Mining Magazine Winter 2023

5-7 SEPTEMBER 2023

SYDNEY SHOWGROUND

ASIA-PACIFIC’S INTERNATIONAL MINING EXHIBITION

AIMEX is the destination for the mining sector to collaborate and hear from industry thought leaders. AIMEX provides an unmatched opportunity to connect and do business with some of the best mining suppliers from around the world, while sourcing solutions to boost productivity and meet sustainability goals. New at AIMEX this year are the Transformative Technology Pavilion and the Decarbonisation Zone.

6,000+

industry connections

local and international suppliers

50+

250+ expert speakers

Tess Macallan

Tayla Oates

Steph Barker

Design Manager

Alejandro Molano

Senior Designer

Luke Martin Designers

Danielle Harris

Ozlem Munur

Jacqueline Buckmaster

National Media and Events Executives

Rima Munafo

Brett Thompson

Marketing Manager

Radhika Sud

Marketing Associates

James Holgate

Jackson Barnes

Digital Marketing Assistants

Natalie Ta

Rhys Dawes

EDITOR’S WELCOME

As we brace for the imminent winter, I’d like to warmly welcome you to Mining Magazine’s Winter Edition – the second issue for 2023 and the first with me at the helm as Editor. I’m excited to bring my experience writing for Mining’s sister publications Council, Energy, Pump Industry, Infrastructure and Utility to my new role.

My predecessor left some big shoes to fill but I am up for the challenge and can’t wait to grow the magazine and continue sharing the stories the industry cares about.

Having spent a lot of time living abroad as a cultural ambassador for Australia, I have a keen interest in Australian resources and commodities, as well as Australia's international trade and export relationships. This is especially important nowadays as the world strives towards net zero emissions goals and building new critical minerals supply chains.

In this edition, we spoke to researchers at Deakin University, who have found a sustainable new purpose for end-of-life solar panels. The lucrative process to extract silicon from solar panels and its impact on the industry is unpacked in detail on page 22.

Showcasing and telling the story of women has always been a passion of mine and something I have brought with me to my new role. Mining is a traditionally male-dominated industry, and it is of particular importance to me to provide a platform for women in the mining sector to share their story, successes and experiences.

This issue, we spoke to Daisy Ambach, a woman from a small town in Belgium, about how she carved out a place for herself in Australia’s mining industry.

As a self-confessed nature lover and someone who spends a great deal of time outdoors, sustainability and the environmental impacts of mining is something I am keenly interested in. Exploring the ways the industry is innovating and working towards reducing its impact on the environment, including tailings management strategies and repurposing mine sites, is a topic of interest in the industry and one that will continue for Mining

On page 44 we analyse the different approaches to reusing and repurposing mine sites once operations have finished. Additionally, the Conservation Council of Western Australia spoke to us about the impact bauxite mining is having on the Northern Jarrah Forest.

I’m always open to learning new things so if there’s a topic, project, technology or challenge you’d like to read about in future editions, I’d love to hear from you. Please don’t hesitate to flick me an email.

INDUSTRY INSIGHTS

With its abundance of natural resources, Australia is committed to its transition to greener energy production, with solar and wind leading the charge. While this transition is a great step towards achieving the country’s net zero emissions goals, these greener energy solutions are not without their own problems, including large amounts of material waste associated with end-of-life solar panels. A team of researchers from Deakin University’s Institute for Frontier Materials are tackling this problem head-on, and have developed a sustainable and highly lucrative way to extract silicon from end-of-life solar panels and reconfigure it to build better batteries.

CIRCULAR ECONOMY

operate, including developing plans for post-mining

turn away from traditional thermal power capacity to embrace greener energy production options, mines across the country are being decommissioned and closed, leaving operators scrambling to find another use for them. A novel technique called Underground Gravity Energy Storage, developed by a team of researchers from the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), turns decommissioned mines into long-term energy storage solutions, thereby supporting the sustainable energy transition.

With their heavy machinery, often monumental scale and occasional use of explosives, mine sites aren’t always considered the safest places to work. But now a new safety concern is making its way into the industry spotlight: the mental health and fatigue levels of mine employees. A recent University of Queensland (UQ) report looks at fatigue and its impacts on health and safety, and employees’ mental health on mine sites across Queensland and, ultimately, the whole of Australia.

BHP WORKING TOWARDS STAMPING OUT RACISM

BHP is in the early stages of reviewing its policies, processes and behaviours to prevent racism in its workplace.

Policies being reviewed include how the company responds to racism; listening to employees to get a better-informed perspective on racism; establishing a racial equity working group led by Chief Commercial Officer, Vandita Pant; and building capability in company leaders to make sure they’re equipped to recognise and call out racial behaviour.

Vandita Pant, Chief Commercial Officer and Executive Sponsor for Racial Equity, said there is no place for racism at BHP or anywhere in society.

“At BHP, the diversity of our workforce is one of our greatest strengths,” Ms Pant said.

“A workforce made up of a wide range of people from different backgrounds brings a range of different perspectives, capabilities, and overall benefits that diverse teams bring.

“We want every person to feel empowered and safe to bring their

whole selves to work. This starts with the right attitude, words and actions of every individual.

“Ultimately, we know what kind of company we want to be – one where everyone feels seen, heard, valued, and treated with dignity and respect.”

Vice President for Health and Hygiene, Dr Rod Gutierrez, said fostering a diverse, inclusive and psychologically healthy workforce is what BHP aspires to.

“Racism is damaging to one’s mental health because it challenges our notion of ‘self’. It attempts to define who we are against our choice and negates our personal stories and is one of the few psychosocial hazards that has such a deep effect on our psychology,” Dr Gutierrez said.

“For this reason, at BHP, it is imperative that we work collectively to identify and eliminate racism and enable everyone to thrive and have a sense of belonging.

“We are engaging the whole business and inviting everyone to the dialogue. Together we are imagining a future free of racial discrimination.”

NON - EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR APPOINTED FO � LYNAS

Lynas Rare Earths announced the appointment of a new non-executive director, effective from 1 May 2023.

John Beevers stepped into the role, bringing with him 30 years’ experience in the resources, mining services and chemical industries.

Mr Beevers is an experienced board director with a strong background in

operations and leadership, including as CEO of Orica Mining Services.

Lynas Chairman, Kathleen Conlon, said, “We are delighted to welcome John Beevers to the Lynas Board. John’s deep expertise in the mining and chemical industries, and experience of living and working in both Australia and overseas markets, will be of great value to Lynas

as we continue our Australian and international expansion.”

Mr Beevers holds a Bachelor of Engineering and a Master of Business. He is a non-executive director of Orica and Syrah Resources

Mr Beevers will offer himself for election as a Director at the Annual General Meeting in November 2023.

HYDROTREATED VEGETABLE OIL FUEL TRIALS UNDERWAY

Hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) is being trialled to help power mining equipment at BHP’s Yandi iron ore operations in Western Australia.

Supplied through a collaboration with bp, the renewable diesel made from HVO will be used in haul trucks and other mining equipment over an initial three-month trial period.

BHP Western Australia Iron Ore (WAIO) Asset President, Brandon Craig, said, “About 40 per cent of BHP’s operational greenhouse gas emissions come from using diesel fuel, and this is a core focus of our decarbonisation strategy.

“Ultimately, our aim is to have fully electric trucking fleets at our sites, but alternative fuels like HVO may help us reduce our emissions in the meantime while the electrification transition takes place.

“This collaboration with the teams at Yandi and bp is really exciting to see, given the potential application in our WAIO business and BHP’s operations globally.”

bp Australia and SVP fuels and low carbon solutions, Asia Pacific, President, Frederic Baudry, said, “bp’s ambition to be a net zero company by 2050 or sooner, and to help the world get to net zero,

recognises the crucial role bp has to play in the energy transition.

