with the electrical and mechanical work pack development and review coming to a close.” Mr Puglisi said Paul Laurent, the gas fertiliser production manager at Phosphate Hill, and his team had been the driving

An ammonia plant maintenance outage will

help test the progress of a broader program

of improvement at a major processing site.

Team primed for a ‘lean shut’

force in setting up the shut.

Preparations included work

packs covering instructions, task

hazard analysis, parts required

and any other resources needed,

such as access to a crane.

“Th e guys have been working on

those for quite some time,” Mr

Puglisi said.

“Th e aim is to do it at a high

quality and then there will be

some quality assurance work as

well.

“We want to make sure that

when we do a job we do it

properly the fi rst time.”

Th e majority of the shut

work would be conducted

by Phosphate Hill’s own

maintenance and electrical

teams, he said.

Th ey would be drawing on a

number of external resources for

critical jobs.

Th ese would include fi tters,

riggers, welding inspectors,

electricians, machinists and pipe

fi tters from companies including

UGL, IXT Inspections, RCR

Stelform and BLJ In-Situ

Solutions.

Mr Puglisi said the site

was bringing in eight crane

operators and riggers from

North West Crane Hire with an

additional 50-tonne slew crane

and a Franna crane.

Th e Sun Metals zinc refi nery outside

Townsville will conduct its roasting, gas

cleaning and sulphuric acid plant shutdown in

September.

Planning for the 2011 maintenance

shutdown began in October 2010 -

immediately after the last one - and talks with

contractors were likely to begin around May,

Sun Metals sales and logistics manager Paul

Ryan said.

“We bring in a number of local contractors

to assist with the work so we complete it on

time in the most effi cient manner,” he said.

Th e operation called on the services of a

core group of tried and tested businesses that

were very familiar with the plant, he said.

Th e annual maintenance outages at the

Korea Zinc-owned operation last for two

or three weeks. No major change-outs or

upgrades are due to occur during the 2011

shutdown, due to the plant’s current focus on

accelerating its exports of zinc ferrite.

Suppliers wishing to be considered for

Sun Metals work should contact admin@

sunmetals.com.au or phone (07) 4726 6666

and ask for projects.

Sun Metals set for September maintenance stoppage

The Sun Metals roasting, gas cleaning and sulphuric acid plants are due for

shutdown work in September . Photo: Stewart Mclean

Incitec Pivot’s ammonia plant (on left) at the Phosphate Hill site.

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A Perth mother aims to help resource industry families facing the challenges of lengthy separations to meet others in the same boat through a new online forum.

Nicole Ashby’s website for fl y in–fl y out (FIFO) and drive in-drive out (DIDO) families in the mining and energy sectors has already attracted about 140 members, with at least 20 per cent based in Queensland.

Th e online contact between members has generated a number of social events, including regular get-togethers in a Perth park, since the FIFO Families website was launched late last year.

“Th e aim was for FIFO and DIDO families to be able to come online and connect in a virtual sense,” Mrs Ashby said.

“Also, what is really important

for me is that families can connect in a physical way.

“We have a search function (on the website), so when you become a registered member you can type in your postcode or suburb and it will list other members in your area.”

She plans to visit Brisbane at least twice this year to help “get things moving” in Queensland including encouraging the formation of local support networks and seeking sponsorship for the site.

Mrs Ashby said she was familiar with another website aimed at providing information for FIFO families, Mining Family Matters, and had been speaking with its creator Alicia Ranford so they could assist each other.

Mrs Ranford, who launched her website in 2010, said the

Generating face-to-face contact is an

important element of a new website

encouraging networking and support.

Bringing FIFO families together

two services complemented each

other well.

Mrs Ashby had created

a fantastic resource to help

families get together and create

support networks, she said.

Mrs Ashby has three children

under six years old and husband

Joe’s job on an oil rig involves

shifts of four weeks on and four

weeks off .

She said she had found it quite

challenging to cope with the

eff ects of the FIFO roster on

family life at times.

While she has had other close

friends to call on when the

going gets tough, Mrs Ashby

believes other FIFO partners

have a unique understanding of

the issues involved and it would

be of great benefi t if they could

form local networks to support

each other.

