Lincoln Electric has updated its Ranger family of engine-driven welders with new, more powerful engines. With an additional 1- to 5-hp available, depending on the model, the new Ranger models now offer higher generator power ratings and more reserve engine power for welding. The Ranger line, featuring 200-300 amps of welding and 9,000-11,000 watts of AC generator power capabilities, is ideal for a variety of light construction, maintenance and repair applications, according to the company. They are designed to deliver a high-output, smooth arc for a variety of welding processes, including stick, TIG, MIG, flux-cored and pipe welding, as well as arc gouging. The Ranger 10,000, 3-Phase, and GXT offer professional AC and DC stick welding, while the Ranger 250, 250 LPG, 305G and 305D offer superior multi-process arc performance. www.lincolnelectric.com
Common Mining Law Proposed for West African States
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and Oxfam America in mid-April announced a proposal for a region-wide mining code that would introduce common social, environmental, and business practice standards across the 15 ECOWAS countries. Ghana and Mali are members of ECOWAS and have substantial gold-mining industries. Other gold producers in the group include Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Senegal and Côte d'Ivoire.
In an April 18, 2008, news article, UN Integrated Regional Information Networks reported that the proposed mining code was launched in Dakar, Senegal, on April 17 and that ratification would be sought from ECOWAS parliaments during 2009. Goals of the code include transparent financial practices, strict environmental standards and assurance that more mining industry revenue ends up in the hands of governments and communities. Consultations are planned with the private sector and others before details of the code are finalized and the code comes before ECOWAS member states for a vote.
National mining codes were weakened in many countries in the 1990s when the World Bank pushed governments to deregulate, the article states, with countries in the region competing with each other to attract foreign investors.
Helene Cisse, a Dakar-based lawyer and a legal consultant on the mining code, was quoted in a Voice of America article as saying meaningful partnership among all concerned is the only way mining can be profitable in the long run. "We need productive investment. But it must be for the sake of everybody, for the interest of everybody. And this is the basic idea of this mining code, to convince the people that there is no durable development, human development, if there is no partnership."
In a separate development, Ghana’s Minister of Mines Esther Obeng Dapaah said in an address to a meeting of the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Accra, Ghana, that Ghana will amend its laws to gain more benefit from its mining sector. "Our laws will have to be amended. At the moment the laws are so liberal. The idea was to attract investment, but we are willing to take a look at our laws again," the minister told delegates at a forum on how developing nations can benefit more from high commodities prices, Reuters reported on April 23. "A committee is being organized to look into mining activities in Ghana and how Ghana can benefit from mining," Dapaah said.
Dapaah also said that Ghana had relied too much on the exploitation of gold, diamonds, bauxite and manganese, and would move to increase production of other minerals, such as kaolin, limestone, salt and columbite-tantalite.
First Gold Poured from Frog's Leg UG Ore (Australia/Oceania)
La Mancha Resources and its Australian joint-venture partner Dioro Exploration reported on May 13 that the first gold had been poured from ore mined underground at their Frog’s Leg project near Kalgoorlie, Western Australia. The ore was processed at Dioro’s 1.2-million-mt/y Jubilee mill south of Kalgoorlie. The Frog's Leg underground project is based on extensions of ore mined from an open-pit that produced 116,600 oz of gold during 2004–2005. Underground access is via a decline from the open-pit.
La Mancha is 51% owner and operator of the Frog’s Leg project; the remaining interest is owned by Dioro. The underground Frog’s Leg mine is forecast to produce an average of 83,000 oz/y of gold over the next seven years, based on reserves of 3.65 million mt grading 5.29 g/mt of gold. This reserve and the related mining plan do not take into account an additional estimated 267,000 oz of resources announced in March 2008. Total measured and indicated resources at the project now stand at 990,000 oz. Mine production at full capacity will average 545,000 mt/y. Capital expenditure to develop the project is budgeted at just over A$71 million.
The initial gold pour from Frog’s Leg ore was accomplished two months ahead of the schedule announced by La Mancha in August 2007, when the decision was taken to proceed with development of the mine. As of mid-May 2008, decline development totaled 3,000 m, and development was proceeding on three horizontal mining levels. A third drill jumbo had been commissioned to increase underground development rates, and a second 50-mt underground truck was increasing haulage capacity. Wherever the mineralization has been exposed to date, orebody widths and grades have been in accordance with resource model predictions.