“Globally, bp plans to increase its investment in low carbon energy. Forging strategic partnerships with companies like BHP enables bp to create solutions that satisfy the increasing demand for lower carbon fuels in sectors like mining and transport.”

BHP has a medium-term target to reduce operational greenhouse gas emissions by at least 30 per cent by FY2030, from a FY2020 baseline.

Approximately 40 per cent of BHP’s operational emissions in its FY2020 baseline year came from diesel-powered equipment.

CURTIN MAINTAINS WORLD NO. 2 RANKING FOR MINERAL AND MINING ENGINEERING

Curtin University has maintained its position as the world’s secondranked university, and number one in Australia for mineral and mining engineering for the seventh year in a row.

The 2023 QS World University Rankings by Subject shows Curtin achieved a ranking in 29 narrow subject fields with 19 ranked in the top 200 globally.

Five Curtin subjects continued to be named among the top 50 in the world, with mineral and mining engineering ranked second globally, geology at 26, geophysics at 29, earth and marine sciences at 33, and petroleum engineering at 36.

Curtin also had four top-100 subject rankings including architecture and built environment, civil and structural engineering, nursing, and sport-related subjects.

Curtin University Vice-Chancellor, Professor Harlene Hayne, said she was delighted to see Curtin continuing to shine on the global stage.

“For seven years in a row, Curtin’s mineral and mining engineering fields

remain the top Australian university and the second-ranked university across the globe,” Professor Hayne said.

“The University’s results also skyrocketed in the national rankings across four subjects with geophysics moving into the second position in Australia, earth and marine sciences into third position, our pharmacy and pharmacology subjects were ranked sixth nationally, and nursing climbed to 11th position.”

Along with the top national ranking for mining and mineral engineering and geophysics moving into second position, Curtin continues to feature in the top

five Australian rankings for earth and marine sciences and geology – both at third position in Australia, petroleum engineering in fourth position, and architecture and built environment at fifth.

The 2023 QS World University Rankings by Subject considered more than 1,594 universities across 54 academic disciplines and five broad subject areas.

The rankings are compiled annually using research citations, research impact, and the results of major global surveys of employers and academics to rank universities.

P1000 P � OJECT TO P � OGRESS FOLLOWING INVESTMENT APPROVAL

Pilbara Minerals has announced that its board has approved the capital investment for the P1000 Project.

This investment in the Pilgan Plant and supporting infrastructure will deliver an approximately 320,000tpa increase in nameplate spodumene concentrate production capacity.

This will ultimately increase the annual production run rate from the Pilgangoora Project to approximately 1,000,000dmt once fully commissioned and ramped up in the September Quarter, 2025.

This investment supports Pilbara Minerals’ long-term growth strategy to increase production capacity at the Pilgangoora Project in line with market demand.

The P1000 Project leverages the company’s earlier investment in additional primary rejection and crushing/ore sorting capacity from the ongoing P680 Project.

The P1000 Project involves a series of upgrades to the Pilgan Plant’s concentrator and a range of supporting infrastructure, along with an expansion of the Tambrah Camp.

The company will self-manage delivery of the P1000 Project.

Key long-lead procurement has already commenced as part of the $38 million in pre-FID expenditure announced in December 2022, and will continue to be undertaken prior to the award of key construction contracts.

The P1000 Project’s estimated capital cost of $560 million across the Pilgan concentrator and supporting infrastructure includes the previously announced $38 million of pre-FID capital and is expected to deliver attractive returns to the company, including a forecast payback from incremental cash flows relative to P680 within 12 months.

The capital investment for the P1000 Project is expected to be funded from a combination of the company’s strong balance sheet and ongoing cash flow from existing operations.

Pilbara Minerals Managing Director and CEO, Dale Henderson, said, “The P1000 Project expansion is an important milestone for Pilbara Minerals. This expansion step facilitates a major lift in production capacity, capitalising on the substantial scale of this Tier-1 hard rock asset which underpins a ~25 year mine life at this new expanded production level.

“This reinforces the exceptional scale and quality of our Pilgangoora Project, which is one of the few hard rock lithium production operations globally that has

both the resource size and an existing operating platform to enable a rapid scale-up of production to capitalise on the growing demand for lithium products.

“From the outset, our long-term growth strategy has been to develop each stage with a focus on tailoring production to meet demand, while also planning for future expansion opportunities. The P1000 Project increases our nameplate production capacity by approximately 47 per cent, driven by continued strong demand for our product, and leverages the planning and ongoing work being undertaken as part of the current P680 Expansion Project.

Mr Henderson said that payback from the P1000 investment is expected to be within a year.

“This further increase in production capacity will cement Pilbara Minerals’ position as a globally significant supplier of lithium materials products delivering into this rapidly growing market.

“The company has received significant inbound interest for further offtake and downstream partnerships, and we have begun exploring options to maximise the value of the additional product from P1000 including new offtakes and downstream partnerships to extract greater value along the battery minerals supply chain.”

NEW CFO APPOINTED FOR PILBARA MINERALS

Australian lithium producer, Pilbara Minerals, has announced the appointment of a new chief financial officer (CFO).

Luke Bortoli commenced as CFO on 11 April 2023, bringing with him more than 20 years’ experience in finance, most recently serving as CFO of Afterpay, during a period of rapid growth.

Prior to this, Mr Bortoli held various roles at Aristocrat Leisure including Global Head of Investor Relations, Group Treasurer, Global Head of Strategy and CFO Special Projects from 2014 to 2018.

Earlier in his career, as Director of Investment Banking at UBS, Mr Bortoli specialised in M&A and capital raising advisory for the resources and technology sectors.

Mr Bortoli also holds a PhD in Economics and Bachelor of Commerce with First Class Honors from the University of Sydney.

As CFO, Mr Bortoli will have oversight of all financial aspects of Pilbara Minerals and will also work as part of the executive team to implement and accelerate Pilbara Minerals’ growth strategy.

Pilbara Minerals’ Managing Director and CEO, Dale Henderson, said he was delighted to have attracted a senior executive of Mr Bortoli’s calibre and global experience to join the Pilbara Minerals team

“Luke has an exceptional track record of value creation as a senior executive helping fast growth companies scale operationally to maximise their potential,” Mr Henderson said.

“His CFO career has seen him work at the highest levels of some of the most successful companies on the ASX, including lengthy stints working at two leading ASX-20 companies with global operations, being Afterpay and Aristocrat.

“Luke is passionate about futurefacing industries and has a track record of stewarding the finance needs of companies in a rapid stage of evolution.

He has deep experience in scaling the people, processes and systems that are required to support growth.

“Luke’s demonstrated ability to balance commercial and financial discipline, strong governance and innovation will place him in good stead as he takes on this role.”

Mr Henderson said he is delighted that Mr Bortoli has decided to move from one fast-growing industry to another, being the lithium industry.

“His breadth of expertise in corporate strategy, investor relations, treasury and digital strategy will also be invaluable to Pilbara Minerals as we seek to leverage our strengths, grow and diversify –particularly as we move further down the mid-stream and downstream value chains.

“We are very much looking forward to having Luke on board, and to the substantial contribution we know he will make to the business in the years to come.”

Q LD’S LARGEST GOLD MINE REOPENS

The Ravenswood Gold Mine has officially reopened after a three-year expansion, making it the largest gold mine in Queensland.

The mine, located roughly 130km southwest of Townsville, has now increased its production capacity to more than 200,000oz of gold each year.

Located in the historic gold mining town of Ravenswood, the Ravenswood Gold Mine has been in operation since 1987 and was purchased by Ravenswood Gold in April 2020.

