Coring Magazine - Issue 11

ROBOTICS AND AI ARE OUR FUTURE

Issue 11

Drilling

October 2019

Issue Special // Underground Drilling & Equipment

ISSN 2367-847X www.coringmagazine.com

Exploration & Mining Geology

21 Questions // Craig Lavrick – CEO & Lead Consultant at Dig Solutions LLC

Q&A from the Experts // Michael Thomsen – Independent Consulting Geologist

More Inside // In Focus: Titeline Drilling

More Inside // Reopening a Historic Mine

Explorat ion

D ia mond

D r i l l i ng

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/EDITORIAL

Dear Readers I would like to be the first to tell you the latest news and developments at Coring.

It’s a pleasure to share that in 2020, the magazine will be an official media partner of the most anticipated event of the year, PDAC: The World’s Premier Mineral Exploration & Mining Convention. That is our first partnership with PDAC, and we are looking forward to contributing to and being part of it.

It saddens me to make the second announcement as Coring is parting with a valuable team member – our editor, Simone Hutchinson. She has been with us for two years; her competence, and professionalism brought to perfection six editions of Coring. Speaking for the team, I would like to express my gratitude towards Simone for bringing the magazine to the next level, and wish her all the best in her future endeavours.

Despite our heavy hearts at Simone’s departure, the team’s excited for our next chapter, which includes newly appointed Editor, Joanne Miller. Australian-born, Joanne’s led a nomadic existence, living and working in various Southeast Asian locales, the coalfields of rural Queensland, Australia and is seemingly drawn to the US’s triumvirate of mining states – Utah, Nevada and most recently, Southern Arizona. She’s an adept writer and editor, with an Australian Television and Radio Broadcasting and over 25 years experience in communicationsbased roles – copy and ghostwriting within government and private sectors, mineral exploration, oil and gas and luxury real estate and lifestyle publications. Her moniker, ‘The Word Surgeon’ provides just a hint of her deft ‘wordsmithing’. Joanne wears many hats, including a hardhat as she’s VP, Communications & Talent at Dig Solutions – a global mineral exploration consultancy, specializing in drilling. Joanne officially joins the team for our 12th edition, and we can’t wait to work with her.

Last but not least, I want to inform you that, we will surprise our readers with a picturesque 2020 calendar. The complimentary calendar will be mailed to all of our print subscribers with the February edition of the magazine, and also available online for desktop. Companies from the sphere are welcome to feature their logos on it. The calendar is already in preparation and the number of logo spaces is limited. They provide year-round advertising, so if you are interested to book a space, please contact: martina@coringmagazine.com.

GRIGOR TOPEV Founder / Editor in Chief CORING MAGAZINE

Faster. Deeper. Safer.

3

Table of Contents

ROBOTICS AND AI ARE OUR FUTURE

/NEWS & EVENTS

5

The latest in the industry

/21 QUESTIONS

8 Exclusive interview: 21 Questions with Craig R. Lavrick, CEO and Lead Consultant at Dig Solutions LLC /IN FOCUS

14 ‘Titeline Drilling Underground: Robotics and automation are the future’ –

Bill Ricciardi, CEO at Titeline Drilling Pty presents the company’s background, operations, and how it uses robotics, and AI to revolutionize the way it works. /PRODUCT REVIEW

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‘Exploration Drill Masters’ new EDM45K-D diamond coring rig: Raising the bar for safety and productivity’ – Quentin Dulake, Global Sales Executive presents the company’s latest release – the EDM45K-D machine and unique, safe, rod- handling equipment.

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‘Revolutionizing diamond core drilling with Clean-Tech Modular Drilling System rig series’ – David Jones, Business Development Officer discusses Drillco Mining and Exploration’s Clean-Tech system that offers maximum flexibility, high productivity, and financial savings.

/ISSUE SPECIAL: UNDERGROUND DRILLING & EQUIPMENT

28 ‘Exploring the possibilities with resourceful underground coring crews and equipment’ – Examples of unexpected challenges and creative solutions by

John Sanchez, US Underground Coring Operations Manager at Boart Longyear.

32

‘Product Review: Bulldrill™ BDU800EXC’ – Ceren Şatırlar Balcı, Executive Board Member, Barkom Group Drilling Rigs & Equipment, Inc., Turkey reveals how the company stepped up its underground drill-rig production to the next level and started to manufacture a new underground drill rig.

/CASE STUDY

36 ‘Exploration drilling in Otavi Mountain Land, Namibia’ – Johan Coetzee, Managing Director at Adamas Drilling and Exploration presents the company’s exploration projects and development.

Issue 11

Drilling

October 2019

Issue Special // Underground Drilling & Equipment

ISSN 2367-847X www.coringmagazine.com

Exploration & Mining Geology

21 Questions // Craig Lavrick – CEO & Lead Consultant at Dig Solutions LLC

Q&A from the Experts // Michael Thomsen – Independent Consulting Geologist

More Inside // In Focus: Titeline Drilling

More Inside // Reopening a Historic Mine

Exploration

Dia mond

Drilling

Coring Magazine October 2019 Cover photo Titeline Drilling Issue 11 ISSN 2367-847X Not for resale. Free subscriptions at: www.coringmagazine.com/subscribe Coring Magazine is an international quarterly title serving the exploration core drilling industry.

Published in print and digital formats, Coring has a rapidly growing readership that includes diamond drilling contractors, drilling manufacturers and suppliers, service companies, mineral exploration companies and departments, geologists, and many others involved in exploration core drilling.

Launched in late 2015, Coring aims to provide a fresh perspective on the sector by sourcing authentic, informed and quality commentary direct from those working in the field. With regular interviews, insightful company profiles, detailed product reviews, field-practice tips and illustrated case studies of the world’s most unique diamond drilling and mineral exploration projects, Coring provides a new platform for learning about the industry’s exciting developments.

/MINERAL EXPLORATION

Publisher Coring Media

39 Q&A from the experts: Timothy Strong in conversation with Michael Thomsen, Independent Consulting Geologist

Editor in Chief Grigor Topev

42 ‘Reopening a historic mine’ – a story about Bates Hunter Mine, Colorado

by Graham Peterson, Geologist, Black Fox Mining LLC and GS Mining Company, LLC.

Executive Officer Martina Samarova

48 ‘From wilderness to resource—and those who ‘Make it so!’’ by Liam Hardy, Operations Director at Spotlight Mining.

52 ‘The impact of deciding whether to drill late or not at all’ – Sean Muller,

Exploration Geologist reveals fatal flaws that lead to drill programs falling short of expectations.

58 ‘Drill Core Storage: Orientation regarding international best practices’

by Daniel Bortowski Carvalho, Geologist and CEO at Core Case,

Gláucia Cuchierato, Geologist and CEO at GeoAnsata, and Professor and Mining Engineer Ana Carolina Chieregati . /CATALOG

62 Diamond drilling services

64 Drilling equipment & accessories

68 Survey equipment

69 Miscellaneous

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Editor Simone Hutchinson Section Editor – Exploration & Mining Geology Timothy Strong Graphic Design Cog Graphics Printed by Dedrax Printing House Contact Us Coring Media Ltd. 119B D. Petkov Str., Sofia 1309, Bulgaria Phone +359 88 953 2653 Email editorial@coringmagazine.com Website coringmagazine.com Coring Magazine #11

/NEWS & EVENTS

The Latest in the Industry

October, 2019

October, 2019

Major Drilling to Acquire Norex Drilling Limited

New Management Team at Atelier Val-d’Or

Major Drilling Group International Inc. has entered into an agreement to acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares of Norex Drilling Limited (‘Norex’), a family-owned drilling company and a leading exploration drilling contractor based in Timmins, Ontario, Canada.

‘We are very excited to welcome Norex and its 120 employees into the Major Drilling group. The acquisition of Norex is an unique opportunity for Major Drilling to gain a strong position to service our customers in both surface and underground exploration drilling services in the prolific Northeastern Ontario region. The culture and operational values of both companies are very similar in terms of personnel and strategies, and this will allow us to provide our customers with expanded drilling services,’ said Denis Larocque, President & CEO of Major Drilling.

Major Drilling is retaining the management team, and gaining access to skilled and experienced drillers and personnel, and is taking over existing contracts. Through this purchase, Major Drilling will also acquire an additional 22 drill rigs, including 17 compatible specialized surface drill rigs and 5 underground drills, together with related support equipment and inventory.

Atelier Val-d’Or (AVD) has announced that Yvon Beauchesne, the company’s co-founder and president, is retiring from day-today operations. After 43 years spent building a strong business, Mr Beauchesne is proud to hand over management to a new team composed of experienced employees.

AVD has officially announced the appointment of Francine Picard to the position of General Manager, of Jean-François Julien, Eng. as Director of Production, and of Mathieu Dionne as Director of Sales and Business Development. The appointments of Francine Picard and Jean-François Julien ensure the continuity of management. They are strong pillars to deal with the many challenges of a constantly evolving industry such as mining exploration. On the other hand, the recruitment of Mathieu Dionne brings new energy and dynamism. His 15-year business and technical expertise as well as his global vision when it comes to sales and business development will contribute to propelling AVD to new heights.

Three key people also join the management team: Daniel Beauchesne will support the general sector, Ghislain Leblanc will be responsible for the machining department and François Beauchesne will provide assistance in information technology.

Read more: www.majordrilling.com

Read more: www.ateliervd.qc.ca

Faster. Deeper. Safer.

5

/NEWS & EVENTS

The Latest in the Industry

October, 2019

August, 2019

DeviGyro launches first in Australia after outperforming expectations during field trials

Honoring a hero

The Devico team is pleased to announce the launch of the new DeviGyro in Australia. After several months of testing in Norway and Western Australia, proving its ruggedness and incredible precision, the world’s smallest multifunctional borehole gyro instrument will make its debut in Australia. Devico’s Australian agent, Downhole Surveys (DHS), is all set to bring the revolutionary new DeviGyro to the Australian market and is already training clients on the easy to use driller-operated system.

This new continuous DeviGyro recently surveyed a 2410 m (7906.82 ft) In and Out drill hole in just 76 minutes, collecting 45 600 survey data points to accurately trace the drill hole path.

A number of different applications and innovations are possible with the DeviGyro. Users will be able to survey as they drill in overshot mode and will also be able to do core orientation and gyro surveying in the same run with the instrument placed in the head assembly.

No other existing technology comes close in presenting a similar wide range of applications. Devico will release additional accessories that will open new drilling possibilities with the DeviGyro in 2019 and 2020.

We would like to acknowledge the passing of Australian-based drilling expert, John ‘Emmo’ Emerson.

To many, John was a dear friend, mentor, father figure, and respected colleague. He was an industry stalwart, having worked for Western Mining Corporation for a staggering 34 years, as well as Boart Longyear and BHP Billiton, before dividing his time between his own consultancy and contributing to the Deep Exploration Technologies Cooperative Research Center and Mineral Exploration Cooperative Research Center.

John unexpectedly passed of a heart attack on August 30, 2019. John was generous with his time – doing all he could to bolster and improve the industry through thoughtful initiatives and training. He was also patient, kind, and a true gentleman. John dedicated his life and energy to family, friends and mineral exploration, and justly received the posthumous ‘Contribution to Mining Award’ at the Annual Australian Mining Prospect Awards in Brisbane on Thursday, October 10. The awards program is regarded as Australia’s most prestigious for mining and minerals processing.

Rest in Peace Emmo. Gone but never forgotten.

Read more: www.devico.com

Reported by: Craig Lavrick and Joanne Miller

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Coring Magazine #11

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/21 QUESTIONS

Exclusive interview with

questions

Craig R. Lavrick CEO and Lead Consultant at Dig Solutions LLC Grigor Topev: How did you get started in the drilling business?

Craig R. Lavrick: My father, Robert ‘Bluey’ Lavrick was working in the industry as a rig mechanic. I remember being an inquisitive five-year-old, tagging along with Dad to the rigs in Kambalda, Western Australia to ‘help’. We’d return home, covered in grease – me more than Dad, but only just.

My Dad was so adept and could seemingly fix, build or operate anything. He wasn’t afraid of extremely hard work, passing that baton – or wrench to me. Academia wasn’t for me, so I left school at an early age to follow my Dad’s footsteps. I commenced my mechanical apprenticeship, working at my parents’ engineering firm in Olympic Dam, South Australia where the business was the sole service provider to Western Mining Corporation’s (WMC) light vehicles, trucks, generators and all-important drill rigs. I completed my one-year post trade and then assumed the role of Drill Helper/ Offsider soon after. The rest is history, and what a history.

GT: You’ve traveled a lot during your eventful career. Which location has left the strongest impression on you and why?

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Craig R. Lavrick It is rare for an individual to attest to a career of realizing true, impactful and sustainable industry change – preventing harm, saving time, money and most importantly – lives, while maintaining sensitivity to diverse cultural, geographical and political environments. Craig Lavrick is one such individual, and he’s far from hanging up his revered hard hat or his steel-capped boots.

Born in pioneering Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, surrounded by heavy mining equipment, it was there in ‘gold country’ that Craig’s curiosity ignited. His ability to appreciate, coupled with his passion to innovate has resulted in an impressive tally of accomplishments and improvements within drilling, including mechanics and technology, safety, training and development, operational productivity and risk management.

Renowned as a proactive changemaker, Craig’s quest for real, safety-first innovation is widely appreciated and respected. His inclusive leadership style and willingness to facilitate organizational learning empowers personnel and fosters cohesion. Craig leads with steadfast focus, commitment and absolute accountability in a thorough, forthright and inclusive manner. His ability to anticipate challenges, devise solutions and innovate with safe and technical precision are just some of his lauded strengths.

Coring Magazine caught up with Craig – to pick his brain, share a laugh and learn more about his most exciting venture yet – owning and operating a global minerals exploration consultancy, Dig Solutions.

CL: Tough question, as I’ve traveled to and worked in over 50 countries during my career – each leaving its mark. The Philippines with its selfless, welcoming and warm people is the standout; as people make or break a place for me. Many other countries exude a similar vibe, but Filipinos have the edge on hospitality with a capital ‘H’. Africa is a close second.

GT: Traveling to and exploring locations deemed extreme and dangerous has no doubt led to some interesting tales.

Please share one such experience.

CL: Frequent, extensive travel has been my norm. So much so that until recently, I had two concurrent passports – meaning one of my two passports would be processing at an Coring Magazine #11

embassy to obtain a visa, whilst I traveled on the other visa. One eye-opening and heartpounding experience occurred when traveling through Eastern Europe. I was stopped at the border for a customary immigration check.

Without thinking, I presented both passports when requested – a rare moment to even have both in my possession, however, doing so did not work in my favour. The situation escalated quickly as I didn’t speak the language, nor did the horde of Kalashnikovbearing customs and immigration officials speak a word of my native tongue, and they remained convinced that ‘Mineral Exploration Specialist’ was just a front for a cartel kingpin. Without a translator or someone to vouch for me, I spent a sleepless night in a heavily guarded, bone-chilling, bleak holding cell, awaiting my local colleague to explain who I was and rescue me.

GT: What are the upsides and downsides of being a drilling professional?

CL: Travel is a boon and a curse. The opportunity to explore remote, spectacular and even harrowing locations is what drives many of us within the industry. The upside being the chance to immerse yourself in and sample a taste of our globe’s diverse cultures and landscapes. It’s an honour and a privilege to be welcomed into remote communities and to be treated like family. The downside is simply the travel. Mineral exploration itself is undertaken at remote sites, where the journey to and from can amount to days and prove taxing, and that’s before even commencing the work which typically involves long and eventful days in trying and extreme conditions. There’s a lot of time away from home. Previous roles I’ve upheld required me to travel up to 85 % of the year, which doesn’t leave much time to connect with dear family and friends.

GT: While at BHP Billiton, you researched and penned the Global Drilling Standard or GDS. Can you share its development, publication, and whether it’s available to buy?

CL: In late 2005, I began compiling what would eventually become the GDS while at Western Mining Corporation (WMC).

I researched global safety standards and equipment innovation while attempting to define best practice. In mid-2006, BHP Billiton acquired WMC and I continued to develop the GDS alongside respected colleagues the late John Emerson – an industry stalwart, dear family friend Faster. Deeper. Safer.

and mentor, and the very talented Kimberly Scully. The GDS evolved from my unwillingness to accept that multiple incidents were occurring at sites, so I resolved to act and rectify the situation. At the time, multiple policies and procedures were in place – all developed with the best of intentions, yet most were confusing and some contradictory. Our group (BHP Billiton) and the industry were in dire need of a singular, standardised operating guidebook to follow and reference. And so, the GDS was launched. I’m proud it has been adopted by those who deem safety and innovation the priority, including major miners, Anglo American, Barrick Gold, BHP Billiton and Gold Fields, as well as countless drilling companies. It’s encouraging, although every mining house and drilling company should adopt it as a universal minimum. The key to continued success is to operate with discipline, without exception or exemption.

Real, effectual industry change cannot occur or be maintained if exemptions are made.

Truly safe production doesn’t come cheaply – it’s an investment, and requires realistic, long-term strategies to realize benefits.

People are our greatest asset. We must invest in them, keep them safe from harm and implore them to do same with self, team and community. Note that the GDS is free, and was developed to improve industry standards via a working safety document, distributed to all. I’m thrilled to share it. Email me at craiglavrick@digsolutions.org.

GT: Apart from the GDS, what other ideas of yours have been implemented or are you planning to implement in exploration drilling?

CL: I have so many ideas! My mind is abuzz with thoughts of how to work smarter and safer to realize greater results, and do no harm in any of our operations, not just drilling. It is achievable. I’m excited to share that we’re on the cusp of profound and positive industry disruption to manage drilling operations differently. I’m currently mid-development with a third party, having already achieved mind-blowing success rates.

I can’t reveal much right now, but check in with me if you’re curious to learn more.

GT: You were involved with the highly successful Australian Government- and industry-funded, Deep Exploration Technologies Cooperative Research Centre (DET CRC), which ended in 2018.