The Frog’s Leg mine is located 25 km west of Kalgoorlie in the southern part of the Kundana gold field. Production is primarily from steeply dipping quartz lodes. Mining is by longhole open stoping with fill. The high in situ stress environment and the competent rock quality result in a seismically active mining environment. This seismicity risk is being minimized by adopting a ‘bottom up’ mining sequence/retreat front, which systematically pushes the stress field and requires the completion of most of the pre-mining development prior to stope extraction.
La Mancha Resources is a Canadian company based in Montreal and listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange. In addition to Frog’s Leg, the company is 45.9% owner and operator of the Ity gold mine in Côte d’Ivoire, which is expected to produce 24,600 oz attributable to La Mancha during 2008, and 40% owner and operator of the Hassaï gold mine in Sudan, which is expected to produce 40,000 oz attributable to La Mancha during 2008.
Dioro Exploration acquired Harmony Gold's South Kalgoorlie operations, including the Jubilee mill, in 2007. Production from these South Kalgoorlie mines totaled 80,000 oz in 2007, and reserves are sufficient to maintain that production rate for three years. The project’s measured and indicated resource inventory totals 1.55 million oz. Dioro also has an extensive gold exploration land package and interests in uranium exploration projects in Western Australia.
Moly Mines Ltd., owner of the Spinifex Ridge polymetallic deposit located in the East Pilbara district of Western Australia, has awarded an Engineering, Procurement and Construction Management (EPCM) contract to WorleyParsons for construction of the 20-million-mt/y project’s processing plant and related infrastructure.
The estimated value of the reimbursable contract is A$100 million and is based on the project proceeding as currently planned, including the company finalizing its project financing arrangements. According to Moly Mines, the contract for the construction of the project concentrator formalizes the delivery structure and contracting approach for the project. The contract includes an incentive-based compensation scheme that will reward WorleyParsons for meeting key project milestones through to the project’s scheduled practical completion stage. The milestones are based on performance in key areas including safety, scheduling, commitments, budget and cost. WorleyParsons’ association with the project extends back to the initial pre-feasibility study work that commenced in 2005.
The project’s Definitive Feasibility Study, released in September 2007, envisages the deposit will be mined by conventional large-scale open-pit mining methods. An initial 10-year mine life would allow exploitation of approximately 42% of the known resource, with the remainder being available for further development. The initial pit, by the end of the 10-year period, would be approximately 400-m deep with surface dimensions of 1,100 x 1,250 m.
The proposed processing plant will employ two-stage crushing of ROM ore, followed by a High Pressure Grinding Roll and primary ball milling circuit. Molybdenum and copper will be recovered by flotation into a bulk concentrate. Molybdenum will be separated by copper depression and further flotation.
The molybdenum and copper streams will then be treated by separate regrinding and cleaning processes to produce final saleable molybdenum and copper concentrates.
The Paus Minca Mining Car is a four-wheel drive mine transport vehicle that accepts interchangeable "cassettes" which allow the basic vehicle to be configured for a variety of functions including a 16-man personnel carrier, loading platform with crane, work platform, 3,000-L diesel fuel tanker, or ambulance and fire engine. The vehicle, which can be ordered with optional four-wheel steering for improved maneuvering in tight spaces, is powered by a 93-kW, water-cooled Deutz diesel with a monitoring feature that initiates automatic engine shutdown in case of system malfunction. The flameproof version of the Minca is fitted with a Perkins 1104C diesel. Alternatively, a hydrostatic drive is available. According to the company, mines with heavy inclines prefer the hydrostatic drive unit, as gear-shifting on inclines is eliminated and optimum power is available, providing a top speed of 35 km/h. Two standard Minca versions are available: Minca 5 with a length of 4.6 m and Minca 18 with a length of 5.7 m. Paus says its engineers have continued to optimize features that have already been field proven. For example, the chassis has been completely revised: both axles are equipped with spiral springs and shock absorbers, and the front axle is arranged as pendulum axle. Because of this change in design, adaptability to the worst roadway conditions has been significantly increased. The four-wheel drive is now bolstered by a differential lock. In addition, increased power, excellent ergonomic features for the driver and intelligent automatic functions are important characteristics of the new Minca generation. Driver and passenger sit in a large, sound insulated cabin with clearly arranged operating and indicating elements and an adjustable steering wheel. Maintenance convenience also has been enhanced; filters, fill points and other maintenance areas are easily accessible. www.paus.de