The expansion included a new tailings storage facility, crusher and a processing plant expansion including a new mill and leaching tanks, creating nearly 400 good jobs and supporting 1,000 contractors in the process.

Queensland Resources Minister, Scott Stewart, congratulated Ravenswood Gold on the $350 million expansion and said it will benefit all Queenslanders.

“Not only is this now the largest gold mine in Queensland, but the Ravenswood Gold project also deserves a gold medal for how it supports locals and local businesses,” Mr Stewart said.

“It is providing good jobs, flow-on benefits for local businesses and is ensuring a sustainable future for the town of Ravenswood well beyond the life of the mine.

“And all Queenslanders benefit with royalties that will fund our schools, hospitals and roads.

“The resources industry directly supports about 75,000 jobs across the state, particularly in the regions, which account for about two-thirds of all mining jobs.”

More than 1,000 contractors were supported during the mine’s expansion, while its permanent workforce has increased to more than 430 with a further 220 permanent contractors.

Local businesses and suppliers were also supported during the expansion, with concrete supplied by Towers Concrete in Charters Towers and steel from Thomas Steel in Townsville.

Ravenswood Gold Chief Executive, Brett Fletcher, said, “This is a major achievement for our team at Ravenswood Gold and for the township of Ravenswood.

“We are delivering huge economic benefits and providing local employment opportunities, with the vast majority of our team living within a two-hour drive of the mine.

“Ravenswood Gold is a great example of local people working together with private business and government to bring real benefits for the state of Queensland,” he said.

GLOBAL CONSORTIUM TO ENHANCE TAILINGS MANAGEMENT

Eight global mining companies have joined to form the GeoStable Tailings Consortium (GSTC), a multi-year initiative to develop and implement new technological applications for managing tailings.

Alongside BHP, the companies comprising the GSTC are Antamina, Barrick, Freeport-McMoRan, Gold Fields, Newmont, Teck and Vale, with external expert support provided by Dr G. Ward Wilson of the University of Alberta.

Tailings are a waste product generated by mining and processing operations, consisting of finely ground rock in slurry form.

The GSTC will study options to combine various blends of tailings with waste rock to create geo-stable landforms that are stronger and more stable than conventional tailings deposition methods and are likely to reduce process water consumption.

The GSTC will undertake a range of research and development activities, including laboratory testing, field trials, and data analysis, and will collaborate to promote best practices in tailings and waste management and foster a culture of continuous improvement across the mining industry.

The new GSTC initiative builds on the work of a group formed to advance geo-waste and eco-tailings research previously pursued by Goldcorp, which was acquired by Newmont in early 2019.

Featured image: Queensland Resources Minister, Scott Stewart, and Indonesian Ambassador to Australia, Dr Siswo Pramono, open the expanded Ravenswood gold mine. Image: Queensland Government.

SEWAGE T R EATMENT FOR R EMOTE SITES

Effective wastewater treatment is essential for every community, and helps to protect the environment and also look after the health of the general public. However, some locations – like remote mine sites – are unable to access a sewer main and, as such, require onsite wastewater treatment.

Leading pumps manufacturer and distributor, Kelair Pumps Australia’s Blivet is set to help solve these challenges and revolutionise sewage treatment at mine sites with a system that is simple and efficient.

The Kelair-Blivet is a remote, economical, standalone wastewater sewage treatment plant suitable for populations from 30 to 500. The unit comprises primary settlement, aerobic biological treatment, final settlement and sludge storage.

It is an established and innovative system for highly efficient process reduction of biological oxygen demand (BOD) and Suspended Solids (S.S.). It combines the best features of existing rotating biological contactor (RBC) technology with the additional advantage of active aeration without the use of blowers.

The Kelair-Blivet is compact, does not require constant manning, is simple to operate and maintain, has low operating costs and is a practical and economical wastewater treatment option, especially for remote sites.

The low energy, high performance system is installed easily, straightforward to run and quickly and effectively turns effluent into usable irrigation water.

Kelair Pumps is the only supplier of the Blivet in Australia and has 20 years of experience supplying and maintaining these systems. Kelair offers clients a range of world-renowned, highquality products, supported and backed by knowledgeable staff.

KELAIR - BLIVET

Package Sewage Treatment Plant

The Kelair-Blivet is a stand-alone packaged sewage treatment plant, designed to accept raw (unsettled) sewage and produce a high quality final effluent without the need for ancillary tankage or equipment.

Compact, flexible, modular system suitable for:

- Environmentally sensitive sites

- Townships and villages

- Construction and remote sites

- Areas not connected to mains

We know the importance of choosing the right equipment to match your process. With our extensive range of pumps, first class customer service and ongoing comprehensive support, Kelair Pumps are second to none when it comes to your pumping requirements.

TO ASK YOU R AI VENDO R SEVEN Q UESTIONS

If you feel like you’re seeing references to Artificial Intelligence (AI) everywhere you turn, you’re not wrong. AI is a buzzword right now, particularly in mining and industry, but behind all the hype and jargon, it offers genuine opportunity for businesses that wish to level-up their operations.

More and more organisations are turning to AI to increase operative benefits and onsite safety, and as a way to keep business running as profitably as possible through the challenges the mining and mineral industry face.

There are hundreds, if not thousands, of tech companies out there pushing tools that promise to be the solution to increased safety, productivity and performance in mining. Not every AI tool is created equal and choosing an AI vendor can feel particularly tricky.

If you're new to AI, ask these questions when considering an AI partner:

1. Is AI technology built for business?

A business-specific AI should be purpose-built to solve business problems, seamlessly integrate, be customisable, security compliant, scalable, and offer comprehensive support to ensure successful implementation and adoption. These criteria ensure that the AI is tailored to enhance business workflows and automate processes, meeting the needs of your business.

2. Is the AI platform stand-alone?

This is important in terms of deployment and use, as the platform must be able to be bought, deployed and operationalised within your organisation without a required and larger software suite, like an OHS, HRIS, CRM, ERP, messaging system, ticketing system, telephony system or call centre platform.

3. Can the product integrate into existing infrastructure?

Integrating AI into your organisation should be a relatively seamless process. A system that can integrate into your existing workflow using your system API to avoid unnecessary complications and excessive training is important to look for.

4. Is the system optimised for accessibility?

Any AI you adopt should enhance communication, collaboration and accessibility. Look for systems with advanced user interfaces such as voice, a natural and 3x faster way to input text that can support a wide selection of languages, understands accents and recognises industry jargon.

5. How much user effort is required during onboarding?

The best AI products offer an out-of-the-box solution with minimal training required, avoiding costly interference to your workflow and day-to-day operations during integration. Look for comprehensive support, staff training material, and easy API integration into your systems to ensure you get started with ease.

6. Will the platform learn and get more accurate over time?

Ask your vendor whether the solution uses advanced AI automation or Robot Process Automation. Robot Process Automation works on a rule-based system and needs proactive rule adjustment to improve, whereas AI automation systems continuously improve over time as more data is collected.

7. Does the system provide end-to-end security and protection?

It goes without saying that no matter the industry, data protection is a must. AI products that provide security and privacy features such as end-to-end encryption, multi-factor authentication and data minimisation to prioritise the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of your data.

HOW MANY CAN YOU CHECK OFF?

AI platform is built for business

Teams communicate, produce and access information with ease and in a natural way

Data is encrypted and protected by enterprise-level security

Quick onboarding with little to no employee downtime

AI platform is standalone and can operationalise without having to replace existing systems

Integrate easily with current databases and systems

Continuous improvement as data is collected

Contact Harald and its Australian engineering and design teams take products from inception to integrated hardware, voice, and AI solution delivery in 19 countries. This integrated design approach tightly couples the entire experience, delivering better, more human technology solutions.