“I really want to get the word

out there, right across Australia,”

she said.

“It doesn’t matter where you

are – whether remote or in a city

– this is for everyone.”

Mrs Ashby, whose professional

background is in social work and

teaching, said she had gained

the inspiration and confi dence

to launch the site after a course

with mentor Paul Counsel.

Her ideas for the future

development of the website

included providing “webinars”

(live online information sessions)

on issues such as isolation and

loneliness, resentment and trust.

She is planning to introduce a

membership fee to help support

the venture fi nancially.

• Th e FIFO Families website is

at www.fi fofamilies.com

Th e creators of an online resource for mining families are launching a “survival guide”, bringing together the most sought-after information and advice in a printed form.

Mining Families Matters website founder Alicia Ranford said Th e Survival Guide for Mining Families would be available to mining companies from early March.

“We have already been taking pre-orders,” she said.

“We are off ering it to mining

companies for them to use as an induction tool for new employees and also to assist existing employees and their families.”

Mrs Ranford said the 32-page booklet featured professional advice from a registered psychologist and practical tips for keeping relationships healthy and families happy.

“Topics include house rules for happy homes, sex and FIFO relationships, mining dads and parenting, relocating, the art of making new friends and women

in mining, “she said.While individuals would

be able to order the guide, Mrs Ranford said she would encourage people to approach the human resources department at their mine site and urge them to contact Mining Family Matters about the guide.

“Th e copies are provided at minimal cost,” she said.

“We want to provide this information to as many mining families across Australia as we can.”

She said she had received good sponsorship from industries supporting mining.

“I think people can now recognise that this information is really valuable to the industry,” Mrs Ranford said.

“Our aim is to try to create some more stability in family life in the mining industry.”

Th e Mining Family Matters website, at www.miningfm.com.au , has received more than 30,000 visits since it was launched a year ago.

New guide contains hot topics and top tips

Joe and Nicole Ashby with children Angelina, Tana and Chase.

27The Mining Advocate | March 2011 SAFETY AND RESCUE

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A North Queensland safety

consultant has developed an iPad

and iPhone application set to

save many hours of paperwork for

worksites with chemical stores.

CSM Safety Services

managing director Craig Stewart,

in association with Eternity

Technologies, has developed “cim

Touch” - an application that helps

business operators prepare and

New technology is aimed to make it easier for

businesses to comply with legal requirements

for hazardous materials recordkeeping.

An app for that

manage their workplace hazardous

materials registers.

“We fi nd, when we audit

facilities, that chemical registers

are not maintained because it’s a

daunting task for many people to

go out and identify your chemicals,

identify their characteristics,

how much you’re storing, how

often you use it and to establish a

register,” Mr Stewart said.

Mr Stewart said the cim Touch system had evolved from an automated computer spreadsheet he developed for his own use when auditing workplaces.

Th e Townsville-based businessman took the concept further with help from his daughter’s partner, software engineer Devraj Mukherjee from Eternity Technologies in New South Wales.

Using an iPad to carry out audits as part of his safety service was saving him many desk-bound days of data manipulation and report writing, Mr Stewart said.

“I can walk around a site, take photos and put notes against the photos and at the end of the day run script and it writes the audit report for me,” he said

“Instead of having days and days of data manipulation, I can do it on the fl y.”

Th e new application uses an open-source database, giving users access to the extensive chemical identifi cation and analysis information Mr Stewart has built up over the years. It features prompts to guide users through positive chemical identifi cation.

Mr Stewart said it was a requirement of occupational health and safety laws across Australia that businesses maintain a register of any chemicals in the workplace that may be classed as hazardous

CSM Safety Services managing director Craig Stewart has developed an

iPhone/iPad app for managing chemical inventories. Photo: Stewart McLean

substances or dangerous goods. Th is must be kept up to date to accurately refl ect the chemical inventory.

However, Mr Stewart said

many workplaces had either never established a chemical register or failed to maintain their register, making it non-compliant under safety regulations.

Assessors are meeting in March to plan for this year’s major Queensland coal industry rescue events, to be hosted at Oaky North and Cook Colliery.