A new CRC has since commenced, the MinEx CRC. What was and is your role in the two groups?

CL: I was invited to both groups through the large miners I worked for at the time – BHP Billiton, Barrick Gold and Gold Fields, and most recently South32 via my consultancy, Dig Solutions. My role was and is to share and provide expert drilling advice while guiding and mentoring the group’s enthusiastic university graduates through their drillingrelated programs. I consider it a privilege to be involved with the two groups, as every member is committed, driven, and open to ensuring our industry continues to evolve and prosper. We are excited about exploring new ways to drill better, safer, and smarter to yield the results that we all strive for.

GT: Renowned for your drilling industry expertise, you’ve collaborated with many manufacturers, software programmers, instrument developers and solutions providers. In your opinion, what’s proven to be the most useful or impressive product in recent years?

CL: There isn’t any single industry product that can be deemed ‘most useful’ or ‘most impressive’, as success in mineral exploration relies on a collaborative approach consisting of a combination of products, software, and progressive mindsets (and action plans) to yield what I consider a successful end result. Silver bullets don’t exist in drilling; short cuts and quick fixes don’t work, as there are countless parameters to consider.

Interestingly, nine out of ten drill rig issues aren’t drill hole-related – they’re surfacerelated issues.

GT: What professional and personal qualities differentiate drillers from the rest of us?

CL: Drilling isn’t for the faint of heart.

Despite advancements in technology, drilling is still a physically and psychologically intensive career path. Isolated locations, extreme weather and long days of physically demanding work require a certain personality, and fitness, both physical and mental. Many drillers are unfairly labeled due to the exploits of a certain wayward few, but that attitude is shifting. It has to – mine sites are stringent environments, with zero tolerance to any 9

/21 QUESTIONS

safety breaches such as alcohol and drug consumption, lack of or inappropriate PPE, vehicular rules and behavior, etc. Today’s driller has evolved, and for the better. As innovation continues to drive technological change, so must the operator. Good drillers are willing to learn as well as teach or mentor, despite their status within the industry. (‘Old dogs’ are often, but not always, the hardest to teach new tricks to.) Exceptional drillers are patient, even-tempered and always on

the lookout for an opportunity to improve, whether that’s by improving processes or safety, harm prevention, or innovation.

GT: What are three common drilling issues and how do you resolve them?

CL: There is a tendency to deem a hole problematic at the point when either equipment or the hole fails. Many downhole issues or problems arise at the surface, and can be minimized, or avoided altogether.

Ninety per cent of so-called downhole issues can be attributed to surface-related error or human error, such as: 1. Caving: if a hole is appropriately tended with correct drilling fluids, constant hydrostatic pressure and zero swabbing during tripping, etc., the hole will react accordingly. Poor surface-related drilling practice is typically the cause of caving; not down-the-hole issues.

Importantly, tending to the hole from

Aspiring to the apex – Craig Lavrick in the Chilean Andes 10

Coring Magazine #11

2.

3.

surface to completion, and not when a problem occurs, can and should yield success.

Burnt bits: I’ll be candid. Most, but not all burnt bits are caused by distracted drillers at the controls. I cannot reiterate this enough – most drilling issues are surface-related (i.e. the driller not paying attention, a dry mud tank, inexperienced or inappropriate bit stripping, downhole equipment in poor condition, and so on).

Stuck rods: again, this is largely driller-induced. Maintaining a good filter cake on the drill hole wall, as well as constant monitoring of drill hole hydrostatic pressure will eliminate this. Also consider the speed at which pipe is being tripped. Greater damage is incurred the faster pipe is tripped, otherwise known as swabbing. The more you swab, the more problematic it becomes. Lastly, shear zones or faults must be treated with respect.

GT: What’s your take on the steel wedge’s installation success rate?

CL: It depends on the application. Correct setup is key to successful deep directional drilling. I’d utilize a window or casing wedge to establish a parent hole to eliminate future wedge issues, as non-retrievable and one-trip wedges tend to ‘fall over’ within the hole.

Typically, the issue is with incorrect landing, or drillers overlooking the efficacy and use of a carbon plug to slowly move past the wedge while tripping in. Utilizing a window or casing wedge may require downsizing hole diameter, drilling P-size to at least 1000 m (3280.84 ft) if attempting 3000 m (9842.52 ft) holes, serving as a perfect example of the rule of casing: being one third of the hole. Non-retrievable or one-trip wedge success rates are usually low, owing to inappropriate application. I rarely use them, opting to set up multiple daughter holes with directional drilling techniques that prevent wedge issues, such as aligning multiple holes with longer bends. As with all drilling, every hole should be individually assessed and treated accordingly, as there are situations when non-retrievable or one-trip wedges should be utilized.

GT: What are the pros and cons of directional drilling?

CL: Directional drilling is centered on the art of practicing patience. It takes time to learn the process and to be successful. Effective Faster. Deeper. Safer.

drilling programs utilize blended drilling crews with various expertise – stalwarts to supervise, lead and instruct, and less experienced young bloods to learn and later impart their skills and practice to the next generation. It can be prohibitively costly to invite too many inexperienced personnel at any one time.

Directional drilling advantages: • greater success rate, reaching multiple targets from single parent holes • pinpointing deep targets through controlled drilling techniques • reduced environmental impact and footprint • reduced costs via maximized holes (no drilling multiple top sections).

Directional drilling disadvantages: • very expensive without expert and appropriate guidance • specialist style requires constant supervision • specific conditions and methods (competent ground, diamond drilling) • slow penetration rates – from 3 m (9.84 ft) to 21 m (68.89 ft) per day • multiple daughter holes require extensive site prep and water supply.

GT: Coring Magazine’s main interest will always be drilling innovation. In your expert opinion, what are the reasons for the lack of new down-the-hole tools released in recent years?

CL: There’s a lot of research and development being undertaken in the background, but the economy has deferred final development of prototypes and eventual launch and release of innovative equipment and products.

Currently, there are several manufacturers and think tank-type groups exploring all available options, however, funding (or the lack of) will always be a hurdle. Mining companies rightfully demand compliance, but retrofitting equipment and training and developing people takes time and costs money. Many contractors are unable to absorb such expense, and only a handful of mining houses are willing to invest or contribute via sponsorship or buy-back programs. We all need to embrace innovation in some way. How can we expect a different outcome tomorrow if we continue to do the same thing each day?

GT: Persuading mining companies to hire drilling consultants is difficult, yet persuading a drilling company to hire said consultants can be even more of an uphill battle. Why, and what’s been your experience?

CL: Consultants from any industry must demonstrate how and why they’ll impart real and noticeable change. A skilled drilling consultant bridges the gap between miner and drilling contractor to foster strong relationships and deliver success.

As major and junior miners push for faster discoveries and efficient operations, many drilling operations are still being managed by inexperienced geologists. This makes zero sense to me. Drilling operations must be managed by suitably experienced, appropriate personnel. For example: Exploration Greenfields and Brownfields drilling environments typically allocate between 50 % and 80 % of annual budgets to drilling, yet most often appoint a geologist to lead a drilling program. I simply cannot fathom this logic. Geologists should not be managing drilling operations, period.

Incredibly, miners and drilling contractors don’t always source and appoint appropriate personnel, resulting in costly mistakes.

Geologists do not make appropriate drilling operations managers. My consultancy, Dig Solutions achieves drilling success by imparting 30+ years’ experience to lead and manage finely tuned, safe and effective operations with less downtime and more meters. It’s all about obtaining meters safely and efficiently using confident personnel.

GT: What’s your yardstick for measuring drilling professionalism? What differentiates the good from the bad or ugly?

CL: Take note of onsite morale. If crews seem positive and work effectively, it’d appear their needs are being met. But never assume. Enquire, to be certain, ensuring every literal body feels supported as an integral crew member. Then consider the opposite – a fractious, disengaged, seemingly unsupported crew. I gauge a company’s professionalism by its crews, and whether they’ve been afforded appropriate training – basic, competency-based, and ongoing according to the latest safety, technology, and process.

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/21 QUESTIONS

GT: Has any drilling company impressed you beyond expectation? Why?

GT: What, if any, mistake do you see large drilling contractors committing all too regularly?

on safety, and others zero in on financials.

Small wins will be obtained from each, but a savvy approach capitalizes on it all, upholding compliance, maintaining discipline by using data, documentation, and financials. Many specialists concentrate solely on the hole in the ground. That’s too focused, with all that needs to be considered, planned, and agreed upon before attempting a hole in the ground! (Remember: nine out of ten hole problems are surface-related). Successful mining comes about when drilling operations are managed correctly, – the operative word being correctly. As I mentioned previously, between 50 % to 80 % of drilling budgets are funneled into the ground. For me, the goal is to be operationally efficient, while maximising all aspects of the drilling process, with safe production at a lower cost per meter always being the target.

CL: Focusing too much on ‘boom’ time, growing companies too quickly without factoring in the cyclical nature of our industry with its ups and downs.

GT: Currently you are a CEO and Lead Consultant at Dig Solutions. Why did you decide to establish the company?

CL: Yes, and often. Impressive companies embrace change and believe in people. The industry continues to evolve but far too slowly. Reverse-circulation rig rod handlers were implemented in Australia in the 1990s, yet the rest of the world has been slow to embrace this basic safety necessity.

Unfortunately, non-compliant companies are overlooked at tender and miss out on work.

I’m perplexed when asked if rod handling is required on diamond drill rigs or safety rotation cages. It’s a no-brainer. Time to wake up, people!

GT: Why do you think mining companies tend to mine underground drilling themselves, yet use a contractor for surface operations? Is it safe to assume if a miner hires a Drilling Specialist that drilling operations will equal quality of service provided by a contractor?

CL: Is it safe to assume if a miner hires a Drilling Specialist that drilling operations will equal quality of service provided by a contractor? No. Drilling Specialists are not equal in their focus and leadership. Some concentrate on production, some focus

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CL: First reason: sheer necessity, as I was unexpectedly deemed redundant by a global mining house and one time too many. It’s part of our cyclical industry, but it’s unsettling and demoralising. Second reason: it was time. Living in the US, I had to decide, rather quickly, whether to return home to Australia, (my mining house-sponsored visa was about to expire), or carve my own path. I went with the latter, partnering with my wife, Joanne to form Dig Solutions, and we haven’t looked back. We choose who to partner with, deriving great pleasure from our clients’ appreciation and respect of our unique,

specific, and expert offering. We enjoy the freedom of independence, imparting real, sustainable change while upholding our professional and personal mantra of doing no harm, embracing innovation, and actualizing it at every conceivable moment.

GT: How you would like to see Dig Solutions evolving?

CL: Our primary focus has been on partnering with mining companies to improve and maintain mineral exploration operations.

However, Dig Solutions also assists thirdparty suppliers with downhole solutions.

As an expert end user of every conceivable solution out there, Dig Solutions partners with small and large entities to develop, hone, and deliver products to a wider market, hungry for sustainable improvement. Dig Solutions will continue to partner with driven, innovative, like-minded professionals to push for change and we welcome anyone into our fold who wants to do same. Call or email to learn more.

GT: Consider surface and down-thehole equipment. Where do you foresee diamond drilling in the future?

CL: Is diamond drilling the future? We need to think on a broader scale. What other methods can be employed to achieve diamond drilling’s typical result yet at 50 % cost reduction while increasing safe production?

I’d like to convene a group of like-minded individuals to dig into and explore and future opportunity and possibilities. Who’s with me? C

Coring Magazine #11

/IN FOCUS: TITELINE DRILLING

Titeline Drilling Underground:

Robotics and automation are the future

by Bill Ricciardi, CEO at Titeline Drilling Pty

14

Coring Magazine #11

Titeline Drilling (‘Titeline’) has been operating from its base in Ballarat Victoria for over 17 years, and continues to grow, steadily meeting the demands of a diverse customer base. The company specializes in surface and underground diamond drilling, with the surface business focusing on deep directional drilling while the underground business, Titeline Drilling Underground, has been developing a robotics solution for a hands-free drill rig and rod carrier system.

A Titeline drill site in South Australia

Background From the Gawler Craton of South Australia, where Titeline executed drill-outs of major deposits, including Prominent Hill, Carrapateena and Hillside, to today’s exploration hotspots, such as Ecuador in South America, the company’s unwavering commitment to safety, productivity and innovation has stood the test of time across variously demanding locations around the world.

Titeline has executed operations in Southern Africa and Papua New Guinea and has been involved in Coal Bed Methane surface-to-inseam drilling in Queensland through its subsidiary Titeline Energy Pty Ltd, and currently has ongoing operations in Mongolia and Ecuador. Primarily, the business operates in Australia, in Victoria, South Australia, Northern Territory, New South Wales and Queensland. Occasional ventures to Western Australia are required by its customers, as is the case with Rio Faster. Deeper. Safer.

Tinto Exploration which Titeline is currently drilling for on the exciting Winu project in Paterson Province.

Our people From a purpose-built workshop and offices in Ballarat, western Victoria, Titeline’s dedicated management team is led by the owners of the business, CEO Bill Ricciardi, General Manager Jeff Donaldson and General Manager Overseas Operations Stephen Gavin. This core leadership group boasts over 100 years of combined, varied and continuous experience in the drilling industry and is always looking to learn and continue to improve the business, as well as its outcomes for over 300 employees worldwide. The safety of its people has been at the forefront of everything the company does. As well as building robust safety systems and an Integrated Management System that all meet ISO standards and cover every aspect 15

/IN FOCUS: TITELINE DRILLING

Diamond drilling in Western Australia

of the company's operations, Titeline continuously searches for practical solutions that remove hazards from the work place.

New operations underground One exciting recent development is the company’s move into the underground diamond-drilling market. Titeline made the decision to diversify the business with the appointment of a dedicated Underground Manager, Greg Wythes; Greg joined the company in 2015 after leading several 16

major underground projects, including Rio North Parkes and block cave conditioning at Newcrest Cadia.

With the support of existing customer Mining Metals Group at their Rosebery base metals mine on the West Coast of Tasmania, Titeline Drilling Underground won a 40-month contract to drill 80 000 m (262 467.19 ft) per annum of resource definition drilling. In a short time-frame Titeline Drilling Underground commissioned the design of a unique mobile drilling machine based on field-proven Boart Longyear components. With the ability to move and set up quickly, drill from +90 to -90 degrees and to depths of 1500 m (4921.26 ft),

these machines have performed beyond expectation, allowing Titeline to exceed their customers’ production key performance indicators in the second full month of operations, without incident. Subsequent to this ramping up of activity, Titeline Underground secured its second contract with Newmont Tanami Operations in the Northern Territory, a combined grade control and resource definition contract requiring over 100 km to be drilled per annum.

The onboarding of nearly 100 new employees has been a challenge, but they have embraced the Titeline culture and settled in very well under the leadership of Greg and his team. In addition to its own Coring Magazine #11

people, Titeline recognizes the support of Mining Metals Group Rosebery. It has truly been a team effort to achieve such a smooth transition.

Creating an automated drill The transition to automated drill-rod handling is the next development phase of the Titeline-designed underground diamond drill and is now underway. This has been a natural progression for Titeline, having previously worked with EDM to develop the patent-pending EDM rod-feeder system for handling drill pipe on Titeline's surface drills.

(See the system in action on YouTube at the link below.) Titeline currently utilizes EDM rod feeders on its entire fleet of surface drills in Australia and is considered part of Titeline’s drill standard.

Developing automated rod handling in the underground environment posed unique challenges for our team, including: 1.

The harsh environment: the underground environment is renowned for taking its toll on every form of equipment. The water, the air, and the mud together necessitate a high-maintenance schedule for the plant and equipment. Anything we introduce to this environment needs to be robust.

2.

Numerous variables when setting up an underground drill: underground diamond drills by design are made to drill 360 degrees on azimuth and from -90 degrees to + 90 degrees in dip.

No setup is ever the same. The design needs to be infinitely flexible.

3.

Small footprint: underground mines are small spaces by default and anything working in them needs to be designed around the mining profile.

A 5.5 m (18.04 ft) high by 5.5 m side profile is the most common kind in hard rock applications, so keeping the drill as small as is practical is critical to its success.

4.

All the normal processes that go hand in hand with daily drilling operations and integrating them with robot operations.

5.

Ensuring that our step change is intrinsically safer, and any introduced risks and hazards are captured and controlled.

6.

Our team has faced and continues to face numerous other challenges in completing this project, but these were identified as non-negotiables.

Faster. Deeper. Safer.

EDM – 45K at a Titeline drill site

Reckoning with robotics After numerous brainstorming sessions concerning the next phase of development for a hands-free system, the idea of using robotics was brought to the table and a feasibility study began. Robotics has been used in many industries for many decades and it has proven to be reliable and robust, having been deployed for many purposes, including metal inert gas (MIG) welding, sand blasting, plasma cutting and in mining, for replacing conveyer rollers while the conveyer is still in operation.

Though the physical look of industrial robots may not have changed in recent years the technology driving the robots has advanced significantly. The Programmable

Logic Controllers driving these robots are now much smaller and smarter than ever, with the only limitation being your imagination.

To transform its research into practice, Titeline engaged the services of two engineers who had previous experience in the design of drill rigs and contracted a specialist robotics company to supply and program the rod-handling robot.

The prototype drill rig and dedicated rod carrier were fabricated locally and assembled in Titeline’s own workshop. The robot was fitted, and programming testing has recently commenced. Initial results are outstanding and field testing will commence in September. Fully automated rod tripping at the touch of a button is now a reality and, 17

/IN FOCUS: TITELINE DRILLING

along with the existing automated drilling capacity of the selected drill rig, it opens up the possibility of remotely monitored autonomous underground diamond drilling.

CEO of Titeline Group Mr Bill Ricciardi commented: ‘We are excited about the development of this unique piece of equipment and to be able to offer to our clients an intrinsically safer method of rod handling that removes all personnel from

the physical process. We want our people to be safe and we will continue to push the envelope in how we go about doing that.