For the past decade, its products have concentrated on emerging IoT and tracking technologies and, more recently, voice-based and AI technologies. Today, its human-centred design combines voice, AI, and IoT systems to improve your teams’ experiences while delivering more profound, meaningful insights.

To learn more about Ask Harry, visit www.askharry.it

Ready to activate AI? Ask Harry

Ask Harry puts artificial intelligence to work within your operation.

Ask Harry is a voice-based AI assistant designed to simplify communication, find information and increase on-site safety.

Using the power and simplicity of voice, a simple call to Ask Harry connects you to your teams and critical business information.

In less than a minute:

• Report a hazard or incident

• Access critical information and documents

• Retrieve Standard Operating Procedures (SOP)

• Create handover notes and daily updates

One conversation, done.

Built for business

Accessibility using the latest user interface; voice

High level security and data protection

Fast to onboard and deploy

Integrates into existing systems and workflow

Ask Harry, job done.

Got a question?

harry@contactharald.com

Learn more: askharry.it

Call: (02) 7208 5391

THE OPPO R TUNITY OF A GENE R ATION: EMB R ACING SUSTAINABLE LEADERSHIP

EBy Dr Matt Guthridge, Head of Energy and Natural Resources, ANZ, Russell Reynolds Associates

Organisations that deliver on their sustainability ambitions will create value for their stakeholders, customers, employees, investors and the communities they serve.

mploying over a quarter of a million people and contributing to nearly 15 per cent of gross domestic product and more than two-thirds of total exports, the mining sector is central to Australia’s economy. The nation’s resource and energy export earnings are set to achieve a record $459 billion in the 2022–23 financial year. Ensuring the sustainable performance of this vital sector of the economy is a top priority.

The pressure on mining companies to tackle sustainability – the management of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues – continues to mount. A broad set of stakeholders, including customers, employees, investors and suppliers, are increasingly challenging mining companies to respond to concerns about climate change and environmental disruption, threats to indigenous ways of life, changing societal values, and economic and political instability.

The most progressive mining companies will have a corporate strategy and operational practices with sustainability at their core.

Russell Reynolds Associates, the Melbourne Business School, and Kearney recently surveyed more than 50 nonexecutive directors (NEDs) covering more than 60 companies and representing roughly 50 per cent of the ASX100 by market capitalisation.

Of the respondents, it was encouraging to see that 70 per cent believed their companies are sustainability leaders or are rapidly adopting best practices to become leaders within their industries. However, only 16 per cent of NED respondents indicated that the necessary execution success factors were in place to improve sustainability outcomes in the companies they represented.

Another recent survey highlighted the divergence in views on sustainability progress between employees and the C-suite in a sample of Australian companies.1 According to the survey, 84 per cent of C-suite leaders believed their organisations were doing all they could to reduce their impact on climate change, but only 49 per cent of their employees agreed.

When it comes to industry standards, 86 per cent of C-suite leaders believed their organisation’s environmental commitments were in line with best practice, compared with just 53 per cent of employees.

Taken together, these surveys demonstrate that a company’s sustainability ambition may not translate into positive outcomes because progress is hampered by challenges in execution.

Why Australian companies aren’t achieving their sustainability ambitions

One potential reason so many companies aren’t progressing more strongly towards their sustainability goals is that there is no common understanding of what sustainability really means.

Only a third of the NED respondents defined sustainability in terms of sustainable, profitable growth that considers ESG practices. Almost half of the respondents defined sustainability ambiguously or in purely economic terms. Anecdotally, we often see discussions on sustainability in the mining sector limited to a focus on carbon reduction rather than the more holistic definition of the concept.

In companies reporting slower progress on sustainability, only 38 per cent of respondents believed that sustainability trends were well understood by the board and executive teams.

Interestingly, the survey also highlighted a gender gap in the perception of sustainability. While, almost 80 per cent of male NEDs believed that sustainability trends were well understood and advocated by their boards, more than half of female NEDs were sceptical about this.

A second reason why companies aren’t realising their sustainability ambitions is that the link to purpose and corporate strategy is often unclear. For companies making good progress on sustainability, 95 per cent of respondents agreed that sustainability considerations have a significant impact on corporate strategy. In contrast, just 62 per cent of companies reporting slow progress indicated that sustainability was embedded in their corporate strategies.

Finally, there continues to be a lack of organisational alignment and focus on sustainability in many Australian companies. As they rush to formalise accountability for sustainability outcomes, many organisations have adopted a ‘tick-the-box’ approach without a sufficient organisation commitment to pursuing sustainability goals.

Of the companies in our survey reporting good progress on sustainability, only 40 per cent of them have appointed a chief sustainability officer (CSO) to lead their sustainability efforts, and only 50 per cent have sustainability incorporated into both short and long-term senior executive KPIs.

An effective CSO can navigate the logic and complex reporting requirements of sustainability, while helping to embed sustainability goals into a company’s strategy and operational practices. In their haste to appease stakeholders, however, many organisations have resorted to ‘double hatting’ the CSO role with other executive roles and business functions. Without an

investment in genuine sustainability expertise, organisations will make slower progress and potentially expose themselves to accusations of ‘greenwashing.’

Interestingly, the overall governance of sustainability at the board level was not defined for a quarter of the companies that reported good progress on sustainability outcomes. Sustainability Committees, if they exist on the board, are often combined with Audit and Risk or Health and Safety Committees, and there is a dearth of NEDs with genuine sustainability expertise on today’s ASX boards.

The case for sustainable leadership

So how can mining companies build the necessary organisational commitment and capability to make progress against their sustainability ambitions? There is an urgent need for a new type of business leader – one who can deliver financial success while also making the long-term sustainability and resilience of our world a top priority. We call these people sustainable leaders.

Russell Reynolds Associates partnered with the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC) to study a group of pioneering CEOs and board members who have effectively integrated sustainability into business strategy. Our research identified the differentiating characteristics of sustainable leaders and provides a playbook for how mining companies can make sustainable leadership central to their capabilities.

Sustainable leaders have four things in common:

Systems thinking

Sustainable leaders recognise that their business is part of an interconnected ecosystem. When it comes to natural resources, leaders who utilise systems thinking acknowledge their relationship with other businesses, civil organisations, governments and academia. Through making sense of this complex landscape, these leaders are able to manage risk while spotting long-term growth opportunities, which they are able to synthesise into competitive advantage.

Stakeholder inclusion

Rather than simply managing stakeholders, sustainable leaders consciously include them, actively seeking a range of viewpoints to inform decision-making. From employees to customers, Traditional Owners to investors, mining organisations have a broad range of stakeholders with opinions that can often be diametrically opposed.

Leaders require empathy and authenticity to be able to understand all stakeholders’ experiences, motivations and needs, utilising this knowledge to make a positive impact.

Long-term activation

Enacting meaningful change requires setting audacious goals for the long term, and rigorously pursuing them, despite challenging circumstances and setbacks. Sustainable leaders will use this long-range perspective to develop staff talent, drive technological advancement and create operational efficiencies to accomplish this.

Disruptive innovation

By being comfortable with questioning traditional approaches and willing to disrupt their business and industry, sustainable leaders are able to inspire innovation that sees beyond the either/or quandary of profitability and sustainability. Newer technologies, such as remote operating centres and unmanned vehicles, have already revolutionised safety and productivity.

To chart a sustainable course for mining, leaders require an unwavering belief in the end goal, conscientiously seeking out the latest scientific and operational evolutions while embracing uncertainty.

Looking ahead

Our recent survey results highlight the gap between sustainability ambition and execution in many of Australia’s largest companies. Our experience also suggests that many mining companies are struggling to make progress against their sustainability goals, which are influenced by the high expectations of their stakeholders.