Queensland Mines Rescue Service operations manager Lindsay Creighton said the QMRS Memorial Cup would be held on July 7 at the Oaky North mine near Tieri.

It is open to Queensland mines rescue teams that did not compete at a national level in 2010.

Th e top four teams from that event will go on to pit their skills again the four teams that reached a national level last year in the EK Healy Cup competition.

Th at event will be held at the Cook Colliery, south of Blackwater, on September 1.

Th e Australian Underground Mines Rescue Competition will this year be hosted in Wollongong, New South Wales, on October 14.

All workers on Queensland mine sites will be required to work under the relevant site’s safety management plan following changes to legislation passed in Parliament recently.

Previously, contractors were able to work under their own safety management plans.

“Th e changes have been made as a result of coroners’ fi ndings and industry feedback

that there were a number of

safety management plans being

followed in some instances,”

Queensland Mining Minister

Stirling Hinchliff e said.

“Th is means contractors who

are carrying out jobs like road

works or building works on mine

sites will be required to follow

the same safety management

plan as everyone else.”

Th e date has been set for the fi rst Bowen Basin

Safety Conference, organised by the Mackay Area

Industry Network (MAIN).

Th e July event has been designed specifi cally

for local companies supplying the region’s coal

operations, according to MAIN Workplace Health

and Safety Group co-chair Laurie Willett.

Mr Willett said the event would include a mock

court session where a real case involving a safety

breach would be re-enacted to highlight the need

to make occupational health and safety a business

priority.

Fatigue management would also be a major focus

of the conference as it was a pressing safety issue in

the Bowen Basin, he said.

Th e conference, titled “Safety at the Coalface”,

will be held at the Mackay Entertainment and

Convention Centre on July 20.

Key contest dates

Legislation changeMackay hosts coal industry safety forum

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Works to prepare for a new export line from

Cloncurry’s Ernest Henry Mining operation

have been hailed as a project milestone.

An $8.6 million storage expansion

project to accommodate export

of magnetite concentrate at the

Port of Townsville is nearing

completion.

Xstrata is extending its bulk

storage facility adjacent to Berth

7 to handle 1.2 million tonnes per

annum of magnetite concentrate

from its Ernest Henry Mining

(EHM) operation near Cloncurry.

Th e fi rst shipment of magnetite

concentrate is scheduled in the

fi rst half of 2011.

General manager for Xstrata

Copper’s Townsville operations,

Mark Roberts, said the bulk

storage upgrade was expected to

be completed in March.

“Th e completion of this

storage expansion represents

another successful milestone in

Xstrata becoming Queensland’s

fi rst exporter of magnetite

concentrate,” Mr Roberts said.

“Th e magnetite project is a key

component of the $589 million

project to transform EHM into

a major underground copper-

gold operation and this storage

expansion is a critical link in the

logistics chain for the product.

“Once the works are completed,

the receival, storage and shipping

of magnetite concentrate will

generate 14 additional operator

and maintenance roles at our

port operations and another two

positions within our shipping and

sales administration team.”

Magnetite - a form of iron ore -

is being captured and processed as

a by-product of EHM’s copper-

gold concentrating process.

“Th e magnetite concentrate

produced at EHM will be chiefl y

used to fuel Asia’s steel industry,

however the commodity will also

be utilised as a washing agent in

domestic coal operations,” Mr

Roberts said.

Port of Townsville Limited

chief executive offi cer Barry Holden said the Xstrata development linked with Port of Townsville Limited’s multimillion-dollar upgrade of Berth 8.

Scheduled to begin in October 2011, this project will involve the relocation of Berth 7 operations to an upgraded Berth 8, with Xstrata to invest in a new shiploader and conveyors on the refurbished berth.

Th e existing Berth 6/7 pier, which is at the end of its serviceable life, will be decommissioned, demolished, and the site remediated once Berth 8 is operational, expected by the end of 2012.

“A refurbished Berth 8 will provide best practice facilities for new commodities like Xstrata’s magnetite concentrate while ensuring the export future of mineral concentrates and fertiliser product valued at more than $1 billion a year to the Queensland economy,” Mr Holden said.

Th e Gladstone-based QAL operation is continuing initiatives to reduce fugitive emissions from its alumina loading process after successful dust-control modifi cations on a cascade chute at the wharf late last year.