We have a great team of people working on the project, and once it is completed, we will move on to new developments utilizing the knowledge we have gained in robotics, AI, and their potential to revolutionize how we work.’ C

For more information Titeline Drilling: www.titelinedrilling.com.au Video demonstrating the EDM rod-feeder system: www.youtube.com/ watch?v=mkKDmwzS4lw

Dawn in Western Victoria 18

Coring Magazine #11

2020

March 1 – 4 Metro Toronto Convention Centre Toronto, Canada

REGISTER AT pdac.ca/convention Purchase an All Access Pass and enjoy unlimited programming, networking events & more!

EXPAND YOUR NETWORK 25,000+ attendees from 132 countries GAIN INSIGHTS FROM INDUSTRY EXPERTS 780+ speakers ACCESS TO CAPITAL 2,500+ investors PROMOTE YOUR BUSINESS 1,100+ exhibitors

/PRODUCT REVIEW

Exploration Drill Masters’ new EDM45K-D diamond coring rig:

Raising the bar for safety and productivity

by Quentin Dulake , Global Sales Executive at Exploration Drill Masters Chile S.A.

Exploration Drill Masters (EDM) continues to establish itself as the world’s leading supplier of rotary top-drive mineral exploration machines to contractors, cementing the company’s reputation for reliability and safety within the industry. This is evident in the rapidly growing popularity of its new EDM45K-D machine and unique, safe, rod-handling equipment.

Introduction The EDM45K-D coring rig is EDM’s latest release and exemplifies the company’s commitment to innovation to deliver solutions that address the industry’s demands for improved safety and productivity.

Nigel Smith, General Manager at EDM, comments on the release of the machine: ‘Expectations of drilling rig manufacturers have never been higher. People want more power to improve productivity while maintaining a small footprint, as well as total reliability and safer working environments for their crews. But they also want to achieve a reduction in on-going operational costs.

These principles were the cornerstones of the design brief for the rig.’

With 20.41 t (45 000 lb) of pullback capacity, a powerful Cummins QSB 6.7 engine and a 7-meter stroke the EDM45K-D offers the best power-to-size ratio on the market and is capable of drilling to 1600 m+ in N-size coring. The rig boasts an impressive array of safety features usually found on much larger rigs and fits inside a container for fast, lowcost shipping.

Collaborating with customers to achieve results

On site in Ghana on a 600 m N-size coring project 20

The idea for the rig was born of continuous feedback and close collaboration with several of EDM’s clients. One such client, Titeline Drilling – a long-established contractor in Australia - required reliable and compact machines to work in extremely hot environments in remote locations.

Coring Magazine #11

Climatised drillers’ cabin deployed in drilling position EDM45K-D DIAMOND CORE DRILL: TECHNICAL DATA Depth Capacity* (N)

N+ =1600 m / H+ = 1100 m / P+ = 730 m

Rotary Head Max Torque

6713 Nm (4952 Lbft)

Rotary Head Max Speed

1250 rpm

Feed Force

17 000 lbf (7711 kgf)

Pull Force

45 000 lbf (20 411 kgf)

Rotary Head Working Stroke

23 ft (7.2 m)

Engine

Cummins QSB 6.7 260 HP (Tier 3 or Tier 4/Stage 5)

Main Winch (Mounted on Mast Head)

40 000 lbf (18 144 kgf)

Wireline Winch

2000 m @ 6 mm w/l capacity

Rod Spinner (with Rod Spin Guard)

2200 lbf break torque (Jaws B+ to HWT, N+ to PWT)

Rod Breakout Options

Mezke Makorbreak Hydraulic Breakout Wrench

MB550 D Hands Free Metzke Make and Break

Rod Clamp and Slip Table

Hydraulically Operated, Self-Energising

Coring Pump

65 GPM @ 2000 PSI (American Bean L1118DSC)

Tracks

Steel, 2 speed with CAT D3 Running Gear

Standard Control Console

Hydraulically deployable, stows for shipping

2 Person Control Cabin

Sealed, air-conditioned/heated, hydraulically deployable

(Optional)

up to 4 m away from drill table

Shipping Method

40 ft High Cube Container, no disassembly required

* Based on 70 % of rigs pullback capacity and proven in the field Faster. Deeper. Safer.

With temperatures of 45°C, the drillers could not be exposed to the heat for more than 30 minutes at a time. EDM’s answer was to design bespoke two-person, acclimatised drillers’ cabins that can be stowed for transportation and hydraulically deployed for drilling operations on an extendable arm.

The cabins were fitted with twin airconditioning units and adjustable seats.

The results, according to Titeline’s CEO Bill Ricciardi, exceeded expectations: ‘The drillers are able to work continually in a controlled and comfortable environment, so they are not suffering from heat fatigue and are generally more alert during their operations.

The result is that we are seeing an increase in daily meterage and improved sample returns.’

Another client, based in West Africa, required a track mounted rig for difficult site conditions but needed the rig to be easily transportable for long hauls between sites.

The acclimatised and sealed drillers cabin wasn’t required for the client, so the standard side mounted deployable control console was used instead.

Ryan Wall, EDM’s Chief Engineer, was very clear on the product brief for transportation: ‘From the beginning we knew that this rig had to be powerful enough to drill deep exploration holes but needed to fit into a container for shipping. No disassembly or reassembly is required and we included extendable jack legs to keep the width narrow for transportation in a container and give better stability for deep holes. This system also facilitates fast loading onto trailers and flat-bed trucks.’

Advanced options for safety and productivity Despite the compact nature of the EDM45K-D, the rig boasts an impressive array of safety features that you would usually expect to find only on larger machines.

These include a rod spinner for the fast, safe making and breaking of drill rods, and rod spin guard with rotation cut-out when opened.

The main winch, mounted on the mast head, gives 18.14 t (40 000 lb) pull capacity and includes a failsafe break mechanism and a winch limiter system to prevent rods from being pulled into the drum. The wireline winch has a capacity of 2000 m+ of 6 mm wireline and comes with an automatic rope spooling device and a wireline override to prevent the overshot being pulled over the mast head.

21

/PRODUCT REVIEW

On-site in West Africa

The rig in transit position and ready to load in container.

Remote control for tracking and rigging operations ensure that the crews are clear of the rig during the manoeuvring and setup procedure prior to drilling. Tracking alarms, guarding on rotating parts, multiple emergency stops and heat guards on exhaust manifolds are also included as standard.

Engine options include the latest EU stage 5 or Tier 4 Final emissions standards or Tier 3 engines. Standard or high ambient configurations are available as well as high altitude and cold starter packs.

Both the acclimatised control cabin and standard control console have been ergonomically designed with a user-friendly layout, and the control cabin has built in FOPS protection.

top-drive or chuck-drive machine, has up to 2000 m (6500 ft) of N-size storage on board and can run in and trip out 6 m (19.69 ft) and 9 m (29.53 ft) rods. With over 75 Mk1 units supplied, the recent addition of a new gripper arrangement on the feeder arm means that 3 m (9.84 ft) pipe can now be added while drilling.

EDM are on schedule to complete testing of a new fully automated plug spinner and ‘rod shuffler’ system for the Rod Feeder by the end of this year, which will revolutionize surface rod handling. EDM’s lead design engineer, Benjamin Standring, has been key to the development of this project. He comments, ‘with the new automated plug spinner and shuffling system on the Mk2 Rod Feeder, the whole rod handling operation with the rig becomes 100 % hands-free and will be mechanical to ensure total reliability in difficult conditions. There is no other system like it on the market and early modelling shows that we can anticipate improved productivity with better cycle times than previously achieved.’

The company expects full release of the Mk2 Rod feeder by end of Q1 2020. C

Improving safety and efficiency through innovation EDM’s diamond Rod Feeder is a popular addition to the EDM45K-D rig and offers a hands-free solution to handling rods with unparalleled safety and efficiency.

The Rod Feeder, which can work with any 22

EDM’s other products and services • • • • • •

• • •

RC, MP rigs with multiple carrier options Horizontal de-watering and exploration rigs Rod loading and handling systems on tracks or trucks Rod platforms and carriers Support vehicles for all drilling operations Complete rig packages including; service and maintenance training, on-site commissioning, tooling packages, freight etc.

In-house design services for flexibility and custom builds Rig repair and overhaul Rig upgrades including retrofitting RC pipe handlers, spinners, guarding and other mine site safety equipment.

For more information If you want to learn more about the EDM45K-D or any of the company’s other products please contact EDM at www.explorationdrillmasters.com.

Coring Magazine #11

INDUSTRY LEADERS

for mineral exploration drill rigs and equipment

EDM1500HP

Deep-Hole Heliportable Rig

EDM2000MP

EDM45K-D

Containerised Diamond Core Rig

70,000 Lbf Pullback Multipurpose Rig With Rod Feeder

EDM rigs offer total reliability and exceptional performance in the toughest conditions.

Used by the industry's leading contractors, EDM machines have a reputation for unparalleled safety and surpass the most stringent mine-site safety standards.

Innovation and development are at the core of EDM's strategy, ensuring exceptional results for our clients.

A wide range of options are available for hands-free rod handling including standalone rod carriers and feeders, and retrofittable handlers for almost any drill rig. An experienced and flexible engineering department means that EDM can offer you custom solutions for your specific drilling requirements.

www.explorationdrillmasters.com

EDM45K-D

Climatised Ergonomic Cabin

Containerised Easy Loading Powerful Safe

/PRODUCT REVIEW

Revolutionizing diamond core drilling with

Clean-Tech Modular Drilling System rig series

by David Jones, Business Development Officer at Drillco Mining and Exploration

24

Coring Magazine #11

Drillco Mining and Exploration of North Bay, Ontario, now offers the exploration industry an innovative Clean-Tech Modular Drilling System. Clean-Tech series rigs are portable, diamond drilling systems small enough to be utilized in all three standard diamond core drilling applications – surface/skid, underground and heli-portable – yet powerful enough to effectively reach depths of more than 2500 m (8202 ft).

Drill mast (fly configuration) Drillco founder and President Sylvain Brisson said the Clean-Tech system offers users maximum flexibility, high productivity, and financial savings in an environmentally responsible, safe system. Brisson has over three decades of industry experience as a driller, rig and equipment designer, operations specialist, and owner of a contract drilling company.

‘As a company, Drillco has deep industry knowledge and expertise,’ Brisson said. ‘We use advanced technology to create solutions that maximize our customers’ efficiency.

That’s exactly what the Clean-Tech system is able to provide the exploration industry – a premium drilling system that’s a full generation ahead of the others.’

Brisson said, ‘Thinking outside the box is one of our top core strengths. Clean-Tech demonstrates how our innovative culture Faster. Deeper. Safer.

incorporates environmental friendliness while delivering technical advantages and operational efficiencies – all at reduced costs.’

The Clean-Tech system was specifically designed, engineered, and manufactured with owners, drillers, and mechanics in mind, Brisson said. It offers owners lower capital investment and operating cost.

The Clean-Tech system works across many applications, giving drilling companies the versatility to bid on any type of work and adapt quickly to various job requirements.

They can respond to opportunities in a short time without significant additional expenditures.

The Clean-Tech operational controls are password-protected, giving owners peace of mind. Owners and supervisors can set maximum and minimum limits for all drilling features, locking in optimal operating parameters at the touch of a finger.

The system also gives drillers marketleading performance and range. Operators learn the system easily, Brisson said. It has a single, common control panel that permits them to quickly adjust the system’s settings to whatever work they’re doing on the fly.

Mechanics will find that the system’s spacious component placement and four-bolt design gives them easy access during maintenance and repair. Common components are easily converted from surface to underground with kits and the option of switching motor groups and mast cylinders for specific drilling requirements.

Drillco currently has Clean-Tech Modular Drilling System rigs operating in British Columbia, Ontario, Mexico, and West Africa.

Trevor Hooper from ITL Diamond Drilling (Innovation, Technology and Logistics) based in Smithers, British Columbia, said, ‘My drillers call it a Ferrari! They love the power, raw strength, simple operation, 25

/PRODUCT REVIEW

Power pack unit (surface diesel configuration) and appearance of this drill.’ ITL has been using Drillco equipment exclusively on their flagship project in the Golden Triangle.

Stephanie McGuiness, ITL president, said, ‘After seeing the Drillco system in full operation on another drill site, we were convinced these were the drills we needed for our company. We are currently using two Drillco fly-rigs on our project for Garibaldi

Control panel 26

Resources Corporation. The power of these drills is awesome. We’re putting a lot of core in the box.’

Displayed at trade shows, the system is drawing attention for its power pack, control station, and drilling capabilities, which come as a surprise to visitors due to the system’s compact size.

Clean-Tech capability and range vary by size of tooling but is rated to: • 2500 m (8202 ft) (BWL) • 1800 m (5906 ft) (NWL) • 1100 m (3609 ft) (HWL) • 750 m (2461 ft) (PWL) Other key Clean-Tech system features include: • Choice of power units ranging from 75 hp to > 350 hp.

• Electric-over-hydraulic propositional valve system and controlled by a programmable logic controller (PLC).

• 75 % reduction of hydraulic hoses and connections. Delivers 30 % or more net horsepower and torque to the drill head that is wasted in less efficient systems.

• Drilling mode operations at 5000 psi versus 2500 or 3000 psi of competing drills. Up to 40 % increased drilling performance.

•

•

A hydraulic turntable that can be used for both underground and surface applications – including fly-ins – with slewing-ring for increased drilling range in X, Y, and Z axis.

Lightweight operator control station for easy moves.

Clean-Tech system benefits – the ‘Drillco Advantage’ – include: • 30 % savings in power consumption (diesel fuel or electrical power usage, based on motor group).

• 70 % less hydraulic oil (90 L oil reservoir at full capacity).

• 75 % fewer hydraulic hoses and connections – eliminating all hoses from the power pack to the control panel. Reduces maintenance costs as well as risk of leaks and spills.

• Air-cooled system with brushless, variable-speed fan motor reduces water consumption.

• Ease of training, operation and support. C

About the company For more information on Drillco, please visit www.DrillcoMining.ca or come by our office for a tour!

Coring Magazine #11

Clean-Tech Modular Drilling Systems

CLEAN-TECH MODULAR SERIES The only true modular drilling rig series that incorporates Clean-Tech environmental friendliness.

Get to the core of your exploration drilling goals with the Drillco Advantage – offering a lower cost, ease of maintenance and designs with the drillers, owners and mechanics in mind.

• 25-30% savings in fuel consumption • 70% less hydraulic oil • 75% reduction of hydraulic hoses and connections • 30% or more net horsepower and torque to the drill head • 90 litre hydraulic tank • Power of the larger rigs harnessed in a small portable rig

We strive to provide value with our well-designed, high quality solutions.

Faster.www.DrillcoMining.com Deeper. Safer.

• Convert from surface to underground with common components • Spacious component placement / easy access four-bolt design • Light transport / heli-portable • Choice of power units from 75 hp to > 350 hp • Ease of training, operation, support • Data logging

27

/ISSUE SPECIAL: UNDERGROUND DRILLING & EQUIPMENT

Exploring the possibilities

with resourceful underground coring crews and equipment

by John Sanchez, US Underground Coring Operations Manager at Boart Longyear

28

Coring Magazine #11

Showing up on a mine site to perform contract underground diamond coring doesn’t always go exactly as planned. On one particular project, Boart Longyear mobilized underground coring rigs to a client’s mine in the US where the mine was faced with a big water problem that was making the underground exploration coring impossible to complete. The mine had two shafts located at different levels, one above the other.

The deeper shaft had pumps installed and was ready to pump water to the surface. However, the upper shaft had flooded with water – where there were no pumps.

Rather than attempt to install additional pumps in the flooded upper shaft to remove the water, Boart Longyear moved their underground coring rigs down to the lower shaft and drilled a fan-shaped series of upholes to the flooded shaft above. The idea worked, effectively using gravity to drain the water from the upper shaft to the lower shaft where the pumps were then able to move the excess water to the surface. The mine was able to continue operations in the upper shaft and Boart Longyear was able to start the diamond coring exploration drilling.

On another project, the mine was thought to be dry. After the underground coring began, the Boart Longyear crew ended up finding water – a lot of it, quite unexpectedly.

The crew was able to come up with a plan to manage the water so the exploration drilling could be completed. After pressure grouting in a cement collar casing, a blow-outpreventer (BOP – used to seal, control, and monitor water to prevent blow outs and the uncontrolled release of high-pressure water) and rock pack were installed successfully, shutting the water in. Most instances where that amount of water is encountered play out quite differently. Everyone has experienced, Faster. Deeper. Safer.

or knows someone who has, a situation where a high volume of water blows all your tooling out of the hole, resulting in a complicated mess.

Underground rigs drilling on surface projects Other examples of unexpected challenges include creative solutions using Boart Longyear’s own engineered underground rigs on the surface. The Drilling Services Underground Coring division mobilized rigs to a mine site where a delay in underground diamond coring exploration had the underground rigs idle on the surface.

Someone saw the rigs waiting and asked if the idle underground rigs could drill flatangled holes on the surface. Accepting the challenge, the underground coring rigs have been drilling these low, flat-angled boreholes ever since.

The mine site has a limited surface disturbance permit – which means that to reach the geological formations outside the area of their disturbance permit, Boart Longyear’s Underground Coring Division is operating underground rigs on the surface to drill low-angled and flat holes that surface rigs often can’t reach because of their truckmounted tall masts.

The underground rigs can drill at low angles from -40 degrees down to flat. They drill underneath the area where the mining client isn’t allowed to disturb the surface.

This means exploration coring can follow ore veins without disturbing the surface and drill beneath the area outside of the issued disturbance permit.

The boreholes are 2600 ft to 2700 ft (792.48 m to 822.96 m) at a -40 to -12 degree angle. Boart Longyear has the tooling and the expertise for that type of drilling but was unable to accomplish the job with surface rigs because when set up flat, you’re going to be 12 ft (3.66 m) off the ground because the mast is way up on a truck carrier. With the underground rigs, a work platform or deck was constructed, which enabled the team to work right up close to them.