To make progress against their ambitions, we believe mining companies need sustainable leaders at every level, including the Board. To set up for success, organisations should:

♦ Apply sustainability leadership potential and expertise as key selection criteria when appointing managers, executives and NEDs, and when making succession planning decisions

♦ Reward the prioritisation and progress against sustainable goals by integrating them into the objectives and incentives of board members, CEOs and executives

♦ Continually build sustainability leadership within the Executive and Board by making it a key focus of leadership development plans

♦ Appoint a handful of leaders with proven sustainability expertise to the senior leadership team and the Board

By taking concerted steps to embed sustainability into how leaders are selected, promoted, rewarded and developed, mining companies will remove potential barriers to execution and make stronger progress against their sustainability ambitions.

ON - SITE STOCK STORAGE FOR FAST, EFFICIENT AND ACCURATE PROJEC TS

Mining operations are complex and require careful planning and coordination to ensure that projects are completed efficiently and according to timelines. One of the biggest challenges remote projects face is the availability of stock, as ordering and transporting stock to and from remote locations can be a time-consuming process. Delays are common and often result in extended project timelines, therefore impacting the overall efficiency of projects. However, with Ibex Australia's innovative EziStore concept, these obstacles can be easily avoided.

EziStore is a container filled with all the relevant stock the customer requires and is placed on-site at mining operations. Having the required stock readily available reduces the possibility of errors and mistakes, leading to less reliance on suppliers and logistics, and improving accuracy and increasing productivity.

The EziStore can significantly reduce the amount of time that is required for ordering and transporting stock to and from the site, which allows projects to be completed at a faster and more efficient rate. It allows companies to take on more projects and increases productivity without having to worry about delays caused by stock unavailability or delivery headaches.

Ibex Australia also provides ongoing support and management of the EziStore, tailored to the customer's specific needs and requirements. This includes regular stocktake reports, inventory tracking and management, and even on-site delivery of bulk orders when requested.

It's an environmentally friendly solution to reduce the amount of transportation normally required to get stock on-site. By reducing transportation,

it can help reduce the carbon footprint of companies – a concept especially important in a changing world with an increased focus on sustainability.

"Ibex's EziStore was a great solution for us as it gave our team peace of mind that all the materials were on-site and locked up safely. This also meant that we could keep working and were not worried about having guys standing around waiting for gear, which would end up costing us money."

- Project Engineer from a top-tier engineering group

Ibex Australia's EziStore is an innovative and reliable solution that is designed to simplify the supply chain process by providing ready access to the right stock at all times. With increased efficiency, accuracy and reduced project timelines, it's easy to see why so many mining companies are choosing Ibex Australia as their preferred supplier. With over 30 years of experience delivering smarter, safer industrial stainless steel piping solutions, Ibex Australia are your trusted piping solutions partner.

EXPERIENCE QUICK , CLEAN , AND SAFE INSTALLATIONS WITH IBEX’S INDUSTRIAL PIPING SYSTEMS

At Ibex Australia, we know that efficiency is crucial in the mining industry. That's why we offer fast, clean, and safe industrial piping systems that eliminate hot works and passivation.

With our commitment to quality, timely delivery, and responsive customer service, Ibex is your trusted partner in delivering exceptional results and boosting your bottom line.

Experience the difference with Ibex Australia.

CARVING OUT

IN THE MINING INDUSTRY

Alongside the industry’s shift to a greener future is the growing accountability for mine operators and workers to reduce the environmental and ecological footprint of mining. Daisy Ambach is no stranger to this, bringing her passion for protecting the environment to a career in the mining industry, working on tailings reduction strategies and even winning the 2023 Exceptional Young Woman in Queensland Resources award. Mining Magazine sat down with Daisy to learn how a girl from a small town in Belgium worked her way to a career in the mines of Australia.

A PLACE

How did you first get into your chosen field? Was it something you were always interested in?

I grew up in a small town in Belgium right by one of the country’s famous national parks – the Kalmthoutse Heide. This park bordered my primary school and so I spent a lot of time there going on excursions with my class and riding horses, as well as going for walks with my family on weekends. Being so close to nature throughout my childhood is why protecting the environment has always been something I have been interested in.

At school, I loved maths and physics and so I went on to study a Bachelor of Engineering, majoring in Chemical and Environmental at the University of Queensland. Through this degree, I completed multiple research projects on climate change, transitioning to a society with electric vehicles and renewable energy. This is where I was first exposed to the complex interactions between mining, the environment and climate change. I learnt the importance of sustainability to the clean energy transition which is heavily reliant on a substantial intensification of mining metals such as copper, nickel and cobalt. It made me curious about what we can do to more sustainably integrate industrial operations, which the world so heavily relies on to function.

So I thought a career in the resources sector would be the best way to help solve this challenge.

Can you tell me a little more about the steps you took to get you to where you are now?

I would summarise my journey into two key steps: the first being choosing to be true to myself and my passion which led to unique opportunities; and the second step being to put into practice what I preach. I’ll explain each of those steps in detail, with a bit of context first.

After completing my studies, I started working for a multinational consultancy as a process engineer, and was almost immediately seconded to London which was quite exciting as a graduate.

When I was there, I worked in oil and gas alongside some fantastic engineers, mainly on process safety and design projects. While I enjoyed the technical aspects of this job and the people I worked with, I was always passionate about the environment, having grown up with nature at my doorstep.

I wasn’t sure that my role at the time was going to lead me down a path where I could work on the sustainability challenges I wanted to work on.

How do you stay true to yourself and your passion?

I received a call from one of the regional directors one day and he asked how I was going. I decided to be honest and shared with him the concerns I had about my career path.

Within a few weeks, he called me again and said he had found the perfect opportunity for me – a project for the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) to develop an industry roadmap for reducing tailings and mine waste from the mining value chain. I didn’t have much mining experience at this point but it sounded exciting, so I said yes.

Throughout the project, we interviewed stakeholders from all around the world working on different technologies – from more accurate resource modelling techniques to new ways to sort waste from ore to repurposing tailings dams to solar farms. We built a long list of technologies that could make tailings reduction possible and worked closely with the ICMM on developing this into a roadmap.

In what ways do you practice what you preach?

After this project ended, I was fueled with a passion for sustainable tailings and mine waste management, and I wanted to put into practice what I had been working on.

A friend of mine was working at Mount Isa Mines and told me they were looking for a site-based Environmental Engineer. The role was perfect as it was to support the site with surface water and tailings management. I applied and was offered the role a few months later, and so I relocated to Mount Isa.

The Mount Isa mine site is incredibly unique – a 100-year-old operation with a large community on its doorstep. Through this role, I was exposed to many of the on-the-ground challenges of the site. I helped manage compliance for their surface water assets and tailings storage facility, including implementing the Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management (GISTM). The role required me to liaise regularly with operational stakeholders, and at times with local council representatives, regulators, and Traditional Owners.

Now, I work as a Senior Project Engineer with Glencore Zinc’s Capital Studies and Project Team. With my site experience as well as my diverse background in processing and environmental engineering, I try to bring a site focus and an integrated perspective to the major projects in the business’ portfolio.

Some of the projects I am working on are looking at opportunities for reprocessing and repurposing tailings, which could help the industry turn waste into something valuable and move towards a more circular economy.

What’s the biggest challenge you’ve encountered in your career?

In the early stages of my career, I sometimes struggled navigating the negative views and opinions society has of the mining sector. With news stories such as the world’s inaction on climate change; protesters coming to conferences; Samarco, Brumadinho and the Juukan Gorge incidents; sexual harassment in the mining industry; I have questioned at times whether it will get better.