Th e modifi cations included placing the shrouded area under a light vacuum and altering the speed reducer, which is now fi xed and non-retractable to maintain a steady load out into the ship hold.

Raw materials special projects supervisor Russ Hendry said the chute modifi cations had been successful in reducing dust from the cascade loading.

QAL now plans to work on the alumina loader’s boom to reduce fugitive dust when the chute is being raised from the hull.

Th e North Queensland Bulk Ports Corporation

(NQBP) has engaged consultants Aurecon

Hatch to prepare a master plan to further

expand the Port of Hay Point, about 40km

south of Mackay.

Th e corporation last year endorsed DBCT

Management and the Adani Group as the

preferred proponents for the development of

the proposed new coal export infrastructure at

Dudgeon Point, where it holds about 1400ha

of land.

State Ports Minister Craig Wallace said it

was likely that the Port of Hay Point would

need to at least double in export capacity

within the next fi ve to 10 years to meet coal

industry demands.

Th e port already has two coal terminals

- Dalrymple Bay Coal Terminal and the

Hay Point Services Coal Terminal – with a

combined design capacity of about 130 million

tonnes per annum.

Mr Wallace said the port development

master plan was targeted for release to the

public in the second half of 2011.

It would detail the proposed location and

size of coal stockpiles, wharves, roads, rail and

other site infrastructure required to support the

project, he said.

NQBP has awarded the contract for the site

and project environmental investigations to

consultants WorleyParsons.

Xstrata Copper Port of Townsville superintendent John Cordingly at the new

facility. Photo: Port of Townsville Limited

QAL initiative to reduce

dust during alumina loading

A crane lifts the modifi ed chute to

transport to the wharf and install.

Coal terminal plan advances

Xstrata expands bulk storage

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CQUniversity is building on its successful program of degrees tailored to the mining industry with a proposed post-graduate qualifi cation in management.

Pathways facilitator Lyn Forbes-Smith said the university was working closely with a major mining company to develop a graduate certifi cate in management with a mining specialisation. Th e course, expected to be introduced this year, was a direct response to industry demand, she said.

In the face of serious skills shortages, mining companies realised they had to build capacity within their existing ranks and

become employers of choice to retain talent.

Ms Forbes-Smith said interested people would not necessarily need a degree to join the program as work experience and history would help gain entry, along with employer support of the application.

Th e university was looking at customising the way the course was delivered, as well as its content, to suit mining industry personnel.

“Part of the proposal we’re working on will include mine site lectures,” Ms Forbes-Smith said

Th e university - which has campuses at Mackay,

Key courses at this regional university are

designed or customised to suit the lifestyles,

locations and aspirations of mining personnel.

Rockhampton, Bundaberg and Gladstone - already off ers seven associate degrees in engineering that are tailored to mining industry needs, in addition to Bachelor and post-

graduate programs. Th ese include associate degrees in engineering with specialisations in mining, mechanical, civil, electrical, mine technology, mine operations management, geoscience and

workplace health and safety.“Th ey have a growing

reputation for being very suited to people who work full time,” Ms Forbes-Smith said.

“Th ey can be done in a fl ex or distance mode, they are a four-year program and they are designed to be workplace relevant.”

Some of the associate degrees had a blend of academic programs and black coal competencies, she said. Th ey were aimed at people who were already working in the mining industry or mining services such as engineering workshops.

“Th ese associate degrees enable people who are technical or have come in through operations or trade qualifi cations, a pathway into engineering based on the skill sets and broad experience that they already have,” Ms Forbes-Smith said.

She said the qualifi cation allowed people to work as paraprofessional engineers, supporting fully qualifi ed engineers who were required to work at more supervisory levels.

Th e degrees were developed in partnership with BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance and Anglo American Metallurgical Coal.

CQUniversity

Pathways

facilitator Lyn

Forbes-Smith.

Photo:

Damien Carty

Educationattuned to industry

CQUniversity’s Pathways Project has launched a Queensland Centre

for Professional Development with a focus on the mining and

engineering industries.