A versatile and unique fleet The Boart Longyear Drilling Services Underground Coring division in the US runs all Boart Longyear-engineered and manufactured LMTM and MDR rigs. The LM series of rigs feature easily interchangeable components, allowing for space constraints 29

/ISSUE SPECIAL: UNDERGROUND DRILLING & EQUIPMENT

Typical underground coring drill setup. ©2019 Boart Longyear. All rights reserved. without sacrificing depth requirements.

These modular coring rigs offer easier access in tight underground spaces and mobility for easier moves from hole to hole or shaft to shaft. Boart Longyear’s patented tooling offers safer and more efficient up-holes at any angle.

The underground coring rigs in the Drilling Services’ fleet are modified and customized, as compared to the commercially available Boart Longyear underground coring rigs.

For example, the LM™90 is souped up with a 150-horsepower engine instead of the typical 90-horsepower engine and includes additional modifications for increased depth capacity and core size.

30

The Drilling Services Underground Coring division has the experience and technical expertise to drill dewatering galleries, geotechnical borings, tunnel investigations, grouting services, and utility borings. The division also has experience with overcore drilling to measure in-situ stress. Overcore drilling involves drilling a hole to depth with a small diameter EX- or AX-sized bit, placing a probe to measure strain response data, and then using a special resin to glue the probe in place. After drilling out a larger diameter core to retrieve the probe, the overcore sample and probe are used for stress testing the rock formation to plan for ground support.

This method is often used in both horizontal tunnels and vertical shafts to measure the amount of stress the rock can take.

Horizontal drilling for dewatering Another unique application for underground rigs and crews is drilling on the surface into high walls for dewatering purposes. Flat to close-to-horizontal boreholes – from 10 degrees up to 10 degrees down – can be used to create self-draining dewatering boreholes in high walls. Pressure grouting in a cement collar casing keeps the hole from collapsing and can be used with a BOP valve in case the mining client wants to shut the water in the rock formation.

To maintain the integrity of the hole, installing slotted polyvinyl chloride (PVC) keeps the hole from collapsing. If you go through a broken zone, when water starts Coring Magazine #11

LM™90 with customized feed frame. Expert drillers from left to right: John Sanchez, Jimmie Maggard, Marcus Woody, and Sal Renteria. ©2019 Boart Longyear. All rights reserved. flowing, the hole can bridge off after a couple of months. The PVC keeps the hole open and the water running.

The benefit of using underground rigs for this type of drilling is the difference between large rotary rigs that produce chip samples and use lower rotation per minute (rpm) and higher torque whereas a coring rig operates at higher rpms and less torque. Chuckdrive underground coring rigs drill slower, straighter, and deeper and collect core for further analysis.

Geologists can use core samples from horizontal drilling into a high wall to look for fractures, faults, and oxidation (to identify water-bearing zones). They can also be identified in chip samples using rotary drilling rigs, but it’s more difficult to see them that way. A core sample provides a better physical view of the rock formation. Drilling high walls with underground coring rigs accomplishes two goals with one borehole – dewatering and obtaining core samples for assaying for fractures, faults, and oxidation.

The real heroes Whether it’s an underground coring project or a surface application for underground coring rigs, the drilling crews are the real heroes at Boart Longyear. They have widereaching (global) resources to find unique and Faster. Deeper. Safer.

inventive solutions for complex, technical, and sometimes immense drilling challenges and they’re not afraid to ask questions.

More than just a can-do attitude, great work ethic, diverse skills, vast experience, technical knowledge, and a commitment to safety and each customer’s success, they get the job done. Drillers, driller assistants, welders, mechanics, supervisors, and other support personnel travel to work in remote locations, in all kinds of challenging weather, climates, and altitudes, all while spending extended time away from their families. The work is strenuous, involves extensive training, and requires their full attention for safety’s sake.

These real heroes all contributed to Boart Longyear’s latest safety achievement of 10 million man-hours and one year of being losttime injury-free. A big congratulations to all the drilling crews and support personnel on this company-wide accomplishment! Denis Despres, Chief Operating Officer stated, ‘On a site level, we value the everyday procedures from standardized pre-start information meetings that focus on daily job tasks and associated hazards and risks, our online data management system, including the system’s mobile app, and the daily team and individualbased field level risk assessments. At Boart Longyear, it is everyone’s responsibility to work safely.’ C

About the author John Sanchez has 16 years in the drilling industry – all with Boart Longyear. He started with Boart Longyear as a driller assistant for the sonic drilling division. After discovering his love for drilling, John really wanted to become a driller, but wasn’t eligible to test for his commercial driver’s license until he was 21. To become a driller, John transferred to the production drilling division and spent a year and a half underground. After turning 21, John transferred back to the sonic drilling division before moving again to the surface coring division where he worked until 2009. John has spent the last ten years working first as a driller, then supervisor, and is now an operations manager for the underground coring division.

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/ISSUE SPECIAL: UNDERGROUND DRILLING & EQUIPMENT

Product Review:

Bulldrill™

BDU800EXC

by Ceren Şatırlar Balcı, Executive Board Member, Barkom Group Drilling Rigs & Equipment, Inc., Turkey

Environmental conditions in underground mining can give rise to many risks, including explosions; non-flameproof machines and equipment form flame sources that may be dangerous in environments containing methane gas. To help prevent explosive disasters in such work conditions, the European Union Directive 9/94/EC was published, known as the ATEX Directive.

Born from research In 2015 Barkom Group commenced manufacturing the Bulldrill™ surface and underground drill rigs. In 2017 TSE (Turkish Standards Institution) and ATEX certificates were approved for Barkom’s underground drill rigs, both skid and crawler types (ex–proof certified). It was the first time – and remains the only time – that such a drill rig was manufactured in Turkey. It was made possible by the long years of research, development, and design put in by Barkom. As a result of these studies, in December 2018 the Ministry of Industry and Technology of Turkey, under Law No. 5746, approved Barkom as an accredited research and development center.

Having gained experience in manufacturing an underground drill rig accredited by ATEX and motivated by a mission to always improve, Barkom stepped up its underground drill-rig production to the next level and started to manufacture a new design of underground drill rig – the BulldrillTM BDU800EXC. Barkom Group’s Research and Development team completed production of the BDU800EXC in 2018 as part of a broader drive to expand the company’s research and development and innovation activities.

In turn, these will increase international competitiveness in the industry and Turkey’s share in the global value chain.

Ergonomic control panel 32

Coring Magazine #11

Advanced technologies and robust protections The Bulldrill™ BDU800EXC is an explosionproof, fully hydraulic, diamond core drill rig, with a wide range of options and accessories.

It consists of three main parts: the drill unit, a power pack, and a control console. It is suitable for a variety of drilling methods in both underground and surface operations, such as core drilling, grout-hole drilling, probing, etc. The drill unit is powered by an ATEX-certified electrical engine.

The BDU800EXC uses the most advanced technology available for diamond core drills. All tube jointing, thread breaking, feeding, and the wireline hoist sequences are controlled from a control console that can be positioned to suit the setup. Feeding is done by a direct cylinder, thereby eliminating chains in the feed system. The drill can be equipped with two different feed lengths (850 mm – 1800 mm) and two different sizes of rotation units (A-N/B-H), to suit the

required rod size and drilling applications.

Also, the H-size rod can be passed through the chuck and the P-size rod can be passed through the rod holder.

The BDU800EXC has a 1000-meter drilling capacity with NWL hole diameter.

In addition to the 110 kW ABB explosionproof powerful electrical engine it features an explosion-proof electric panel with a HALA 315 screen designed to facilitate access to reliable data in underground drilling. On this screen, parametric values such as methane percentage, hydraulic oil temperature, hydraulic oil adequacy, system pressure levels, and fault notifications can be monitored and read from the methane gas detector integrated into the system.

This allows vital data to be easily accessed during drilling, and, with a Fault Detection facility, as well as the standard necessary controls, action can be quickly taken if a problem arises.

Occupational health and safety has been brought to the fore in this drill rig, which is made from select, high-quality components,

and every installation we have provided has been carried out in full compliance of the ATEX Directive. A special hydraulic pistoncontrolled protection cage, hydraulically controlled ladder walkway, gas-bottom jaw, powerful rotation unit, compact and routable Control Panel, and high-capacity wireline rope-wrapping system are some of the equipment installed on our drilling rig.

The BDU800EXC also has synchronized rod running. Chuck and clamp sequencing during rod handling are automatic. This means that the chuck, rod holder, and fast travel are controlled with a joystick. The operator must select the rod running ‘in’ or ‘out’ mode using the mode selector. The thread compensation balances the weight of the rotation unit and because the drill rod is unscrewed, it prevents the weight of these components from loading the threads when the joint is being unscrewed for both downhole and uphole drilling. The amount of thread compensation should be adjusted when starting with a new drill rod or significantly changing the drilling angle. When making the joint, the

BDU800EXC Faster. Deeper. Safer.

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/ISSUE SPECIAL: UNDERGROUND DRILLING & EQUIPMENT

feed cylinder is put into a floating position with both sides of the cylinder connected. It is recommended that the helper turns the rod in at least one full turn before the rest of the joint is made with the rotation unit.

In addition to all these features, the electrical engine is protected from overload, and the resulting engine temperature increase, by three thermistors. The first thermistor monitors the temperature warning light and if the temperature reaches 110˚C the thermistor interrupts the energy source of the system, thus stopping the electrical engine. The second thermistor will shut down the engine when the windings reach 145˚C. This allows the maximum power of the engine to be used and takes account of the ambient temperature and engine-cooling conditions. The third thermistor will shut down the electrical engine if the hydraulic oil temperature increases to 110˚C.

Conclusion Barkom has conducted R&D work on the underground drill rigs, which can be used in explosive environments in underground mines for three years. Barkom implemented its production of the Project in 2017 and the BDU400EX still remains the first domestically produced ATEX-certified underground drilling machine. BDU800EXC has arisen from all these researches and is now the latest model available with ATEX certificate.

Illustrating the potential of the BDU800EXC underground drill rig, it was exported to Ireland in December 2018 where Barkom worked closely with Priority Drilling Ltd, an Ireland-based drilling company that has 65 years’ experience in mineral drilling.

With the input of the managing director of Priority Drilling, Michael McCarthy, the underground manager at Tara Mines and foreman for Priority Drilling, Declan Hogan, and the head of plant management at Priority Drilling, Francis Hobbins, we built this new ATEX-approved drill rig to specifications required by their team. And as a result of their contribution, we have been able to add value both to our country as well as Ireland.

We continue to keep our pulse on the market and conduct R&D studies for our next models. C

Hansen electric box with PLC screen

More information: www.barkomas.com

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Air cooler Coring Magazine #11

In Nordfeld 14, 29336 Nienhagen, Germany, +49 5144/49360

BHA Equipment Diamond bits Core barrels Stabilizers Reamers Crossovers Drill collars Raise bore tools Additional services Coring service Directional drilling Borehole survey Rental stock Engineering Workshop Maintenance

/CASE STUDY

Exploration drilling in Otavi Mountain Land, Namibia

by Johan Coetzee, Managing Director at Adamas Drilling and Exploration

Background Otavi Mountain Land lies within the warm temperate or sub-tropical part of Africa. The area has a semi-arid climate with summer rainfall of about 500 mm (19.69 in) per annum, and its growing season is between three and six months per year. Otavi Mountain Land is known for its Namibian karst systems that hold great paleontological interest.

A mineral province for copper, lead, zinc and vanadium, of some 10 000 km2, located at the eastern extremity of the exposed Northern Platform of the Damara PanAfrican orogenic belt, Otavi Mountain Land is the most important such province on the Northern Platform. Mineral exploitation has been ongoing since the possession of the territory by the German colonial authority in 1890. Production has been mostly from four mines, which, in order of importance, are Tsumeb, Kombat, Berg Aukas, and Abeoab.

Four challenges

Diamec-262, Otavi Mountainland, Northern Namibia

Adamas Drilling and Exploration (‘Adamas’) started its first drilling project in 2013. At that time, the company had only one core drill rig, an Atlas Copco Diamec-262, and an old Toyota Land Cruiser pick-up, a drilling team consisting of an operator, a core writer, two assistants, and a lot of aspiration. The project was scheduled for one year and took place in Otavi Mountain Land, in Otjozondjupa region, northern Namibia.

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The exploration project was challenging.

The first difficulty for the drilling team was posed by the mountains. No vehicles or truck- or track-mounted rigs could reach the sites. Access was via steep slopes of 70 to 80 degrees. The only option was to use a sling system.

The Diamec-262 rig has three separate units: power pack, rotation unit, and control panel. As well as the rig there were water pumps, water and sump reservoirs, drilling fluids, more than 200 m (656.17 ft) of drill rods with stands, and a lot of small drilling consumables and tools. All of that kit was moved hundreds of meters by hand along slopes and over ridges.

Coring Magazine #11

The second challenge was the weather: heavy rain and thunder storms. The third challenge was the size of the drill pads. The drill sites had limited space, as the mountains did not allow for much maneuvering.

However, the Diamec-262 was the perfect rig for this exploration project due to its light weight and capability to reach the required depth using N-size bits.

The last difficulty was the karst. Every drill hole crossed a cave of one size or another that ranged from a few centimeters up to a couple of meters. But, Johan Coetzee, with his years of experience and deep knowledge, and the well-organized, hard-working team were well up to the task. The correct combination of drilling technique and use of fluids kept the deflection of the holes to an insignificant level. The core was oriented to provide comprehensive geological information.

Only one cavity caused some trouble: the nine-meter cavity. After battling with this complicated geology, we had to leave a core barrel in the karst. No other downhole equipment was lost in the holes.

Expertise, quality and standards In the course of over seven years of operations, Adamas has gained substantial experience, always complying with the rigorous criteria required by our clients. The company recognizes the need and value of planning ahead. By reviewing and evaluating its clients’ suggestions, reported issues, and recommendations, Adamas ensures its operations are completed to the highest standards, according to best practices for safety, quality, and performance.

For more info visit: www.adamas-drilling.com. C

About the author Johan Coetzee, Managing Director at Adamas Drilling and Exploration, has more than 25 years of experience in the drilling industry, not only in Namibia but also in the Republic of South Africa and Mozambique.

After Otavi The successful performance of Adamas on the Otavi Mountain Land project gave the company the opportunity to buy a second rig. So, a bigger diamond drill rig, the CS-14, joined the team at the beginning of 2014 and Adamas commenced drilling near Brandberg Mountain. For five years the CS-14 was travelling with our drill crew across Namibia and to date it has successfully completed a number of projects. Meanwhile, the Diamec-262 continued to serve the company well in a number of logistically difficult projects, including a historic mine and up a mountain near the Orange River, which required the team to use a helicopter to transport the rig. Most recently, the Diamec-262 was taken underground at the Rosh Pinah Zinc mine where it has been supported by a second underground coredrilling rig, a Diamec Smart 4, which is the latest and most modern rig from the Diamec series, and it is fully automatic.

Adamas operates not only in exploration but also in geotechnical. For this purpose, in 2015 we obtained and modified a diamond core drill rig, the XY-2T. Faster. Deeper. Safer.

Diamec Smart 4, Rosh Pinah Zinc mine, Namibia

CS-14 near Swakopmund, Namibia 37

Exploration Mining Geology In this issue

Q&A from the Experts: In conversation with Michael Thomsen, Independent Consulting Geologist Reopening a historic mine

by Graham Peterson, Geologist, Black Fox Mining LLC and GS Mining Company, LLC From wilderness to resource— and those who ‘Make it so!’

by Liam Hardy, Operations Director at Spotlight Mining The impact of deciding whether to drill late or not at all

by Sean Muller, Exploration Geologist Drill core storage: Orientation regarding international best practices

by Daniel Bortowski Carvalho, Geologist and CEO at Core Case, Gláucia Cuchierato, Geologist and CEO at GeoAnsata and Ana Carolina Chieregati, Professor and Mining Engineer

/Q&A FROM THE EXPERTS

&

In conversation with

Michael Thomsen

FROM

THE EXPERTS

Michael Thomsen Independent Consulting Geologist Timothy Strong: Were there any major influences on you when you first started out in geology?

Michael Thomsen: Two huge influences helped shape my career. The first operated at a personal level; I was extremely lucky to be hired by, and work directly for, two of the most outstanding explorationists in the business. I listened to them carefully, studied them closely, and worked diligently for both of them. The second influence affected me at the professional corporate level. Working for a multi-faceted company such as Freeport directly out of college provided an opportunity to advance through its various subsidiaries, which was a tremendous experience. I eventually worked for three of its subsidiary companies: Freeport Exploration, Freeport Indonesia, and Freeport Sulphur.

TS: Which country has left the strongest impression on you?

MT: I have had the very good fortune to work in nearly 50 countries around the world, so picking out a single one is difficult.

Faster. Deeper. Safer.

Michael Thomsen graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 1974 with a bachelor’s degree in Geology and in 1977 gained a master’s from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. As a mineral exploration geologist with world-class companies, including Newmont Mining Corp, Freeport-McMoRan Inc, and Gold Fields Mining Corp, Michael has visited and evaluated mineral resource opportunities in 48 countries, where he has directed exploration teams that made discoveries of multiple commodities (gold, silver, copper, molybdenum, oil and gas, and biogenic elemental sulphur) on four continents.

He has directed exploration teams in world-class districts such as Yanacocha in Peru and Ertsberg-Grasberg in Indonesia. Currently, Michael is directing gold and copper exploration for two junior companies: Taiex Ltd in Taiwan and Caribbean Minerals Ltd, in addition to conducting exploration for unconventional Rare Earth Element (REE) deposits.

Strong impressions came from China, Brazil, Peru, Egypt, and Taiwan, but the most impactful was Indonesia. Freeport transferred me from the Tucson exploration office to the Ertsberg district in Indonesia in the late 1970s. That experience was the ultimate in extremes of geology, climate, culture, mineralization, and vegetation, which all coincided in the most remote part of Indonesia where equatorial glaciers dominated the nearby peaks. Copper-gold ore bodies were literally outcropping at the Dom skarn and the Grasberg porphyry, but the challenge was to define and drill the highest grade and most economic deposits. My team of Indonesian geologists did an amazing job and represented their country to the highest professional standards.