The longer I am in the industry, however, the more I can see an appetite for change in the way we do things. So many of the industry’s largest companies are bringing in new standards and making commitments to be more sustainable and contribute to a net zero emissions future.

Resources are important to everyday life and will be instrumental in decarbonising the world. I strongly believe the industry is going to look incredibly different in the decades to come and will continue to drive myself and the industry to be better.

You recently won the Exceptional Young Woman in Queensland Resources award. What did winning that award mean to you?

I still haven’t quite found the right words to describe what it means to me, other than it has been such an honour. It is an incredible opportunity to represent the industry from regional Queensland as both a woman and a young person. I hope I can inspire others through this award to join the industry and be drivers of change that we will need in the years to come.

Winning this award has put you in a position where other women in the industry may look up to you – what message are you hoping to convey to them?

The mining sector is a rewarding and exciting career. There is so much change happening in the industry and we need women to bring innovation to drive that change. There is countless

research which proves that innovative thinking is best facilitated by a diverse and inclusive environment. We need women to help build these environments and we also just so happen to be fantastic at navigating change.

There is no better time for a woman to join the industry with countless support, development and mentoring programs out there to empower women in various industries.

Can you give us some insight into your experience working in such a male-dominated industry? Have there been any particular obstacles you have had to overcome?

Prior to joining the mining sector, I never thought that gender would be a problem. However, even now, I am often the only woman in a meeting. Sometimes you do get treated differently because of that; and sometimes you do feel like the odd one out.

In general terms, I have found men tend to speak their mind more easily whereas women tend to ask for permission before sharing their view. It can make you feel vulnerable, and make you question whether you are good enough to be there. For me, learning how to work through that self-doubt has been the biggest obstacle I have had to overcome.

What needs to be done in the way of gender diversity in the industry?

In 2006, women only made up six per cent of the workforce in Queensland’s mining sector. Over 17 years, this has grown to 22 per cent which demonstrates that barriers for women to enter the mining sector are slowly coming down. There are more women in leadership positions as well as trades positions, however, there is still work to do to reach gender parity in the industry.

So where to from here? I think there are two key steps the industry must take. The first is to continue mentoring women (as well as men) as they progress through their career. Mentoring is such a fantastic way to develop their skills and confidence, as it facilitates an open environment for mentees to share their challenges with someone who can be their sound board. I think something we can do better is making programs for mentor training available to leaders in the industry.

Secondly, we need to entice more women to join the industry. Building a more inclusive workplace culture and facilitating flexible working arrangements are fundamental to this.

We need young people – we need the best and brightest minds to lead the future of this sector, because the mining industry we know today will look different in the decades to come.

the best and brightest minds to lead the future of this sector, because the mining industry we know today will look different in the decades to come.

With an increasing demand for the minerals of the world, abandoned mines that impact the environment, critical job shortages and only 22 per cent gender balance in the industry, we cannot continue to do things the same way and so the opportunities to make a difference are endless.

They say you can’t be it if you can’t see it, so I challenge young people to see me and the stories of many others who are making change. Come and give this sector a try!

Did you have someone you could look up to when you were starting your career? Do you think you would have done anything differently if you had?

I have been lucky to have a lot of fantastic mentors throughout my career; both men and women. Not only have my mentors been nice, down-to-earth and kind people, they have also sought opportunities for me to find my passion and do the work that I want to do. If it weren’t for these people, I am not sure I would have seen all the opportunities that exist in the mining sector for improving sustainability.

How do you spend your time outside of work? What do you do in your spare time?

I really enjoy learning as it is one of my life’s greatest pleasures. Currently, I am learning Spanish and taking weekly classes with a tutor based in Chile. I see language as an important facilitator for connecting with people.

I am also an enthusiast of the outdoors which I enjoy through activities such as hiking and camping.

What advice would you give to people who are interested in or are in the early stages of their career in the same industry?

As a young person, I know it’s a crazy world out there – with navigating its challenges and opinions – making mining a difficult career choice. But we need young people – we need

Staying connected with my family and friends is really important to me and something I prioritise outside of work. I lost my dad unexpectedly at a young age and therefore value spending time with those I love most. Getting coffee with my partner on the weekend, going to the CrossFit gym with one of my best friends, and taking my mum for a nice lunch are some of my favourite activities.

A POWER SOURCE FOR EXTREME APPLICATIONS

Due to the often remote and isolated locations of mine sites, battery solutions that can withstand the harshest conditions while also providing greater reliability and longer life expectancy are a necessity for mine operators.

Optima Batteries is the ultimate power source for extreme applications, with a range featuring a series of colour-coded highperformance AGM batteries known as Red Top®, Yellow Top® and Blue Top®

Each battery is structurally designed to provide the application with the most power for the longest period of time. The Red Top battery is designed for automotive applications, the Yellow Top battery for deep-cycle applications, and the Blue Top battery is ideal for marine applications.

Enlisting innovative technology

Optima’s unique Spiralcell Technology® is based on a series of individual spiral-wound cells composed of two pure (99.99 per cent) lead plates coated in a precise coating of lead oxide. The benefits of this battery design include 15-times more vibration resistance, up to three times longer life and up to five times more cycle life compared to conventional leadacid batteries.

Optima’s Spiralcell Technology offers higher starting power and a quicker recharge compared to other flat plate batteries on the market. The unique cell design also enables it to hold its shape even under harsh weather conditions.

Optima batteries are a premium choice for vehicles with large power demands, such as those in the mining industry, or for customers who seek greater reliability and longer life expectancy from their batteries.

Extreme batteries for extreme demands

Due to the in-built Spiralcell Technology, Optima Yellow Top batteries have both deep-cycle and starting capabilities, making it an ideal choice for extreme applications that have greater demands. Optima Yellow Top batteries are also suitable for starting applications requiring reliability such as mining equipment, military vehicles, emergency services, road transport and agricultural machinery. Applications with numerous accessories such as running lights, winches, hydraulics or a high-performance stereo/AV system will also benefit from being fitted with an Optima Yellow Top battery.

A notable product in the Yellow Top range is the Optima® H6 battery which is designed to fit more vehicles requiring a DIN fitment (recessed terminals) solution. The internal chemistry of the Optima H6 is perfect for the high-energy and cranking power needed in DIN applications.

Built differently to other batteries in the range, the H6 Yellowtop battery features Optima’s exclusive Pureflow Technology™, a durable, non-spillable, AGM battery featuring flatplates engineered with 99.99 per cent pure lead, increasing plate count and surface area for maximum power and battery life.

Despite the H6 moving away from Optima’s signature Six Pack® cell design, the battery outputs the same high level of power. Highly compressed radial grids offer extreme vibration resistance while direct-path, cast-on straps reduce internal resistance and maximise energy flow to deliver faster enginecracking power and higher cold-cranking amps every time. The Optima H6 allows a large variety of modern vehicles that require DIN fitments to experience the power and performance of Optima Batteries.

A NEW PU R POSE FO R END - OF - LIFE

With its abundance of natural resources, Australia is committed to its transition to greener energy production, with solar and wind leading the charge. While this transition is a great step towards achieving the country’s net zero emissions goals, these greener energy solutions are not without their own problems, including large amounts of material waste associated with end-oflife solar panels. A team of researchers from Deakin University’s Institute for Frontier Materials are tackling this problem head-on, and have developed a sustainable and highly lucrative way to extract silicon from end-of-life solar panels and reconfigure it to build better batteries.

Akhil Nelson, Dr Md Mokhlesur Rahman and Prof Ying Chen

In an effort to embrace its abundant natural resources and power towards a greener future, Australia continues to invest in large-scale solar projects across the country. Whilst in the short term it may be difficult to see the associated risks of this kind of investment, with more than 100,000 tonnes of end-of-life solar panels estimated to enter Australia’s waste stream by 2035, it’s becoming increasingly clear that a longer term approach is needed.