Pathways facilitator Lyn Forbes-Smith said the initiative meant

the university would be able to provide fi rst-class professional

development opportunities in regional centres to better meet the needs

of central Queensland industries.

Th e centre kicked off in February with a presentation in Mackay

from Engineering Education Australia general manager Ann Ellis

about the Engineering Education Australia Engineering Capability

Development Model.

CQU adds local professional

development opportunities

Eighteen university graduates have commenced

employment at BHP Billiton’s Cannington mine

– the highest intake in the mine’s 20 year history.

Cannington asset president Bob Fulker said

graduate numbers were up on previous years due

to the number of high-quality applicants.

“While a number of graduates will be placed

into traditional mining roles such as engineering

and geology we have also created positions

in mine support functions such as fi nance,

laboratory and health,” he said.

Mr Fulker said the group would play a valuable

role in the organisation while participating in an

award-winning graduate development program.

Careers kick off at Cannington

Cannington’s Darren Singh (at right) shows new

graduates Clinton Elliot and Mitchell Smith around

BHP Billiton’s ship loading facility at the Port of

Townsville during a familiarisation week.

30 March 2011 | The Mining AdvocateHEALTH IN MINING

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Failure to get adequate rest is putting shiftworkers at risk of a range of chronic diseases as well as creating a danger on the highways, according to CQ Health Access co-ordinator Ann-Maree Brightman.

Lack of sleep has been indirectly linked with increased incidence of heart disease and high blood pressure, stomach disorders and gastrointestinal disorders, mental illness and fertility problems.

“So it’s imperative for shift workers to get as close to the average amount of required daily sleep, or rest in bed, as possible,” Ms Brightman said.

A number of factors in the workplace and in an individual’s private life can cause sleep loss.

Ms Brightman said the level of fatigue depended on factors including duration and timing of work and rest periods as well as stress and the monotony of tasks involved with a job.

Many mine employees working extended shifts were sacrifi cing sleep due to confl icting demands on their time, heightening the danger when they got behind the wheel for highway commutes, she said.

While the issues involved with fatigue were gaining increasing recognition, Ms Brightman said many individuals were still overlooking simple “common sense” measures that could be adopted to manage the problem.

“Th ere are all sorts of little things people can do that can make a big diff erence and reduce the risk,’” she said.

She warned that while many workers relied on caff einated

Many people are overlooking “common sense”

measures that would help better manage

fatigue, an industry health advisor says.

Lack of rest a risky business

drinks - such as coff ee or caff einated energy drinks - to assist them to manage fatigue, these would contribute to sleep loss if used within six hours before going to bed.

Th is eff ect may be increased if combined with medications containing ingredients such as pseudoephedrine hydrochloride.

Shiftworkers as a group tended to get signifi cantly less sleep than those who worked equivalent hours that did not intrude on the typical sleep period (11pm – 7am), Ms Brightman said.

“Sleep during the day is usually of poor quality due to circadian disruptions and environmental factors such as daylight, traffi c and household noise,” she said.

Ms Brightman said also the eff ects of fatigue increased with age.

“People over 50 years of age tend to have lighter, fragmented sleep; which can prevent them from receiving the recuperative eff ects from a full night of sleep and can make them more likely

to become fatigued,” she said.

CQ Health Assess – a division

of the CQ Nurse nursing agency

- provides a range of services

for workplaces including health

screening, promotion and

education.

Th is includes fatigue education

modules that can be completed

online or face to face.

Preparing for shiftwork• Have an afternoon nap before the fi rst night shift

Personal factors aff ecting sleep • Drink alcohol in moderation as it can disturb sleep• Avoid caff eine after midnight when on night shift

Medical conditions aff ecting sleep• Seek medical advice on conditions such as sleep apnoea

Sleep Environment• Install heavy curtains that keep the light out• Reduce the volume of the telephone and the television and keep

them in another room, not the bedroom• Insulate the house and/or have airconditioning on while resting to

drown out background noise• Let neighbours and friends know if you are a shiftworker and

when you need to sleep so they don’t mow lawns or visit at these times. Hang a sign on your front door “I am a shiftworker and am currently sleeping, please do not disturb”

• Get into a routine for going to sleep (take a warm shower or relaxing bath before going to bed, listen to soothing music, for example)

• Avoid heavy meals, alcohol and tea or coff ee before going to bed• Consider moving out of shift work if you fi nd you are more a

“morning” person and cannot get enough sleep when on night shifts

Social Life• Plan social activities to ensure suffi cient sleep before starting work.