TS: You worked with Freeport-McMoRan for 10 years. What do you consider to be the most important discovery you made during that time?

MT: As with most world-class mineral districts, an initial district discovery is made followed by subsequent ‘head-frame’ discoveries. Additionally, exploration teams make discoveries, not individuals, and I was fortunate to lead a strong team. While drilling out the Ertsberg East discovery, my team core-drilled deep intercepts beneath that deposit, which eventually became the IOZ and DOZ Cu-Au skarn discoveries. The challenge was to discover the highest-grade ores we could find to feed the 9000 tons per day mill in a USD 0.65 / lb copper price environment. Imagine being told you can’t 39

/Q&A FROM THE EXPERTS

drill the Grasberg because our dictate was to find 3 % Cu ore and we projected that Grasberg would not carry that grade.

TS: Could you tell us more about being involved in the discovery of Yanacocha?

MT: The Yanacocha gold district in northern Peru consists of a dozen separate and distinct high sulphidation (‘HS’) gold deposits. When I became Director of International Exploration for Newmont, Yanacocha’s reserves stood at a million ounces in a single deposit but clearly the district had an immense upside.

Historically, HS gold deposits were known to host high grades (El Indio in Chile, Chinkuashih in Taiwan, Pueblo Viejo in the Dominican Republic, etc.) but Yanacocha was different. Vast volumes of low-grade (1 g/t Au) ore in vuggy silica dominated the district, but it was economic due to its easy mining and leach characteristics. My exploration team at Yanacocha did a firstclass job of interpreting the complex volcanic systems, prioritizing the various targets, and discovering the multiple deposits that now define the district eventually found to be hosting a total gold resource of over 50 million ounces – the largest HS district in the world today.

TS: If Yanacocha was to be drilled in 2019, what would be done differently?

MT: The various geologic teams at Yanacocha interpreted, defined, and published technical data that has become the definitive model for low-grade HS deposits across the world.

What may be obvious now was not so clear 25 years ago. Today we have a much better understanding of alteration patterns and geophysical signatures as they relate to HS gold systems. The complete HS model is much better defined and applied in exploration programs today than it was 25 years ago.

TS: While working for Newmont, you opened one of the first exploration offices in Beijing. Can you tell us more about that?

MT: This was a most interesting initiative.

In the 1990s China started to open its doors to international mining investment.

Newmont and Barrick were the first two companies to enter that scene and explore opportunities. Our focus was to evaluate the southern provinces (Guizhou, Guangxi, Yunnan, etc.) for potential Carlin-type 40

sediment-hosted gold systems. A number of small gold deposits hosted in carbonates and siltstones were present and we wanted to determine if potential existed for a worldclass Carlin-type gold district to be found.

China was a wonderful experience and interactions with the various governmental provincial geologic teams were of the highest professional standards.

TS: Broadly speaking, what do you foresee for Rare Earth Element (REE) exploration, especially in the US? MT: Historically, REE exploration in the US began with the discovery of Mountain Pass in 1949. Since then, many other REE occurrences have been defined in the US but none of these are deemed to be economic, hence the lack of development and production from them. Most of them are of the intrusive-hosted type and are refractory in nature, making them uneconomic. Other deposits are high in uranium or thorium, which negatively impact their development.

The newest economic REE deposit type in the world is the ion-adsorption clay type deposit.

The future of exploration for REE in the US may lie in exploring for this type of deposit in the eastern US and not intrusive-hosted systems in the west.

(Dy), and terbium (Tb). These are the most important rare metals and serve as the core of all modern technology today.

TS: What are the most important geochemical signatures?

MT: The most important geochemical signatures for Nd, Pr, Dy, and Tb enriched rare earth deposits depend on the genesis of the deposit. The world’s largest concentrations of these four critical rare metals are found in the ion-adsorption clay type REE deposits in the southern China region. These are formed as surficial lateritic accumulations over nested intrusive complexes having only anomalous concentrations of rare earths in the primary host rocks. The geochemical signature of these laterites simply represents host rock Nd, Pr, Dy, Tb profile.

TS: Where do you think the next economic REE deposit will be found?

MT: I believe that it will be found in Brazil and be of the ion-adsorption clay type. Having said that, if new metallurgical breakthroughs can be made on intrusive-hosted REE deposits, then some of the old deposits may then be deemed economic.

TS: Tell us about REE supply and demand.

MT: World demand will continue to increase beyond the ability of current producers to supply this complex suite of rare metals.

Supply is dominated by China with the rest of the world racing to catch up. Modern technology depends on REEs. There are no substitutes and the world demands modern technology. It is an interesting dilemma.

TS: What are the main indicators of an REE deposit?

MT: The answer depends on the specific REE deposit type under study. Many intrusive-hosted REE deposits (carbonatite, peralkaline, alkaline, pegmatite, greisen, etc.) will have a radiometric signature. The newly defined ion-adsorption clay type deposits are identified and located mainly by their primary metal geochem signatures.

TS: Which REEs are of most importance?

MT: Out of the suite of 17 defined REEs, there are four critical ones. Those are neodymium (Nd), praseodymium (Pr), dysprosium

Michael Thomsen interviewed by the press during a mining conference in Medellín , Colombia Coring Magazine #11

TS: Do you think enough is being done to secure the international supply of REEs?

TS: Will digitized core-orientation usage continue to rise?

MT: It will be difficult for private companies to compete with the Chinese governmentsupported Rare Earth mines at Bayan Obo and the southern China ion-adsorption clay type REE mines. I believe that governments in the US, Canada, Australia, and elsewhere will need to offer significant incentives to create not only REE mining centers in those countries but also downstream REE processing facilities to compete with Chinese dominance in the industry.

MT: Yes, I believe it will. Gone are the days where taking hand-held photos to assist with core-orientation studies were the norm.

The gathering, collection, and interpretation of uniform, well-organized digitized coreorientation data sets will continue to rise in most exploration and drilling departments.

TS: What changes have you observed over the past 20 years in the way drilling contractors work?

MT: Drilling efficiencies have increased significantly and so has the application of new technologies. Both domestic and international competition for drilling services have increased the effectiveness of drilling.

TS: What is your opinion on geologist– driller relationships? Is there room for improvement?

MT: It seems that this is an ever-present personal challenge and opportunity. Yes, while there is always room for improvement, interpersonal relationships are important in any aspect of business from CEO– CFO, to Plant Manager–Line Worker, to Geologist–Driller. As long as professionalism is applied by all sides, these relationships will be productive.

Faster. Deeper. Safer.

TS: Can you tell us about your worst experience with an exploration drilling company?

MT: Maybe I have been fortunate, but my worst experience really wasn’t that bad. I try to aggressively vet drilling contractors beforehand for every exploration project to alleviate potential problems from the start. The worst experience was in Ecuador where a man-portable rig was required to test a remote HS gold prospect. Mother Nature threw everything she had at the drill contractor and the rig seemed to break down at the most inopportune times. Sourcing spare parts became our biggest issue.

TS: In an ideal world, what would be the perfect core diameter for mineral exploration purposes?

MT: This is a toss up between B-size and N-size. Both have advantages and disadvantages. My preference has always been B-size unless the ground condition is so bad that acceptable recoveries cannot be attained using B-size, at which time I would

switch to N-size in other holes. My old adage on any exploration project has always been: core drill early and core drill often.

TS: What advice would you give to young exploration geologists?

MT: My advice to young geologists is be passionate about exploration, be willing to take on the hard assignments that others don’t want, and work harder than others in your field. And my final piece of advice would be to read, read, read. The internet offers an unbelievable source of information on any aspect of exploration. Use it to the maximum extent. And lastly, be aware that economics and metallurgy can be just as important as an exploration discovery. These are the critical factors of which one must be aware from the very start of any program.

TS: What does the future hold for mineral exploration?

MT: The future of mineral exploration offers significant challenges and exceptional rewards for those willing to play the game.

Innovative thinking and integration of technology will always be required for successful exploration, but hard field work and the creative human factor will be the critical determinants for the successful future of mineral exploration. C

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/EXPLORATION & MINING GEOLOGY

Reopening

a historic mine

by Graham Peterson, Geologist, Black Fox Mining LLC and GS Mining Company, LLC

Gold Rush in Colorado and a New Mining Era In January of 1859, gold was discovered in Idaho Springs, Colorado. Several months later it was discovered in Central City, Colorado leading it to become known as the ‘Richest Square Mile on Earth.’

A few decades later, miners had extracted 113.40 tonnes (4 million ounces) of gold and 3345.24 tonnes (118 million ounces) of silver from the area. Here at the Bates Hunter Mine, 42

one hundred and sixty years after the first discovery of gold in Colorado, we stand ready to pick up where the old timers left off. The last mine manager of the Bates Hunter Mine authored a fascinating historical report in 1934 right before the mine’s previous closure. The manager claimed there was still high-grade gold in the sill at a depth of 227.08 m (745 ft). Old assays claim more than 5 opt Au at the bottom of the Bates and other mines nearby mined to depths of up to 670.56 m (2200 ft) with equally impressive assays at those depths. All we have to do is

de-water, rehab the entire mine, and bring everything up to code for twenty-firstcentury MSHA standards. No easy feat by any means but worth every challenge and a chance to bring a new mining operation into Colorado’s network. Our team is small and composed of fewer than 20 employees, being a mixture of miners, engineers, mechanics, water treatment techs, and a geologist – me.

That’s not to say I am the only one who likes rocks! Together we are on a mission to reopen a historic mine with lots of potential and discovery around every corner.

Coring Magazine #11

Geology and mineralogy The Bates Hunter Mine sits in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in the northeastern part of the Colorado Mineral Belt. It consists of Precambrian country rock metamorphosed and deformed to form thousands of feet of interlayered gneisses. During the Laramide Orogeny about 60 million years ago, intrusive dikes, pegmatites, fractures, and faults littered the district, providing a great host for hydrothermal fluids to flow through and emplace today’s ore deposits, which are chiefly mined for their valuable gold content.

Alteration is always visible for multiple feet before passing through an identifiable vein structure. The alteration is often QSP (Quartz, Sericite, Pyrite) with a vein content consisting of a quartz gangue coupled with sulfide metallics, most commonly consisting of pyrite, chalcopyrite, chalcocite, sphalerite, occasionally, galena, and rarely, some visible gold. Less than 15 % of the gold is visible with the naked eye. Although dimensionally the neighboring stringers to the Bates vein are small, ranging in just a few inches, they still show robust Au assays not uncommonly higher than 1 opt Au. Fortunately for us and on behalf of the US Atomic Energy Commission, the USGS conducted an extensive study in 1963, creating USGS reports 359 and 474C, which focused on the central city mining district and left us with an abundant and trusted resource to learn from and build upon.

Exploration with a Packsack Core Drill Our primary goal is to dewater down and continue mining at the bottom. As we work down, we set up our own Boyles Bazooka Packsack drill in a Bazooka configuration in search of nearby gold-bearing vein structures. To date we have set up and drilled in two underground locations, one at a level of 34.14 m (112 ft) and another at a level of 49.68 m (163 ft) for a total of seven holes – two on the first level and five more on the second. All the holes are planned for a depth of no more than 36.58 m (120 ft).

With a decent level of consistency, we have encountered QSP altered rock a few feet out from the ribs of the Bates vein and many stringers and small vein structures within the extent, which measured 36.58 m (120 ft).

We have conducted our underground exploration core drilling with a modified Boyles Bazooka Packsack drill with a core size of IEWX. It’s not very common to see a Faster. Deeper. Safer.

Vug found underground with primarily quartz, pyrite, and chalcocite crystals growing and some yellow sulfidation core with a diameter of 2.54 cm (1 in), but we are only in search of nearby ore deposits from within a small shaft, anything larger is unnecessary or infeasible. Our Packsack drill has seen many projects – and many owners.

There isn’t much remaining on the drill that is original, except maybe the motor head and the leg. The drill is mounted on an adjustable metal frame with four legs that can slide, rotate, and tighten in the appropriate position. Almost all the clamps and hoses have been replaced at least once. Even the original leather cups inside the leg have been replaced with plastic cups and lubricated.

In just the 228.60 m (750 ft) drilled underground at the Bates Hunter Mine, we broke the rotating pin at least half a dozen times only to weld it back together. Many hoses and clamps have burst off, the leg cups were replaced, and we continually have had to deal with icing within the motor. Since the pin broke the first time, it has lost its symmetry, causing a noticeable wobble once the drill rotation is in the thousandths-perminute and intense vibrations when drilling, which at one point, caused the drill rod to shear in half mid-run.

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/EXPLORATION & MINING GEOLOGY

Boyles Packsack/Bazooka IEWX Core Drill, setting up to drill underground This is not to say the mechanical setbacks were the only challenges we faced, as this was my first time acting as the core driller’s hand and the first time this core driller led a drilling program. About halfway into the third hole, we hit clay when we were not pumping enough water, which allowed it to swell, making the bit jam, and nearly causing all of our rods to stick. We were stubborn and unwilling to lose 80 % of our drill rods in one go, so we spent the next two days attempting to retrieve what we could. Finally, with one last attempt, we unscrewed what aluminum rods we could and replaced them with steel rods. We then took two pipe wrenches and torqued them as much as possible before 44

welding a loop attachment to the last rod.

After attaching two 2000 lb chain hoists we miraculously pulled our rods free! We mushroomed a few of our aluminum drill rods, but we retrieved everything in that hole. We learned from our mistakes, and the following four holes went more smoothly.

We have continued exploration planned for deeper levels, as well as some surface drilling with a larger drill, still to be operated and conducted in-house.

My experience I had just turned 23 when I started working at the Bates Hunter Mine. At the time, I was still living with my parents after graduating from

Colorado State University with a Bachelor of Science in Geology. This was my first job within my field of study and I started at the mine primarily with site cleanup while studying and gathering historic mine research on the side. After months of organizing thousands of bolts, screws, nuts, etc., sealing leaks in the roof of the office, painting inside and out, cleaning up the boneyard, and dozens of other miscellaneous projects, I finally started to dive into geology-specific tasks. I was assigned with re-logging more than 3657.60 m (12 000 ft) of core drilled on the surface from more than ten years ago, as well as continuing my research, networking with local geologists, and regularly attending Coring Magazine #11

Pyrite cubes in a vein in our IEWX core

IEWX core cut and ready to be assayed

lectures at the Colorado School of Mines in Golden, Colorado. Soon after pumping began, the lead core driller and I started our drilling program. We started slowly as he showed me what my tasks would be, and it took a little while to get into the swing of everything without making mistakes or having to ask questions.

One entertaining memory I look back on taught me the great lesson to keep communication healthy. We were on our fourth hole drilling underground at a level of 49.68 m (163 ft) and were the only crew underground. We were determined to make progress after losing a few days to a jammed bit. As always, we had double

hearing protection, were working hard and efficiently, and at the time, our bell squawker didn’t have a light. Late in the day, the surface crews were trying to get hold of us, but we couldn’t hear the bell or Femco Telephone because of how loud the drill was and our double hearing protection. After many attempts from the surface workers, they got fed up and decided to stench us, not that they needed our attention, but just because we weren’t responding to their calls. That was my first time getting stenched and I have never wanted to leave a mine so fast!

Luckily, we have ladders to ascend on at our own pace.

Faster. Deeper. Safer.

Looking forward at the Bates Hunter Mine The Central City Mining District and the Bates Hunter Mine have many studies and reports on the potential of mineral production dating back to the late 1800s. It isn’t a secret that gold was mined here and predicted to have potential to produce much more, but since the last closure of the mine in the late 1930s, no venture has successfully brought the mine back to life. Many such attempts have dewatered and explored the mine temporarily, even installing infrastructure to begin mining once more. These past efforts have led to our company taking on the 45

/EXPLORATION & MINING GEOLOGY

challenge of producing gold from the Bates Hunter Mine once again. We know from the assay samples I have taken that this is a viable project, but we still need to prove it to the rest of the world, so we will continue core drilling to help build a resource. The work is challenging, but almost every successful outcome begins with a great challenge.

One note that has stayed above the GM’s desk since day one is this: ‘People who say it cannot be done should not interrupt those who are doing it’ (George Bernard Shaw). C

About the author Graham Peterson is a Geologist at the Bates Hunter Mine, Central City, Colorado. He has a B.S. in Geology from Colorado State University, Fort Collins.

LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/ graham-peterson-036277bb/ Black Fox Mining LLC www.blackfoxmining.com GS Mining Company, LLC www.gsminingcompany.com

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Preparing to core drill into the hanging wall of an old stope

Coring Magazine #11

/EXPLORATION & MINING GEOLOGY

From wilderness to resource— and those who

‘Make it so!’

by Liam Hardy, Operations Director at Spotlight Mining

This May (2019) a new set of faces appeared on the Golden Triangle circuit. They were keen, enthusiastic, and financially backed to take a shot at the infamous region’s riches, but, planning a handson intensive drilling campaign takes more than enthusiasm.

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Crystal Lake Mining (TSXv: CLM) is moving quickly from obscurity into the limelight.

On a recent site visit, I spoke to Cole Evans, co-founder (alongside long-time friend Dylan Hunko) of HEG Exploration Services (‘HEG’), a company that is putting in the hours on the ground with Crystal Lake Mining to develop the Newmont Lake prospect and find Canada’s next major deposit.

At 23 years old, you can easily confuse Cole with one of the junior geos on the ground.

He is full of energy and bounds around the camp smiling, his chocolate Labrador Leo by his side and a set of icepicks and hammers swinging from a holster. Junior in the company he is not, but youth is definitely

HEG’s advantage. Cole has brought together a conceptual camp. The kind that major companies talk about in presentations, but never really build.