Solar PV panels have a maximum period of operation, in most cases 25 to 30 years. It is estimated that worldwide PV waste will increase between four per cent and 14 per cent by 2030, and 80 per cent (around 78 million tons) by 2050, creating a serious waste problem.

This, in turn, may result in unsafe disposal of end-of-life PV, which will produce environmental hazards in the near future.

In an attempt to mitigate this waste stream and potential for unsafe disposal, a team of scientists at Deakin University’s Institute for Frontier Materials (IFM) managed to successfully develop and test a new process that can safely and effectively extract silicon from old solar panels.

The research leading to the discovery

The new method did not come about overnight. Alfred Deakin Professor Ying (Ian) Chen said his nanotechnology team had been working on nanostructured electrodes for lithium-ion, lithium sulfur (Li-S), and potassium ion batteries for the past 15 years.

Nanomaterials such as silicon (Si), germanium (Ge) and other nanoparticles have been used in anodes and cathodes to improve battery energy density and cycling performance in the past.

The team’s world-leading research led to the establishment of the ARC Research Hub for Safe and Reliable Energy Storage and Conversion with six universities and a total budget of $12 million.

The nanotechnology team’s research in Li-S batteries has been under commercialisation by LiS Energy Ltd which is listed on the ASX.

The team has extensive research experience in both nanomaterials and battery development, which led to this discovery of repurposing recycled silicon into battery anodes.

In 2018, Deakin University started to promote a circular economy campaign by recycling various waste materials.

“We proposed a circular economy project of recycling silicon from end-of-life solar panels and repurpose it into anodes for Li-ion batteries,” Professor Chen said.

This is because end-of-life solar panels have high-quality silicon films.

Dr Mokhles Rahman, a key researcher of the team, led the project – which was supported by Deakin University’s circular economy fund – and conducted a proof of concept project, with the promising results winning a grant from Sustainability Victoria.

Extracting silicon from end-of-life solar panels

According to Professor Chen, there are several ways to delaminate solar panel modules such as mechanical, physical, and thermal processes.

“We use a thermal process to delaminate the module and extract silicon from the panel.”

The extraction process and subsequent purification, nano silicon production and final anode preparation is illustrated in Figure 1.

“The process delivers a complete package – including recycling of PV panels, recovery and purification of silicon and conversion to nano silicon. Then a subsequent integration of

PV nano silicon and graphite into a single system of PV nano silicon/graphite for battery application.

This process has the following advantages compared with any reported results so far:

♦ Only potassium hydroxide (KOH) is used as an etching agent for the purification process, which offers lower cost and is less dangerous

♦ A high yield purification process (80 per cent recovery), which delivers high quality and high purity silicon

♦ An industry-adopted, scalable ball-milling technique is developed to produce large-quantities of nano silicon (<100nm), allowing for diverse applications Most importantly, the properties of the obtained PV nano silicon are comparable with highly expensive, commercially available Sigma nano silicon in the market (US$ 36 000.00/ kg-Product code: 633097 nanopowder <100 nm, SigmaAldrich)

♦ The ball milling process is further optimised for the production of high-performance battery electrodes of PV nano silicon/graphite hybrids by integration of recovered PV nano silicon and commercial graphite

♦ An overall process that is faster, with a low cost, and higher yield

Revitalising silicon

The silicon that is extracted from the solar panels is not immediately ready for reuse and must undergo a purification process. Without this purification, the silicon cannot be reused.

According to Professor Chen, the reason for this process is because the silicon extracted from solar panels often contains some heavy metals such as cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), and selenium (Se) which are used as dopants during the manufacturing process to increase energy efficiency of the panels.

These impurities can negatively affect the performance of silicon if they are used in batteries or other applications.

“In addition, during the operation of a solar panel, the silicon material is exposed to various environmental factors such as heat, moisture, and ultraviolet radiation. These factors can also cause the formation of impurities in the silicon, such as oxygen, carbon, and metals.

“These impurities can lead to a decrease in the efficiency of the solar panel, as they can reduce the ability of the silicon to absorb light and generate electricity.”

As well as this, over a solar panel's 25 to 30 years of life, several other factors can cause the silicon to become contaminated and not fit for reuse. These include:

♦ Degradation: the silicon used in solar panels can degrade over time due to exposure to sunlight, moisture, and temperature fluctuations. This degradation can lead to a decrease in the panel's efficiency and can also cause impurities to form in the silicon

♦ Surface contamination: the surface of a solar panel can become contaminated over time due to exposure to dust, dirt, and other environmental pollutants. This contamination can make it difficult to reuse the silicon in new panels without extensive cleaning and processing.

♦ Manufacturing defects: during the manufacturing process, defects can occur in the silicon that can make it unsuitable for reuse in new panels

♦ Cost-effectiveness: even if the silicon from old solar panels is still technically usable, it may not be cost-effective to reuse it in new panels due to the high cost of processing and cleaning the silicon

Overall, the degradation, contamination, and defects that can occur in silicon over the 25 to 30-year lifespan of a solar

panel can make it unsuitable for reuse in new panels without extensive processing and cleaning. As a result, most silicon from old solar panels is typically recycled or disposed of rather than being reused in new panels.

The silicon purification process involves removing these impurities from the silicon material to restore its high-purity level.

This process typically involves several steps, such as melting the silicon and then applying various refining techniques, such as zone refining or distillation.

These techniques can help remove impurities such as oxygen, carbon, and metals from the silicon material.

“Once the silicon material has been purified, it can then be used in the production of new solar panels or other applications, where it can help maximise the efficiency and lifespan of the resulting products.

“The purification process is necessary to remove impurities from the extracted silicon and restore its high-purity level, which is essential for the performance and longevity of the resulting solar panels or other products.”

The next step: integration into new battery technology

“Among various battery raw materials, silicon (Si) is the most emerging and safe anode materials proposed for lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) with a high theoretical capacity of 4200 mAh g-1, which is ten times higher than the commercial graphite anodes (372 mAh g-1),” Professor Chen said.

“However, pure silicon alone cannot be used as an anode, because silicone anode in LIBs undergoes extraordinarily high volume expansion by up to 300 per cent during full lithiation.”

This large volume change leads to repeated cracking and pulverisation of the silicon and facilitates disintegration and fracturing of the silicon electrode, accompanied by electrical isolation.

“In addition to this, repeated cracking and pulverisation of the silicon electrode leads to continual breaking up of the solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) layer and the explosion of a new surface, which quickly consumes electrolyte and lithium ions.

“Hence, the use of sole silicone anode suffers from extremely fast capacity decay and low coulombic efficiency (CE) as a result of the severe volume changes and unstable SEI.”

Hybridisation/co-utilisation of silicon and graphite has recently been found to be one of the practical strategies for commercialisation of a silicon/graphite anode in the near future.

The incorporation of graphite into nano silicon can combat against the volume alteration, increase the electric conductivity, and achieve high specific, areal, and volumetric capacities at the same time.

“Most importantly, the co-utilisation of silicon and graphite can use the same commercial production lines – translating into high manufacturability and minimal investment.

“On the other hand, the hybridisation of silicon and graphite in a single electrode is capable of delivering advantages by avoiding individual disadvantages of both electrodes and can secure its success in the anode market."

To replace the existing commercial graphite anode, the commercial goal of the current anode market is set to achieve any materials with a specific capacity of 500 mAh g-1 or higher with a capacity retention of 80 per cent after 500 cycles.