CQ Health Assess tips for managing fatigue

Th e Queensland Mines Inspectorate is stepping up its focus on health issues such as diesel particulate exposure in 2011.

Commissioner for Mine Safety and Health Stewart Bell said a meeting of the diesel particulate steering committee was planned in June following an audit of underground mines in Queensland. Mr Bell said the inspectorate also planned increased monitoring for respirable crystalline silica exposure in the quarrying and mining industries as well as further work on the impact of vibration on the musculoskeletal system.

Th ose projects will be pursued through the Health Improvement and Awareness Committee – a tripartite group involving the inspectorate, mining unions and companies.

Spotlight on air quality

CQ Health Access

co-ordinator

Ann-Maree

Brightman

31The Mining Advocate | March 2011 Building Mining Communities

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A mining union-run race day at Moranbah has raised more than $30,000 for fl ood victims across Queensland’s coalfi eld regions – despite being washed out.

Queensland district organiser for CFMEU Mining and Energy, Lara Watson, said she had been pleasantly surprised by the amount of money raised during the charity event.

Heavy rain forced offi cials to cancel all fi ve horse races planned for the day, which attracted 400 to 500 people.

However, the crowd showed good support for fundraising raffl es and the charity auction.

Ms Watson said the event had been organised at short notice.“But it was easy enough to put together because of the support of

Moranbah and Mackay businesses and the Moranbah Action Group,” she said.

Local traders had been generous in donating services to run and promote the race day as well as goods to be off ered as prizes.

In addition to the charity race day, Ms Watson said various CFMEU lodges had organised fundraisers to assist those aff ected by fl ooding and Cyclone Yasi.

Th e union’s actions refl ected the fact that many mining communities and members had been aff ected by the disasters, she said.

Ms Watson said the union hoped to make an annual event of the charity race day, with the potential to rotate the venue between Queensland coalfi elds communities.

It was likely to raise funds for diff erent charitable causes and community groups each year, she said.

“We (the CFMEU) like supporting the smaller regional communities that tend to miss out on that social infrastructure funding,” Ms Watson said.

“It’s our way of being able to give back to those communities and show them we support them.”

Awash with goodwill

Fashions on the Field winners Kerry Randall, Morgan

Murphy, Katrina Retief and Anne Baker.

James Jackson, Natasha Manning and Jack Williamson

(all from BMA Peak Downs Mine).

Diane Saroglia (Maritime Mining Power Credit Union)

with Lara Watson (CFMEU).

Matt Fellows (Education Queensland), Rick Manson

(Precise) and Mitch Fegan (BMA Norwich Park).

Steve Furber and Neomi Flanagan (SNN Earthworks).

Percy Large (BMA Goonyella Riverside) with wife Stacey

and daughters Grace and Yasmin (6 months).

32 March 2011 | The Mining AdvocateBuilding Mining Communities

resourcingg thee future

Mining

Supporting

Communities

BROUGHT

TO YOU BY

BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA) has launched a new Local Buying Program with a series of information sessions for small business owners in Blackwater, Emerald, Dysart and Moranbah.

Th e Local Buying Program will provide additional opportunities for small businesses in the townships for the competitive supply of goods and services to BMA and BHP Mitsui Coal (BMC) operations.

BMA president Stephen Dumble said the company had been delighted with attendances and the support the Local Buying Program had received at the information sessions.

As well as providing additional supply opportunities for local businesses, the program seeks to provide further benefi ts over the longer term by helping to build local capacity.

Th e information sessions were co-hosted with the Central Highlands Development Corporation, Moranbah Traders Association and Central Highlands and Isaac Regional Councils.

Cowboys rugby league players Dane Hogan and Tariq Sims visited more than 300 primary school students across north-west Queensland recently to promote the Cowboys in the Classroom program.

North Queensland Cowboys community relations manager Fiona Pelling said the tour was a great opportunity to showcase the program, a joint initiative between BHP Billiton Cannington, Education Queensland and the Cowboys.