Sitting around the breakfast bench, picking at freshly cut melon and French toast under a brisk 05:30 sunrise, Marco Vanwermeskerken, veteran mapper of 40 years, sits laughing with Nicole, one of the team’s summer project students. Marco retells stories from his work around the Americas of bizarre geology, adventurous encounters with wildlife and, maybe, the occasional beverage along the way.

The students who joined the camp in May Coring Magazine #11

are quickly becoming confident samplers and core loggers thanks to this collision of enthusiasm and experience.

At the back of the cutting shacks, water, filled with dust and sulphide-rich sediment, runs off the core saws. Unlike most seasonal camps, where waste is simply channeled into the river and forgotten, it runs into a settling pool, a simple hole in the ground that captures these sediments, filters the water and stops anything harmful entering the pristine glacial water system.

In a specially built tent behind the kitchen, you’ll find rows of hand-built drawers, labeled by the name of each of the company’s prospects. Pulling one out reveals three forms of megacrystic syenite, numbered and described, and four examples of a nickel sulphide in different host rocks that are in various states of weathering sitting alongside hundreds of assorted intrusion-related altered sediments. This is the rock library, a repository for the field geologists to bring their fresh samples to, to compare them, and ensure continuity in naming and classification across the district.

These are parts of an idealized dream camp of a 23-year-old coming into the aggressive world of mining and many of you may scoff and say ‘that’s not how this is done, that sounds expensive’, but this month, by renting out rooms and storage space to smaller exploration groups nearby, the camp actually turned an overall profit of around CAD 17 000.

‘What is he doing in charge?’, will be the next cry from some readers. Well…

Despite ignoring science in high school, Cole destroyed pretty much every competitive geology award available in Canada while studying at UBC Okanagan. After graduating he joined the Colorado Resources team and was part of the KSP and North Rok discoveries. He saw a niche for a new type of exploration services group, one that could apply modern data management tools live in the field and one that cared about its employees and surroundings.

This is all tip-top so far, but how does this idealized view work in practice? How do we go from a brand-new camp in an unexplored bit of remote British Columbia and turn that into a successful mining project? Is it even possible?

Crystal Lake Mining are targeting porphyry systems; think Galore Creek (in the next valley over), then double that. These systems Faster. Deeper. Safer.

Geologists compare digital data to field exposure (Photo: @AnatoleTuzlak)

BC Mapping geologist Marco Vanwermeskerken records a mineral showing (Photo: @AnatoleTuzlak) are known to occur in and are being mined across Northern British Columbia. Here, they’re related to five overprinted subduction and accretion events that have bombarded the West Canadian coastline since the Triassic period, every one of them bringing its own metals and structural controls. This is not a simple geological terrain, but it is a rich one.

Just along the highway southward, the Brucejack mine sits in the upper stockwork zone of one of these systems, with highgrade gold in vein systems. Somewhere

underneath Brucejack, there’s a source of fluids and metals, the bigger body of magma or hydrothermal alteration that drove Brucejack’s gold up. These ‘porphyry’ source zones, while lower in grade, can be gigantic.

The Bor and Majdenpek open pits in Serbia are two similar examples related to subduction in the Tethyan belt of Eastern Europe. That region has been continuously industrially mined since the late 1800s, with limited change to the overall ore quality or resource.

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The first stage in identifying anything in the field, big or small, is to get geologists on the ground. Against all advice, Cole brought HEG’s first teams into Newmont Lake in 2018, in a bitter Canadian Rocky winter snow. They brought an RC rig with them up to ‘Burgundy Ridge’. The teams put a pad in and drilled a hole well off-season. The hole hit notable copper-gold mineralization and quickly silenced the naysayers. That thing that nobody did in the Golden Triangle, had just been done. Not only that, it was a success.

As soon as the snows cleared, the team were back in Newmont Lake. A mixture of experienced BC geologists and youthful fresh faces dropped into a camp, 18 km from the nearest road (a route being built for Galore Creek) and immediately engaged. Soil samplers were helicoptered around grids on the entire property, aeromagnetic surveys were flown, grab samples were taken, and maps were compiled.

These weren’t just sketch maps or oddly interpolated geochemical results… These were digital data sets that layered day-byday onto historic data, satellite images, and MINFILE government databases to produce a live database of the Newmont Lake projects in a custom-built (by HEG’s GIS wizard Allan Jacobs) version of ESRI’s Arc. The license was split into target areas based on surface mineralization and probable geological structures. Prospectors were sent straight up to chase metals across the targets and feed back into this database. The resulting records from a team of 50 positively engaged and skilled people swarming a mountainside at all hours of the day are, to say the least, a staggering read.

When IP lines, geo-maps, aeromag and geochem all line up, you’re probably onto something big. Crystal Lake Mining’s first major one of these correlations hit along the slopes of the Chachi Ridge, within view of their summer camp. Copper >150 ppm in soils, plotted in big anomalies along the footwall of a large offshoot of the Mclymont Fault system; IP results showed a conductivity anomaly; gold and heaps of sulphides were observed at surface in bedrock, nickel, cobalt, copper, and zinc; the lot.

Not a fun textbook or mineral collector’s showing, this one occurred along a 2 km strike.

Surely that’s a whole season’s work and everybody is off for cocoa? Apparently not…

The HEG team rounded this whole sampling and assay program off in three months alongside MSA LABS, who rush-assayed 50

Drone shot of the new camp (Photo: @AnatoleTuzlak) the samples. That left two months of the Canadian summer to go drilling. The problem (if you can call it that) was how to pick from a wide range of targets on the property.

One major factor was weather. Burgundy Ridge is sandwiched between two glaciers and snows of 10 to 12 meters in winter.

That’s not a problem for an active mine or a major, just look at Siberia, Northern Alaska or Nunavut, but for an early stage exploration project, digging out is an unnecessary expense.

We asked Cole how HEG had picked its spots: ‘[T]here are so many factors to consider. You have to combine all aspects of geoscience and nature, from terrain to weather. One of the biggest issues affecting high-alpine drilling is water, can you get it safely above a glacier and can you store the waste cleanly at that location without it freezing? Can you provide constant support to the drill rig by helicopter, or will it be regularly clouded in? It’s tough, so those holes have to be worthwhile.

We sent two diamond rigs out to work.

One on the 72 zone and one on Burgundy Ridge; we wanted to follow up on our RC

holes from 2018 and these zones have a short summer access window, they were a top priority. Our mappers had seen large bodies of disseminated mineralization at ‘72’.

We think that could extend to depth based on local structural patterns. On Burgundy we’d gotten high-end results from our winter holes and wanted reliable diamond core to log and better understand the system.’

From an observer’s perspective, and I’ve worked in camps in West Africa, Turkey, Europe, and other ends of BC, I’ve not seen one this well focused and positive about its purpose before.

As I type, sitting in the exploration office in the Newmont Lake Camp, the rigs are turning 24 hours a day and results are coming thick and fast, everybody is still smiling, and I can smell steaks on the griddle. It’s an awesome project and a lot of fun to be a part of.

You can follow Crystal Lake Mining on all the regular channels for videos, pictures, and updates from the site, from stunning scenery to technical explainers. Stay tuned! C For more information: www.SpotlightMining.com Coring Magazine #11

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The impact of deciding whether to drill late or not at all

by Sean Muller, Exploration Geologist

Sonic rig at a Placer Gold Deposit in Nevada

In the mineral industry, there are many tools for finding and developing ore deposits. In the 1800s and even earlier, when drilling was not yet perfected, prospectors and miners had to rely upon dynamite and digging to find and develop any mine that could be put into production. The oil and 52

gas industry took the lead in core drilling and soon the mineral industry followed in scaled-down versions of the same technology.

Today we have a plethora of drilling methods available to the mining industry, but the question is whether we know when and how to use them optimally?

Surface sampling, mapping and geophysical methods helped to hit targets, but until the drill came along in the mineral industry, it still was a lot of guess work. Even today while geophysics and geochemical modeling can find orebodies, it is not until we drill that we are able to construct a defensible, threedimensional picture of the grade and trend of the orebody. This approach may change in the future, but at least for now, drilling is vital for both finding and operating a mine.

Generally, exploration companies find ore bodies and mining companies that are skilled in operations mine the ore. However, when Coring Magazine #11

exploration companies are successful and decide to become miners or when mining companies decide to become explorers, often the match fails miserably.

In part this is due to the philosophies and cultures of explorers and miners. Explorers are ‘out-of-the-box’ thinkers and miners are grounded in engineering performance and by the almighty dollar. Now I am not suggesting that exploration budgets aren’t managed carefully, however, we never know for sure what we may discover during greenfield exploration; being able to predict exactly what degree and type of drilling is necessary adequately in advance is virtually impossible.

Today we quantify what a geologist finds through categorization of results in terms of predictability between data points in the resources. Certain criteria have been developed under the Canadian NI43-101 guidelines and the Australian equivalent known as JORC wherein drill density statistically qualifies of various levels of resources. The higher risk resource category is inferred that is not appropriated for mine planning and conversion to reserves.

Other than exploration into unknown areas, inferred resources are converted to indicated resources through delineation drilling, the spacing of which is dictated by the nature of the deposit. Narrow ore occurrences will require tight drill spacing during the delineation phase of development for mine planning. However, often for mine planning purposes, this is when the drilling stops prematurely. In some deposits where unforeseen changes occur, much tighter drill spacing known as definition drilling is necessary to achieve the highest confidence level of resource known as measured resource. The decision not to drill definition spacing can be a major mistake when uncertainty occurs in the deposit. Uncertainty is not only a result of faulting and pinch-outs, it can also be a result of less-than-perfect computer modeling.

Continuity of an ore trend in most types of ore occurrences is a requisite for mine planning and conversion of specific categories of resources to reserves. This allows for the ability of the mining engineer to plan production grades and volumes. This is all basic information that anyone in the industry understands.

A seasoned mining company is usually prepared for this scenario and has drill rigs available for in-fill drilling or delineation or even more precise definition drilling. If they are not prepared, the impact to production can be huge. An ill-experienced mining company may back away from such a mine Faster. Deeper. Safer.

area or even cover or backfill the area with wasterock or tailings so as not to impede production efforts. This is a very costly mistake that happens over and over. The justification by the mine foreman or general manager is either that they did not budget for the modeling not to work or have the time to bring in a rig to better define the mine target.

Fatal flaws causing drill programs not to achieve expectations Expectations are a good milestone, if achievable. There is a misperception that the more you drill, the more ore you will find.

Statistically this may be correct, but using the example of fishing, just because one makes more casts or keeps their line in the water longer, does not necessarily guarantee better results. Often it is the fisherman or fisherwomen who can read the fish, choose the best bait, and fish in the right spot who is successful. Drilling is somewhat the same.

But it goes without saying, if you never go fishing, you will never catch fish.

I recall a deposit where we had finished the exploration campaign and had statistically sufficient data to determine the drill spacing for calculating credible measured and indicated resources. The perimeter of the deposit for a significant distance hardly had any inferred resources. However, the president of this junior company insisted that if we drilled more, the reserves

would increase. While we disagreed, we drilled another few hundred coreholes over almost a year timeframe and then remodeled the ore deposit. The result was within 3 % of the original estimate at some USD 10 million later… a waste of a lot of time and money.

More times than not, the opposite viewpoint to drill less is expressed by an inexperienced manager in control of the purse strings. Subtleties in geochemistry, mineralogy, structure and other indicators might have led to a major discovery if the program had been allowed to run its course. Drawing conclusions from limited information is dangerous. Drawing conclusions from something you have no idea about is like buying a lottery ticket. The only thing you did right was find a store that sold them.

Having been both an exploration manager and a general manager, I can point out some situations that could have been easily avoided. Very few exploration programs run their full cycle or annual allocated budget unless such monies are completely separated from production. Mining personnel want results and often fail to grasp that negative results are just as important as positive results. When an exploration program is cut short due to other priorities at a mine, or financing, as in the case of a Junior just barely holding its head above water, management forgets the fact that at some point the program needs to be completed.

Underground company core rig sitting idle 53

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Fatal Flaw 1 – Exploration drilling budget reduction I have lost track over the years of exploration drilling budgets being raided for other purposes during a budget cycle. While I have not kept a statistical record, I can say that being able to use more than 50 % of an annual budget has been the exception rather than the norm in over 40 years in the business. There are multiple reasons why this is the case, some of which are grounded in logic, but others argue that the money is needed to patch a deficient in another budget category – normally, mining.

The most common budget reduction is a result of the exploration budget not getting approved with the rest of the budget.

Exploration on the surface has seasonal limitations and when the market for a commodity is hot, rig availability can be tight unless you have your own. While plenty of companies own their development rigs, few own exploration rigs, as the thinking is that they cannot keep them busy. In addition to having the ability to drill definition drill holes when needed, the need for replacement of depleted reserves from mining is always a consideration. Also drill rigs are not always available when needed.

The second most common reason for exploration budget reduction is poor management planning of other expenses, especially overheads. However, usually the reason is one of the unexpected issues mentioned previously, where the mine advance suddenly does not find the ore, or the grade expected. Think of this logic: replace the budget lost, instead of drilling out to find the lost ore. Something is wrong with that picture. It’s a special experience if you’ve ever worked for a junior whose manager says we ran out of money, or the investors did not see the target expectations, goals, and key performance indicators (KPIs) are great, so long as they are grounded in reality.

Another reason concerns the upper management, normally accountants, to continue with this example, who are watching the dollars being expended while the results are perhaps not matching expectations. Accountants make better explorers I am told, by them, that is. But interestingly, there is often an upper manager who is a mining or metallurgical engineer with no experience on the exploration side of the business. While doing a grassroots program once, with a limited budget, the COO said he wanted a detailed exploration plan. When I told him that with the limited 54

budget that was allocated, the project was being done in phases where the results of the first phase guided us to priority drilling in the second phase. He pushed for a systematic equidistant drilling program and the program, since it was greenfield with little data, failed.

I can’t tell you how many holes were drilled in ‘goose pasture’ to give the drilling program symmetry. Of course, I left when he started designing the exploration program.

Have you ever wondered why several companies drilled a property without finding a deposit before another company came in on the same trend and found a mineable deposit? Yes, it could have been prevailing market conditions, or perhaps an incomplete land position, or perhaps a better geologist looking over old data. However, how many of these drilling campaigns were cut short for the fatal flaws described above?

So, the moral of the story is to trust the wisdom of your technical professionals. If you approved the drilling budget and plan at the beginning of the cycle, let them complete their program. Also give them the control required to stop and move to other targets when the results are not matching a target goal of size or ROM grade. Finding economic ore deposits is a science not an engineering feat. Drilling deposits out is a different story, oftentimes depending on the complexity of the deposit. Engineering is more adept at systematic thinking that is requisite for mine modeling and guiding development. But when a problem arises don’t point a finger at the geologist’s model… just drill.

Fatal Flaw 2 – Exploration KPIs Industry KPIs for exploration are normal these days, with target parameters being outlined prior to planning and budgeting a program. Many of the majors use KPI goals for deciding on the economics for divestitures, joint ventures (JVs) or capitalization. Such KPIs, however, need to be logical so as not to force-fit the program into development drilling that guarantees success. Don’t get me wrong, development programs around an orebody are important and can result in finding satellite orebodies.

But such constraints tend to stifle the outof-the-box conceptual modeling that a true exploration manager must have in order to make large discoveries.

Not wanting to fail with their KPI goal, the exploration manager might drill out previously drilled low grade at the orebody being mined, as it is a sure thing. At one underground mine where I was working as

Cabo drilling a definition drill hole at an underground zinc mine a mine geologist, I arrived on the site to see surface rigs drilling a couple of hundred feet from the shaft. Later that day I was told that they were targeting an upper zone that we were not mining. Okay... but as it turns out this brownfield redevelopment already had a working level in this zone and two idle rigs sitting underground. Drilling several hundred feet of step-out exploration versus several thousand feet from the surface means that someone was not doing their homework.

Further to that, the surface rigs were pulled off regional targets that had significant promise for a major discovery to drill out a zone that had been previously drilled years back and deemed sub-economic. When the exploration manager was questioned about the alternative of drilling underground, it was learned that none of the exploration geologists wanted to work underground.

Long story short, the resource numbers for the KPI were achieved, the deposit was deemed sub-economic for the second time and the mine shut down due to depletion outweighing replacement. I mentioned that two rigs were sitting idle underground the entire while: exploration at this mine should have been done concurrent with mining and, for that matter, definition drilling, which leads to the next fatal flaw discussion.

Fatal Flaw 3 – Financial justification for drilling at a producing mine At one underground mine, the geology was more complicated than the model predicted.

This could have been a fault in the area or a reliance on older drill data that was inadequately surveyed but yet used in the model construction.

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Auger rig getting ready to set casing In this example, the development stope either missed the ore trend or it was not there. While there was every indication that the stope was off trend, the GM wanted economic justification for drilling some delineation or definition holes in order to realign the stope. Drill rigs were readily available, so this should have been done. But while the economic analysis was being conducted, the access stope was inadvertently backfilled with waste – end of story. In this instance, the question more appropriately should have been, ‘What was the economic impact of not drilling?’. If you suspect a model is in error or that the prior drilling is off, how can you perform any sort of cost-benefit analysis? If a rig were available and used to answer this question, there would be less reliance on guessing.

Now all deposits require definition drilling.

If the ore trend is of reasonably homogenous grade and there is very little heterogeneity, Faster. Deeper. Safer.

perhaps detailed definition drilling as a backup measure to uncertainty is not needed.

But in most deposits, rigs for this purpose are essential. Otherwise we go back to the methods from before drilling became readily available, when we continued to mine until we found ore or ran out.

Fatal Flaw 4 – Exclusive reliance on a consultant’s model Since the days of Bre-X, investors and stock exchanges have grown leery of companies touting discoveries and resource reports authored by a third-party expert that are unsubstantiated. The guidelines given under the Canadian Institute of Mining National Instrument 43-101 or its corresponding equivalents of the Australian JORC or South African SAIMM are now the norm for publicly

held companies. The official definition of the person(s) authoring such third-party reports is Qualified Person (‘QP’) or Competent Person (‘CP’). (More and more unlisted firms tout their stock-owning officers as QPs or CPs, which technically is not true, as they are far from being third parties; caveat emptor!) Then the reporting and categories of resources, mineable reserves, statistics and metallurgical testing are somewhat prescriptive for posting on the respective stock exchanges for investors.

