Natural Resources, Mining, Industry and Energy Schreyer Award and Award of Excellence
K3 Expansion – South Shaft Headframe Hatch
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A novel approach The greenfield K3 expansion project consisted of: • two 3,500-ft production shafts. • two 350-ft headframes. • hoisting systems for production and personnel. • surface infrastructure and underground development.
As part of Mosaic’s mandate to execute a safe and expedited project, Hatch deployed its construction and modularization groups to develop 12
CANADIAN CONSULTING ENGINEER
solutions that would minimize the construction timelines. By leveraging the firm’s knowledge already gained from the conventional construction of the north shaft headframe, the team implemented advanced modularization techniques in the south shaft headframe. Structural steel pre-assembled modules (PAUs) were connected
into floor sections on ground level. After each floor was assembled, permanent equipment was installed and construction materials were loaded. Once loaded, each of the six floors was raised as an individual unit on a proprietary-design jacking system with over 1,000 t of lifting capacity. At elevation, each floor was pinned September/October 2023
PHOTOS COU RT E SY H ATC H.
ith headframes rising over 350 ft above surface and shafts linking to the underground development 3,350 ft below, mining company Mosaic’s K3 expansion project in Esterhazy, Sask., is one of the largest and most competitive underground potash mines in the world. Replacing the existing K1 and K2 underground mines, which are now decommissioned, the K3 expansion project was designed and constructed with a focus on modernization and efficiency, to avoid and mitigate any potential future environmental impacts. Hatch managed the engineering and construction of the shafts, headframes and hoisting systems, deploying new techniques that successfully achieved project safety goals and enabled the final phase of the project to finish ahead of schedule and under budget.