It took in primary schools in Mount Isa, Camooweal, Cloncurry, Julia Creek, Dajarra and Boulia over a three-day period.

“Bringing the players out

to this area gives them a good

understanding of the challenges

faced by remote communities -

and the kids get quite a kick out

of it too,” she said.

Established in 2009, the

Cowboys in the Classroom

program is an online virtual

classroom that runs throughout

the NRL season.

Th e website includes live chat

with Cowboys players as well as

blogs, images and videos.

More than 1500 students in

Years 5-7 from schools across

central, north and far north

Queensland will participate in

2011.

NQ Cowboys players Dane Hogan and Tariq Sims visit the Julia Creek State School.

Cowboys head out west

Xstrata funding pledge

Employees at Incitec Pivot’s Phosphate Hill mine and fertiliser plant in north-west Queensland have unveiled a

memorial marking the 150th anniversary of the Burke and Wills Expedition.

Th e memorial, at the Monument village, is in the form of a display summarising the expedition’s passage through the area in January 1861.

“We wanted to record how closely the expedition was linked to this particular part of Australia we work in,” said Peter Lynam, a member of the Phosphate Hill Sesquicentenary Committee formed four years ago to commemorate Burke and Wills.

“Also, we thought it was important for people to be reminded of the courage and achievements previous generations made as our country developed.”

Th e memorial was unveiled by Burke and Wills Historical Society president Dave Phoenix, of Cairns.

A map produced in 1861 from the expedition’s journals and diaries (at left)

shows Mt Bruce - which overlooks the Phosphate Hill accommodation village

at The Monument (as shown in the modern map, at right) – as well as Mt

Murray and Mt Merlin.

Explorers remembered

BMA’s ‘buy local’ scheme

Suppliers tip in for MMG fundraiser

Below - The Burke and Wills

memorial at the Monument village.

Xstrata has committed $1.6 million to support eight community partnership projects in North and north-west Queensland from 2011 to 2012.

Th e pledge brings the combined value of Xstrata Community Partnership Program North Queensland funding to more than $18 million over eight years.

Xstrata Copper North Queensland chief operating offi cer Steve de Kruijff said the program’s achievements to date demonstrated Xstrata’s belief that local communities should benefi t from the company’s operations in the short and long term.

Th e latest round of funding will

support the “Books in Homes”

program across seven schools,

the Stride Foundation’s “Sport

for Life” project in Mount Isa,

a Southern Gulf Catchments

project offi cer, North West

Queensland Indigenous Catholic

Social Services, the Cloncurry

Justice Association’s Night

Patrol community intervention

project and Perc Tucker Regional

Gallery events. It will also support

the Delta Society Australia –

Townsville Branch and provide

funding for laptops and a shade

structure at St Mary’s Primary

School in Bowen.

MMG Century mine and 17 of its suppliers have donated more than $30,000 to the Queensland section of the Royal Flying Doctor Service.

Th e money was raised as part of Century’s 2010 GM Charity program and presented at a recent ceremony in Cairns.

MMG Century general manager Karl Spaleck said that the RFDS was an obvious organisation for the mine to support as it provided a lifeline in times of illness to many people within Queensland’s Gulf communities.

“At Century, we too have also relied on these services to assist unwell employees and contractors on many occasions since the mine began,” he said.

Mr Spaleck said that he had been humbled by the generosity of the suppliers, employees and contractors who had donated to the cause.

Suppliers Otraco, Atlas Copco, TDC, Chubb Security, ABAC, Paramount Hire, Leibherr, Cummins, BP, Coopers Fluids, Bradken, Hasting Deering,

Dawsons Engineering, Driveway

Training, Komatsu, CFS and the

Shangri-La Hotel contributed

$20,500.

“Our employees and

contractors also raised almost

$4000, with the mine donating

an additional $6000,” Mr

Spaleck said.

Further funds are expected to

be raised through the sale of a

commemorative polo shirt.

Atlas Copco Mount Isa regional manager Alf Lawrence (left) accepts a

certifi cate of appreciation from Royal Flying Doctor Service general manager

of marketing and fundraising Russell Ousley.

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