While some view such expertise and requirements as a consultant’s ‘cash-cow’, such reports should be seen as critical studies for investors and even mining companies for making decisions with other people’s money. Unfortunately, many companies, especially the newbie operators, consider such assessments, computer modeling and mine plans as creed. The consultant may be a highly credible and talented professional, but gage how much time they actually spend on a mine or exploration site compared to the company professionals who perform all of the geologic mapping and drilling. The average that I have seen is less than two weeks, but, normally, a consultant comes in for just a couple of days and gathers all of the information for their computer models. It is unusual to see them spend more than a day touring the mine workings or exploration site.

Over the years, working as a QP or CP consultant I’ve been called in by companies who have been mining using the consultant’s model, only to find gross errors on the geologic mapping, especially for structures that pinch-out mineralization trends or even eradicate them. Sometimes it is an unexpected geochemical or mineralogical change from the model, rendering the process amenability very low.

In this world of cyber-thinking and beautiful modeling output, mining personnel often fail to question or validate the model before they take the shovel to the deposit. The first model I prepared was in 1973 and I continue to produce them today, but each has its limitations, depending upon the complexity of the deposit and database defensibility.

And yes, I said database defensibility, which is drilling, logging and analytical. While a good third-party QP or CP will through-out or ‘qualify’ data as usable only as ‘inferred’ resources, how many companies take this information and commence a drilling validation program before the consultant’s document hits the stock exchange? Generally, the answer is none.

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By not undertaking this level of drilling immediately, two things happen. The first is that mineable reserves cannot be calculated for that area of the deposit. The consultant therefore either ignores this area to be forgotten forever by the mining company or the company does not achieve their financing, merger or divestiture.

Secondly, worse things can happen if they do have the financing and start to develop the mine using the consultant’s mine plan. If the consultant missed the structural boundary then, the model will lead the mining company down a path of surprises, and they won’t be good ones.

If the consultant missed a change in the mineralogy, then the mill will suddenly have a major drop in recoveries if they are not prepared for the change with the proper recovery circuit.

All of this could have been avoided by validation drilling and an examination of the model against what has been mapped by experienced company personnel. This mistake can cause tens of millions of dollars in pit or underground development modifications, not to mention the lost reaction time for retrofitting an ill-prepared mill. Such operations often fail completely after this revelation.

Summary Mining companies are notoriously unsuccessful at making major exploration discoveries. Call it mindset, over-structure or having too rigid criteria for spending, few of the majors are good at finding undiscovered

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deposits of economic significance.

Accordingly, it is simply cheaper for majors to buy these assets or mineral discoveries through mergers or acquisitions. In this day of big mergers within the majors, it will be interesting to see how these dramatically different cultures with strong exploration and corresponding strong mining expertise coexist. Unless the prior company’s culture is maintained, it is doubtful that synergy, as one seamless culture, will evolve. My prediction is that somewhere along the line, the mine manager’s budgetary constraints will dampen the entrepreneurial spirit and success of the company whose claim to fame had been large discoveries. The net result could be less drilling, rather than more, owing to the conservative nature of an operations manager, and correspondingly fewer new discoveries in these new mega-majors.

Time will tell.

Hopefully the true exploration companies with prospector spirit can continue to lure investors to support their drilling concepts.

While the odds of such companies being successful are low, the returns that investors can reap can be enormous.

These exploration companies do need to stay away from operations and the whims of promoters, or else non-exploration engineers and accountants end up as the decisionmakers for the exploration programs . If these upper managers tell the exploration companies how to run their programs, more times than not the drilling programs will fail. Boards should be balanced and guide upper management in respect of budgetary separation and decision-making roles.

The smart mining companies that know how and when to use drilling proactively will survive while the others will likely perish. The latter mining companies’ managers need to understand that models can be flawed and are only as good as the input data available.

An even then, there are situations that cannot be resolved without further drilling. C

About the author Sean Muller has been in the mining business since 1973 and has been involved in the discovery of two gold deposits of >10 million recoverable gold ounces, a 50 million oz silver deposit and a copper deposit that will produce 300 tonnes of concentrate per year. He has discovered numerous other metal and energy mineral deposits that went into or are in production globally. In addition to exploration, he has been chief geologist and/or general manager at multiple surface and underground mines. He holds two degrees in geology and is currently working on a PhD in mining engineering. He has overseen the planning and drilling of tens of thousands of drill holes in exploration, development and mining operations worldwide. He is an independent QP/CP and runs a consultancy that specializes in troubleshooting existing resource and mine models and problematic JVs.

Coring Magazine #11

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Drill Core Storage:

I

Orientation regarding international best practices

By Daniel Bortowski Carvalho, Geologist and CEO at Core Case, Gláucia Cuchierato, Geologist and CEO at GeoAnsata, and Professor and Mining Engineer Ana Carolina Chieregati

Introduction The quality and representativeness of data from a mineral deposit or potentially mineralized area is often the subject of much discussion among technicians and academics, especially when the commodity in question is a rare or base metal, as they are ores that have important variables to consider concerning their economic evaluation and extraction.

Exploration results Mineral Resources

Mineral Reserves

Inferred

Increasing level of geological knowledge and confidence

Indicated

Probable

Measured

Proved

Consideration of mining, metallurgical, economic, marketing, legal, environmental, social and governmental factors The 'Modifying Factors' Figure 1 – Relationship between the exploration results, resources, and mineral reserves.

Source: CRIRSCO (2006).

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Companies adjust each phase and purpose of their operations, such as evaluation, establishment of the geologicalmetallogenetic model, grade quality control, and ore reconciliation, according to the drilling options on the market. However, we still lack a consensus on the best costeffective method. In general, qualified professionals are responsible for conducting efforts to plan activities that reflect the highest quality, clarity, and repeatability of the processes, samples, and data, so as to adjust the available information to international standards.

Diamond drilling is considered one of the best practices for achieving this quality because it allows core to be obtained and preserved with several advantages over other methods, including a more representative, continuous, and homogeneous sampling regarding the characteristics of the ore at the mineralized interval, the occurrence depth, the mineralogy, the geological structures, and the amount of collected material.

Activities performed during drilling, through the study of sampling errors, quality assurance and quality control programs (QA/ QC), and additional precautions taken to avoid contamination and bias, enable the collection of a better quality of core samples.

It is mandatory for the mining industry to evaluate the advantages of the drilling process to reduce the operating costs of drilling campaigns, core management, and occupational risk management.

After considering an infamous case of historical mining fraud and the consequent scientific, economic, and technicaloperational issues, this article sets out some Coring Magazine #11

crucial points on international reporting standards for defining the best procedures for sampling and the safe storage of information obtained at a mineral site.

Historical context Recently used as a Hollywood script in the film Gold (2016) directed by Stephen Gaghan, the most famous mining fraud of all time was in fact the foundation for establishing the first international instruments for the public reporting of mineral resources and reserves by companies seeking funding on the financial market.

Bre-X Minerals Ltd, the centerpiece of this worldwide scandal, was a Canadian mining company founded by David Walsh. It was listed on the Alberta Stock Exchange (ASE) in 1989, with shares worth only a few cents, holding a few small prospects in northern Canada. In March of 1993, David Walsh partnered with geologists John Felderhof (who assumed the position of General Manager) and Michael de Guzman (Chief Geologist) for the assessment of a gold deposit in a hydrothermal venular system in northeast Borneo, Indonesia, in a place known as ‘Busang’ (Nicholls, 1999).

The drilling began in September 1993 with the analysis carried out in laboratories from the Kalimantan province on the island of Borneo. Early studies did not indicate significant positive results at these sites, and from 1994 to 1996 targets were expanded to other locations, where new exploration agreements and labor contracts were reached with the Indonesian government,

Figure 2 – Countries belonging to the CRIRSCO family. Source: CRIRSCO (2019) with periodic reporting of results that were increasingly promising. In April 1996, the company had its IPO – Initial Public Offering at the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX), with Bre-X shares traded at prices in above USD 200 per share. In July of that year, reserve estimates were released at 47 million ounces – compared to the world’s largest gold reserve (Grasberg) which was estimated at 64.2 million ounces, the Bre-X deposit was considered the second largest in the world at the time.

After some attempts by large gold mining companies to operate in the region (Barrick Gold Corporation and Placer Dome Inc.), and

interventions by the Indonesian government throughout 1996, there were suspicions of irregularities, with the annulment of labor contracts in December of that year and threats to the company’s credibility, culminating in the recommendation by the Indonesian Minister of Mines and Energy, Ida Bagus Sudjana (‘the Minister’) to expropriate Bre-X in February of 1997. The previous month (January 1997), a serious fire at the Busang site in the core warehouse and offices destroyed the samples and all material proof.

Under these circumstances, in February 1997 Bre-X announced a joint venture agreement with the participation of the

Figure 3 – Global evolution of investments in non-ferrous minerals is USD billions. Source: S&P (2019) Faster. Deeper. Safer.

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government (10 %), two domestic companies (30 %), and Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold Inc. (15 %), and Bre-X holding 45 % of the total shares. At the time of the merger, the resource valuation was updated and validated by the international consulting company Kilborn SNC Lavalin at 70.95 million ounces of gold. Freeport began their due diligence, and the initial results did not compare to amounts declared by Bre-X. Immediately, the managers and shareholders were informed and requested the presence of the responsible geologists. Before the meeting took place, geologist Michael de Guzman allegedly committed suicide during a helicopter flight on March 19, 1997.

The consulting company Strathcona Mineral Services was then commissioned to perform the official audit, and after finalizing the reanalysis of the samples, they stated in their report that there was unprecedented tampering and they held ‘the firm opinion that an economic gold deposit has not been identified in the Southeast Zone of the Busang property, and is unlikely to be’ (Nicholls, 1999, p. 185). Among the reported inconsistencies, the audit found a number of problems in sample preparation (such as the entire core being crushed) and in analysis techniques, but what most backed up the suspicion of tampering was the listing of the mineralogical characteristics of the gold ore as alluvial or placer, not hydrothermal, as was the case with the supposed original genetic geological model.

Although there were already some standard definitions of resource and mineral reserves reporting in several countries at that time – published by organizations such as JORC (Australasia), SME (United States), SAMREC (South Africa) and NI 43-101 (Canada), groups which were brought together by the creation of the CRIRSCO (Committee for Mineral Reserves International Reporting Standards) in 1994 – after the Bre-X fraud case the topic gained international notoriety, hastening the development of a new standard that could guarantee credibility for mineral asset statements and classification.

In response, CRIRSCO finalized the first international model for terminology and classification consolidation in 2006 with the publishing of the International Reporting Template for the Public Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves (CRIRSCO, 2006). With the Template, the classification already adopted

by JORC and NI 43-101 was made official and consolidated internationally (see Figure 1).

60

Nonferrous exploration budgets, 2017 (%)

4

14

2

5

8 6

5 6

4 7

3

8 2

2 2

4

2

14

Other locations account for 2%.

Date as of November 15, 2017.

Source: S&P Global Market Intelligence

Figure 4 – Distribution of global mineral research investment in 2017. Source: S&P (2018) After its publication, countries that wanted to participate in CRIRSCO produced codes adhering to the Template, as was done

by Brazil, which established the Brazilian Commission of Resources and Reserves (CBRR), made up of the Brazilian Association of Mineral Research Companies (ABPM), the Brazilian Agency for Technological Development of the Mineral Industry (ADIMB) and IBRAM, with the purpose of becoming the National Committee.

In November 2015, at the CRIRSCO International Annual Meeting, held in Brasilia, this Committee formally accepted Brazil’s membership, making it the 9th member country. The current CRIRSCO signatory countries are listed in Figure 2.

Economic context The global budget for 2018 invested in nonferrous mineral exploration was estimated at USD 10.1 billion, with 19 % per year growth, compared to the USD 8.5 billion investment in 2017, according to the World Exploration Trends report, presented by S&P Global Market Intelligence during the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) Annual Convention in Toronto, in March of 2019 (S&P, 2019). Notably, there is optimism in the sector, where investment values are expected to increase at growth rates of 5 % to 10 % over the next few years.

Figure 3 shows the amounts invested in non-ferrous metal exploration since 1996, compared to the metal price index, highlighting the major cycles and the market recovery trend. Figure 4 illustrates the top destinations for investment in mineral exploration around the world in 2017 (S&P, 2018).

In Part 2, next issue, we will discuss the present international reporting standards and what they mean for core sampling, packaging, and storage. C References:

CRIRSCO. Committee for Mineral Reserves International Reporting Standards. CRIRSCO Website, 2019. Available at: http://www.crirsco.com/welcome.asp.

CRIRSCO. International Reporting Template for the Public Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves. 2006. 41 p.

Nicholls, C. C. The Bre-X Hoax: A South-East Asian Bubble.

The Canadian Business Law Journal, v. 32, n. 173–222, 1999.

S&P. World Exploration Trends. PDAC Special Edition, March 2018. Toronto: (2018.). https://www.spglobal.com/_ assets/images/marketintelligence/research-images/ world-exploration-trends.jpg S&P. World Mining Exploration Trends. PDAC Special Edition, March 2019. Toronto: (2019). https://www. spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/documents/worldexploration-trends-march-2019.pdf

About the authors Daniel Bortowski Carvalho - Geologist (Unisinos), Master’s Degree in Geology (Unisinos), PhD in Geology (UFRGS), Core Case CEO Email: daniel@corecase.com.br Gláucia Cuchierato - Geologist (USP), Master’s Degree in Mineral Resources (IGc-USP), PhD student in Mineral Engineering (PMI-EPUSP), GeoAnsata CEO Email: glaucia@geoansata.com.br Ana Carolina Chieregati - Mining Engineer (USP), MS and PhD in Mineral Engineering (PMI-EPUSP), Professor (PMI-EPUSP) Email: ana.chieregati@usp.br

Coring Magazine #11

/EXPLORATION DRILLING CATALOG

Diamond Drilling Services Diamond Drilling Contractors (A-Z)

ASINNI DRILLING Phone 819 723-5070 info@asinii.ca www.asinii.ca Canada

CABO Phone (604)527-4201 info@cabo.ca www.cabo.ca Canada

DEPCO DRILLING Phone (07) 4928 1133 info@depco.com.au www.depco.com.au Australia

EXPLOMIN PERFORACIONES Phone +51 (1) 295-7070 contacto@explomin.com www.explomin.com/en/ Peru

GEODRILL LTD Phone +44 1624 676 585 contact@geodrill-dh.com www.geodrill-gh.com Ghana

AGGRESSIVE DRILLING Phone (306) 975-1523 adrill@sasktel.net www.aggressivedrilling.com Canada

AUSDRILL Phone +61 8 9311 5666 info@ausdrill.com.au www.ausdrill.com.au Australia

CONTINENTAL DRILLING Phone +502 2382-5070 info@continentaldrilling.com www.continentaldrilling.com Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama

DORADO DRILLING Phone (+1) 250-549-0885 admin@doradodrilling.com www.doradodrilling.com Canada

FALCON DRILLING Phone 001 250 564 7786 www.falcon-drilling.com Canada, United States, Mexico, Burkina Faso, Mongolia

GEOSOL Phone +55 (31) 2108-8000 geosol@geosol.com.br www.geosol.com.br Brazil

ALTON DRILLING Phone 0508 425 866 service@altondrilling.co.nz www.altondrilling.co.nz New Zealand

BUNDOK DRILLING Phone (+63 46) 460 5310 info@bundokdrilling.com www.bundokdrilling.com Philippines

DDH1 DRILLING Phone +61 08 9435 1700 admin@ddh1.com.au www.ddh1.com.au Australia

FIRST DRILLING Phone 1 (970) 249 3501 info.usa@firstdrilling.com www.firstdrilling.com United States, Australia

GEOTEC Phone (511) 326 – 5494 geotec@geotec.com.pe www.geotec.com.pe Peru

AADVARK DRILLING Phone 1-877-726-9340 info@aardvarkdrillinginc.com www.aardvarkdrillinginc.com Canada, United States, England

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DRILLCON AB Phone +46 587 82820 Fax +46 587 311895 drillcon@drillcon.se www.drillcon.se Scandinavia, Portugal, Spain

Coring Magazine #11

Diamond Drilling Contractors Cont.

GRID DRILLING Phone 07 4157 8080 admin@griddrilling.com www.griddrilling.com Australia GÜNZEL DRILLING CC Phone + 264 81 322 89 28 info@guenzeldrilling.com www.guenzeldrilling.com Namibia HARDROCK DIAMOND DRILLING jordan@hardrockdrilling.ca www.hardrockdrilling.ca Canada

IDEA DRILLING Phone 1-888-634-IDEA Fax 218-741-9288 info@ideadrilling.com www.ideadrilling.com United States LOGAN DRILLING Phone 902-639-2311 logan@logandrillinggroup.com www.logandrillinggroup.com Canada, United States, Colombia MAJOR DRILLING info@majordrilling.com. www.majordrilling.com North America, Europe, Latin America, Asia, Africa

MASTER DRILLING Phone +27 18 771 8100 infor@masterdrilling.com www.masterdrilling.com South Africa

NPLH DRILLING Phone 705-268-7956 Fax 705-268-5174 dbreton@nplhdrilling.ca www.nplhdrilling.ca Canada

ORBIT GARANT DRILLING Phone 819 824-2707 Fax 819 824-2195 info@orbitgarant.com www.orbitgarant.com Canada, United States, West Africa, South America

QUEST EXPLORATION DRILLING Phone +63 2 833 6304 Fax +63 2 886 3244 info@qedrill.com www.qedrill.com Philippines, PNG

OX DRILLING Phone +260 96 6993265 info@oxdrilling.com www.oxdrilling.com Zambia and Zimbabwe

ROCK DRILL GROUP Phone (01) 518 7100 info@rockdrillgroup.com rockdrillgroup.com Peru

PEAK DRILLING Phone 250-897-0930 Fax 250-897-0960 info@peakdrilling.com www.peakdrilling.com Canada

RUEN DRILLING Phone (208) 266-1151 Fax (208) 266-1379 office@ruendrilling.com www.ruendrilling.com United States, Peru

I3 DIRECTIONAL DRILLING SOLUTIONS Phone +1 705 698 6674 roque@i3dds.com www.i3dds.com Canada

TRUST SOLUÇÕES GEOLÓGICAS Phone +55 62 992720023 contato@trustsg.com.br Brazil

SUMMIT DRILLING Phone 800-242-6648 Fax 732-356-1009 info@summitdrilling.com www.summitdrilling.com United States TITELINE DRILLING Phone +61 3 5338 3800 Fax +61 3 5337 6100 info@titelineinternational.com.au www.titelineinternational.com.au Australia, Ecuador, Indonesia, Mongolia, Myanmar

Directional Drilling (A-Z)

REI DRILLING Phone +1 801 270-2140 Fax +1 801 281-2880 www.reidrilling.com United States TECH DIRECTIONAL Phone (705) 524-6222 info@techdirectional.com techdirectional.com Canada

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Surveying & Geophysics (A-Z) CORE TECH Phone (511) 255-5701 ventas@coretech.com.pe www.coretech.com.pe Peru

DIGITAL SURVEYING Phone +27 18 788 6349 sales@digitalsurveying.co.za www.digitalsurveying.com.za Africa

DOWNHOLE SURVEYS Phone +61 (0) 8 9361 4745 sales@downhole.com.au www.downhole.com.au Australia

GYRODATA SERVICES CANADA Phone +1 705 494 0075 don.black@gyrodata.com www.gyrodata.com Canada

INTERNATIONAL DRILLING SERVICES Phone +1 480-824-7100 IDSinfo@IDSdrill.com www.idsdrill.com United States, Canada

TRUST SOLUÇÕES GEOLÓGICAS Phone +55 62 992720023 contato@trustsg.com.br Brazil

Drilling Equipment & Accessories Drill Rigs and Accessories (A-Z)

DURALITE DIAMOND DRILLS Phone 709 263-7221 Fax 709 263-7231 duralitedrills@nf.sympatico.ca www.duralitediamonddrills.com EXPLORATION DRILL MASTERS CHILE S.A. Phone (56-2) 2739-0315, (56-2) 2519-0100 info@explorationdrillmasters.com www.explorationdrillmasters.com EVERDIGM Phone 82-2-801-0800 Fax 82-2-801-0799 info@everdigm.com www.everdigm.com ACKER DRILL Phone 570-586-2061 Fax 570-586-2659 sales@ackerdrill.com www.ackerdrill.com ATELIER VAL-D’OR Phone (819) 824-3676 Fax (819) 824-2891 ateliervd@ateliervd.qc.ca www.ateliervd.qc.ca AUSTEX Phone 08 9450 9400 fax 08 9478 2316 enquiries@austexeng.com.au www.austexeng.com.au

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BARKOM Phone 90-312 385 60 50 Fax 90-312 385 35 75 info@barkomas.com www.barkomas.com DANDO DRILLING INTERNATIONAL LTD Phone 01903731312 www.dando.co.uk DELTA MAKINA Phone +90 312 386 15 41-42 Fax +90 312 386 15 43 delta@deltamakina.com www.deltamakina.com

DI-CORP Phone +1 (780) 395-5036 info@di-corp.com www.di-corp.com DISCOVERY DRILL MANUFACTURER (DDM) Phone 1-506-542-9708 Fax 1-506-542-9709 info@discoverydrills.com www.discoverydrills.com DRILLCO MINING AND EXPLORATION Phone 1 705-476-3629 s.brisson@drillcomining.ca www.drillcomining.ca

FORSUN ULTRA-HARD MATERIAL INDUSTRY Phone +86-731 84254020 Fax +86-731 84252208 info@forsuntools.com www.forsun-tools.com GEO DRILLING MACHINERY MANUFACTURING Phone +90-312-354-8576 Fax +90-312-385-6215 www.geosondajmakine.com

HOLE PRODUCTS Phone +1 909-939-2581 Fax +1 909-891-0434 www.holeproducts.com HYDRACORE DRILLS Phone +1 604-940-4937 +1 604-940-4919 info@hydracore.com www.hydracore.com MASSENZA DRILLING RIGS Phone +39 0521 825284 info@massenzarigs.it www.massenzarigs.com MAXIDRILL INC Phone +1 450-763-0212 Fax +1 514-221-2356 info@maxidrill.com www.maxidrill.com ODYSSEY FLUID POWER Phone 705 707 1780 info@odysseyfluidpower.com www.odysseyfluidpower.com

SANDVIK MINING AND CONSTRUCTION Phone 1-905 632 4940 Fax 1-905 632 2172 www.mining.sandvik.com SINOCOREDRILL Phone 86-510-82723272 Fax 86-510-82752846 sales@sinocoredrill.com www.sinocoredrill.com SON-MAK Phone: +90 224 482 44 40, +90 224 482 44 41 Fax: +90 224 482 44 39 info@son-mak.com.tr www.son-mak.com USINAGEM MARCOTTE Phone 1-819-824-3977 www.umvd.ca VERSA DRILL Phone 1-819-874-4404 www.versadrillcanada.com

PRD RIGS Phone +91 90470 87755 marketing@prdrigs.com www.prdrigs.com

Coring Magazine #11

RC Equipment (A-Z) BOART LONGYEAR Phone 1-801-972-6430 Fax 1-801-977-3374 www.boartlongyear.com

Diamond Products (A-Z)

Faster. Deeper. Safer.

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Diamond Products Cont.

ASAHI DIAMOND

DIASET

DYNAMIK

Phone + 61-2-9997-7033

Phone 1-800-663-5004

Phone 1-877-867-8398

Fax +61-2-9997-8313

Fax 604-940-9534

sales@asahi-diamond.com.au

Fax 819-762-2325

bits@diaset.com

www.asahi-diamond.com.au

info@equipementdynamik.

www.diaset.com

CHRISTENSEN RODER Phone (11) 5069-5900 www.roder.com.br roder@roder.com.br CORE TECH Phone (511) 255-5701

DI-CORP Phone 775-424-3045 www.di-corp.com DIMATEC Phone 1-866-202-5875

ventas@coretech.com.pe

Fax 1-204-832-4268

www.coretech.com.pe

info@dimatec.com www.dimatec.com

DIAMANTINA

com www.drilling.dynamik.com FORDIA Phone 514-336-9211 Fax 514-745-4125 info@fordia.com www.fordia.com FORSUN ULTRA-HARD MATERIAL INDUSTRY

CHRISTENSEN

DRILLING HQ

Phone 86-731 84254020

Phone 56(9) 7707 9371

Phone 1 (208) 690-3111

Fax 86-731 84252208

christensen@christensen.cl

Info@DrillingHQ.com

info@forsuntools.com

www.diamantinachristensen.com

www.drillinghq.com

www.forsun-tools.com

GEO DRILLING MACHINERY MANUFACTURING Phone 90-312-354-8576 Fax 90-312-385-6215 www.geosondajmakine.com HARGRAND DRILLING TOOLS Phone 86-010-61599828 Fax 86-010-61599828 whp@baoqizt.com www.hargrand.com

HUD MINING SUPPLIES 27 (0) 11-974-1500 info@hud.co.za www.hud.co.za JUFERMA Phone 34-91 498 93 07 Fax 34-91 498 93 06 diamondjuferma@juferma.com www.juferma.com

SAFARI DIAMOND DRILL BITS Phone 1-888-500-BITS(2487) Fax 604-275-2487 safaribits@telus.net www.safaridiamonddrillbits.com SANDVIK MINING AND CONSTRUCTION Phone 1-905 632 4940 Fax 1-905 632 2172 www.mining.sandvik.com

LEVANTO DIAMOND SOLUTIONS Phone 358-9-511-470 Fax 358-9-5114-7470 info@levanto.fi www.levanto.fi

SINOCOREDRILL Phone 86-510-82723272 Fax 86-510-82752846 sales@sinocoredrill.com www.sinocoredrill.com

HOLE PRODUCTS Phone 909-939-2581 Fax 909-891-0434 www.holeproducts.com

MBI DRILLING PRODUCTS Phone 1-819 762-9645 Fax 1-819 762-2845 www.mbidrillingproducts. com/en/

TECSO Phone 34-91 870 15 47 Fax 34-91 871 41 69 comercial@tecso-sa.com www.tecso.es

JUFERMA Phone 34-91 498 93 07 Fax 34-91 498 93 06 diamondjuferma@juferma.com www.juferma.com

MBI DRILLING PRODUCTS Phone 1-819 762-9645 Fax 1-819 762-2845 www.mbidrillingproducts. com/en/

Phone 34-91 870 15 47

K. MAIKAI Phone 81-3-3490-8433 Fax 81-3-3490-8622 www.kmaikai.co.jp/eng

SANDVIK MINING AND CONSTRUCTION Phone 1-905 632 4940 Fax 1-905 632 2172 www.mining.sandvik.com

comercial@tecso-sa.com

SINOCOREDRILL Phone 86-510-82723272 Fax 86-510-82752846 sales@sinocoredrill.com www.sinocoredrill.com

Phone 358-9-849-4030

HOFFMAN DIAMOND PRODUCTS Phone 800-444-4180 Fax 814-938-7625 sales@hoffmandiamond.com www.hoffmandiamond.com

Core Barrels (A-Z)

DIAMANTINA CHRISTENSEN Phone 56(9) 7707 9371 christensen@christensen.cl www.diamantinachristensen.com DI-CORP Phone 775-424-3045

info@di-corp.com www.di-corp.com DRILLING HQ Phone 1 (208) 690-3111 Info@DrillingHQ.com www.drillinghq.com

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FORDIA Phone 514-336-9211 Fax 514-745-4125 info@fordia.com www.fordia.com FORSUN ULTRA-HARD MATERIAL INDUSTRY Phone 86-731 84254020 Fax 86-731 84252208 info@forsuntools.com www.forsun-tools.com

HARGRAND DRILLING TOOLS Phone 86-010-61599828 Fax 86-010-61599828 whp@baoqizt.com www.hargrand.com HOLE PRODUCTS Phone 909-939-2581 Fax 909-891-0434 www.holeproducts.com ICEMS Phone (16) 3367-3126 Fax (16) 3361-5073 icems@icems.com.br www.icems.com.br

KUVAWALA CORE DRILL EQUIPMENTS Phone + 91 22 66635452 Fax + 91 22 66607358 mgk@kuvawalacoredrill.com www.kuvawalacoredrill.com

TECSO

Fax 34-91 871 41 69

www.tecso.es TERRA TEAM OY

info@terra-team.fi www.terra-team.fi/en

Coring Magazine #11

Drill Rods & Casings (A-Z)

BARKOM Phone 90-312 385 60 50 Fax 90-312 385 35 75 info@barkomas.com www.barkomas.com BOART LONGYEAR Phone 1-801-972-6430 Fax 1-801-977-3374 www.boartlongyear.com CORE TECH Phone (511) 255-5701 ventas@coretech.com.pe www.coretech.com.pe DIAMANTINA CHRISTENSEN Phone 56(9) 7707 9371 christensen@christensen.cl www.diamantinachristensen.com

FORDIA Phone 514-336-9211 Fax 514-745-4125 info@fordia.com www.fordia.com GEO DRILLING MACHINERY MANUFACTURING Phone 90-312-354-8576 Fax 90-312-385-6215 www.geosondajmakine.com

KUVAWALA CORE DRILL EQUIPMENTS Phone + 91 22 66635452 Fax + 91 22 66607358 mgk@kuvawalacoredrill.com www.kuvawalacoredrill.com

SANDVIK MINING AND CONSTRUCTION Phone 1-905 632 4940 Fax 1-905 632 2172 www.mining.sandvik.com SON-MAK Phone +90 224 482 44 40 - 41 Fax +90 224 482 44 39 info@son-mak.com.tr www.son-mak.com TECHNIDRILL SAS Phone +33 492 088 220 Fax +33 492 088 229 rolf@technidrill.com www.technidrill.com

Wedges (A-Z) FORDIA Phone 514-336-9211 Fax 514-745-4125 info@fordia.com www.fordia.com REFLEX Phone 1-705-235-2169 Fax 1-705-235-2165 reflex@imdexlimited.com www.reflexnow.com

Faster. Deeper. Safer.

SONDA PARTS Phone 55 – (31) 3391 3810 Fax 55 – (31) 3391 3810 comercial@sondaparts. com.br www.sondaparts.com.br/ TERRA TEAM OY Phone 358-9-849-4030 info@terra-team.fi www.terra-team.fi/en/

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Specialized Machine Works (A-Z) NORTH BAY MACHINING CENTRE Phone (705) 472-9416 Fax (705) 472-2927 luc@nbmc.ca www.nbmc.ca PROLENC Phone (250) 563-8899 Fax (250) 563-6704 khodgins@prolenc.com www.prolenc.com

Survey Equipment Survey Tools (A-Z)

AZIWELL

BOART LONGYEAR

Phone + 47 471 600 71

Phone 1-801-972-6430

post@aziwell.no

Fax 1-801-977-3374

www.aziwell.no

www.boartlongyear.com

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ICEEFIELD TOOLS

REFLEX INSTRUMENTS

Phone +1 (867) 633-4264

Phone 61 8 9445 4020

Fax +1 (867) 633-4217

Fax 61 8 9445 4040

support@icefieldtools.com

reflex@imdexlimited.com

www.icefieldtools.com

www.reflexnow.com

STOCKHOLM PRECISION TOOLS Phone 46-8-590-733-10 Fax 46-8-590-731-55 info@stockholmprecisiontools.com www.stockholmprecisiontools.com

Coring Magazine #11

Core Orientation (A-Z) BOART LONGYEAR Phone 1-801-972-6430 Fax 1-801-977-3374 www.boartlongyear.com

COREFINDER Phone +55 62 992720023 contato@corefinder.com.br www.corefinder.com.br

DEVICO AS Phone +47 72870101 devico@devico.com www.devico.com

REFLEX INSTRUMENTS Phone 61 8 9445 4020 Fax 61 8 9445 4040 reflex@imdexlimited.com www.reflexnow.com

Miscellaneous Drilling Fluids (A-Z)

CEBO HOLLAND B. V. (BAROID) Phone +31 255 546 262 info@cebo.com www.cebo.com

CORE TECH Phone (511) 255-5701 ventas@coretech.com.pe www.coretech.com.pe

JC PORTAL DRILLING SUPPLIES Phone (33) 3810 6099 (33) 1561 6618 ventas@jcpds.com.mx www.jcpds.com.mx

MUDEX

TIGER FLUIDS

Phone +61 (8) 9390 4620

Phone +61 (0) 417 60 11

info@mudex.com.au

info@tigerfluids.com

www.mudex.com.au

www.tigerfluids.com

Packers (A-Z) HOLE PRODUCTS Phone +1 909 939 2581 Fax +1 909 891 0434 holeproducts.com SON-MAK Phone +90 224 482 44 40 Fax +90 224 482 44 39 info@son-mak-com.tr www.son-mak-com.tr

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Core Trays (A-Z)

Rates for print catalog listings Basic insert 80€ per issue 150€ per three issues Includes a text-only listing with a company name, telephone and fax number, email and web address.

DYNAMICS G-EX Phone +61 7 54826649 sales@dynamicsgex.com.au www.dynamicsgex.com.au PROSPECTORS Phone +61 (02) 9839 3500 Fax +61 (02) 8824 5250 sales@prospectors.com.au

Highlighted insert 120€ per issue 260€ per three issues Includes a basic insert of the same size but with a color background for better exposure.

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450€ per three issues A large advert-sized listing with your image of choice as a background, your company logo, strapline, text of 240 symbols, and company contact details.

Contact us at editorial@coringmagazine.com

70

Coring Magazine #11

RC DRilling is Cost effeCtive Reverse circulation drilling versus coring in exploration In general, (as a rule of thumb!) experience has shown when comparing core drilling and RC drilling under the same ground conditions with no adverse situations, RC is 3 to 4 times faster and half the cost of core drilling.

RC samples are more quickly obtained, so analytical results can be obtained more quickly from a greater volume sample.

Note that ground conditions will affect drilling rate and some ground conditions favour core drilling over RC.

Why have RC drilling instead of Conventional or Wire Line Diamond Coring?

• Cost: there is a real saving as RC is roughly half the cost per metre drilled compared to coring.

• Speed: RC is roughly 3 to 4 times faster per metre drilled compared to coring.

• The contractor is on site for much less time, reducing support costs dramatically • In areas with seasonal exploration periods – e.g. tundra or tropical, geological information gained in a weather window can be maximised • Outside of Canada, roughly 80% of surface exploration drilling for minerals is carried out by RC • Much faster method of obtaining geochemical assays • Requires minimal or no water for the drilling process, a big plus where water is difficult to get to site.

Downside: • Fuel consumption is 3 to 4 times higher for RC due to compressor requirement. Although this is balanced out by the speed, it can give logistical problems in remote areas.

• Sample handling: core is just stored in boxes and can be stacked and stored easily Depending on the rock type, N-WL core is roughly 4.5 kg per metre. RC samples from a standard 5” hole can weigh in excess of 30 kgs per metre and must be split into a manageable size on site. The bagged sample cannot be easily stacked.

• Destructive drilling method - RC samples are pulverised, cores are intact rocks • Samples from RC holes cannot be orientated and give no structural geology information Sincerely, Thierry Petra, Managing Director Technidrill SAS rc@technidrill.com

Who isTechnidrill ?

French company - Celebrating 30 years of business!

• • Technidrill has the aim to inspire the Mining Exploration Business with better methods in niches of excellence in production, know-how and quality and innovative products Please do not hesitate to contact us at rc@technidrill.com, Sincerely, Technidrill SAS