Whereas the initial CE and average CE should exceed 90 per cent and 99.8 per cent, respectively, it is, however, still a challenge to integrate the silicon and graphite into a single system or composite to obtain such desired performance, because both of these materials are significantly different in terms of their physical and chemical properties.

The results obtained by the group of researchers, however, are very close to the commercial value.

Applications of nano silicon

The uses for nano silicon are not, however, limited to battery technology. There are currently a multitude of applications for nano silicon beyond just battery technology, including:

♦ Electronics: nano silicon can be used in the production of high-performance electronics, including transistors, memory devices, and solar cells. Nano silicon-based electronics have the potential to be faster, smaller, and more efficient than traditional silicon-based devices

♦ Biotechnology: nano silicon can be used in biotechnology research, including as a platform for drug delivery and as a biosensor for detecting biomolecules. Nano silicon-based biosensors have the potential to be more sensitive and specific than traditional biosensors

♦ Energy: nano silicon can be used in the production of more efficient solar cells, as well as in the development of new types of energy storage devices

♦ Catalysis: nano silicon can be used as a catalyst in chemical reactions, including in the production of fine chemicals and pharmaceuticals. Nano silicon-based catalysts have the potential to be more efficient and selective than traditional catalysts

♦ Advanced materials: Nano silicon can be used to produce advanced materials, including nanocomposites and nanofilms. These materials have potential applications in areas such as aerospace, automotive, and construction

Figure 1: The process of extraction from solar PV, and subsequent purification, nano silicon production and final anode preparation of the silicon.

“Overall, nano silicon has the potential to impact a wide range of industries and applications, and ongoing research is likely to uncover even more potential uses for this versatile material,” Professor Chen said.

Nano silicon market value

The current market price for nano silicon is about $45,000 per kilo, compared to about $650 for regular silicon. It is also in even higher demand – not just for new battery materials, but also for use in the development of nano-fertilisers, innovative new methods for carbon capture, and on-demand hydrogen gas generation.

Nano silicon, also known as ‘nanosized silicon’ can be expensive for several reasons:

♦ Manufacturing costs: the process of producing nano silicon involves specialised equipment and techniques, which can be costly to set up and maintain. The production of nano silicon also requires high-purity silicon, which can be expensive to obtain

♦ Limited supply: the production of nano silicon is still relatively new and not yet fully optimised, which means that the supply is limited. As a result, the cost of nano silicon can be higher due to the low supply and high demand

♦ Research and development costs: the development of nano silicon technologies requires extensive research and development, which can be expensive. These costs may be reflected in the final price of the product

♦ Specialty applications: nano silicon is often used in specialty applications, such as in the production of highperformance electronics or in biotechnology research. These applications require high-quality nano silicon, which can also drive up the price

The discovery’s ripple effects for the industry

The Deakin University team’s discovery of this new, more efficient method for extracting silicon from discarded solar panels is expected to have a significant impact on both the resources sector and Australia's renewable industry.

“Firstly, the discovery could reduce the amount of waste generated by the solar panel industry and provide a new source of raw material for the production of new panels,” Professor Chen said.

“This could help reduce the environmental impact of the solar panel industry and promote more sustainable practices.

“Secondly, the more efficient extraction method could help increase the supply of high-purity silicon, which is a critical component in the production of solar panels, microchips, and other high-tech products.

“This could help reduce the cost of producing these products, making them more affordable and accessible to consumers.”

Professor Chen said that Australia's renewable industry could also benefit from this discovery.

“The country has abundant solar resources, and solar energy is a rapidly growing sector of the economy. By reducing the cost of producing solar panels, this discovery could help accelerate the adoption of solar energy in Australia and increase the country's energy security.”

Another potential benefit is that with this discovery, Australia could also become a leader in the recycling and reuse of silicon materials from discarded solar panels, providing a new source of revenue and job opportunities in this emerging sector.

“Overall, this discovery has the potential to reduce waste, increase the supply of critical raw materials, and promote the growth of Australia's renewable industry, making it an important development for both the resources sector and the broader economy.”

The next step for the team is commercialisation of the process in collaboration with industry partners.

The team estimates that their technique could generate US$15 billion in material recovery if extrapolated to the 78 million tonnes of solar panel waste expected to be generated globally by 2050.

“We want to scale up the process from laboratory scale to industry scale to reuse the recycled silicon into various areas.

“Recycling is critically important to prevent environmental damage caused by the industry.”

In order to reach energy security and independence, Australia must develop its own fully integrated domestic solar supply chains.

This method of extracting silicon from end-of-life solar panels is just one way that allows the country to mitigate the damage of the 100,000 tonnes of end-of-life solar panels predicted to enter Australia’s waste stream by 2035, while also working towards a fully-fledged supply chain for silicon and solar cells.

Dr Md Mokhlesur Rahman and Akhil Nelson

SLASHING CARBON EMISSIONS IN ALUMINA REFINING

By Rebecca Todesco, Editor, Mining Magazine

Efforts to attain global net zero targets are seeing the mining industry’s focus shift from traditional commodities – like coal and oil – to other minerals that Australia has in abundance, including alumina. A two-prong approach that mining contractors can take, in addition to focusing mining efforts on critical minerals, is ensuring that the processes involved in mineral refining are not emissions intensive. A report commissioned by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) provides a roadmap the industry can take to slash carbon emissions in alumina refining.

Australia is the world’s second-largest producer of alumina and the largest exporter of alumina globally, with the industry contributing $7-$8 billion to the national economy each year.

Alumina’s main use is as raw material for aluminium smelters, although it has additional industrial uses. It can be used in porcelain, glass and other metallic paint manufacturing. It is also used as the fuel component for solid rocket boosters, in the manufacturing of spark plug insulators, as an abrasive, a filler for plastics, and in metal refineries to convert hydrogen sulphide waste gases into elemental sulphur.

There are a number of stages in the aluminium production chain, with the three main steps being bauxite mining, alumina refining and aluminium smelting. Bauxite mining is the least energy intensive of the three stages, with aluminium smelting, which relies heavily on electricity, using the most energy.

In 2021, as the largest producer of bauxite in the world, Australia mined over 100 million tonnes of the mineral and exported close to 40 million tonnes. More than 90 per cent of the world’s mined bauxite is used in alumina production.

The second stage in the production chain is alumina refining, and this can be broken down into two steps; the Bayer process and a high-temperature calcination process. The Bayer process is responsible for 70 per cent of the energy used at a refinery, with the calcination process claiming the remaining 30. Currently, alumina refining relies on fossil fuels to provide both heat and electricity.

The third stage is aluminium smelting and Australia is the sixth largest producer of aluminium globally. Aluminium is one the world’s most widely used metals, after iron and steel.

Australian alumina refining

The alumina refining process is extremely emissions and energy heavy. Compared to bauxite production and aluminium smelting, the emissions abatement path for alumina refining in Australia is less evident.

Australia has six alumina refineries – four in Western Australia and two in Queensland. Alumina refining and its associated processes are responsible for up to three per cent of the country’s annual emissions. To put it into perspective; Australia’s six alumina refineries consume more than twice the energy used by the entirety of Tasmania.

These kinds of figures have prompted alumina producers to seek out ways to cut emissions in the alumina refining process, including turning to Australia’s renewable energy for solutions.

Australia has an abundance of low-cost renewable energy resources and significant local expertise, both of which are necessary for this sector to achieve its net zero ambitions. Despite this, the process of transitioning alumina refining to renewable energy is not easy.

The roadmap

Published in 2022, A Roadmap for Decarbonising Australian Alumina Refining underscores the importance of alumina refining to Australia and its economy while also acknowledging the process’ difficulties in decarbonising.

The report, commissioned by ARENA and prepared by Deloitte, features insight and contributions from Australia’s three alumina producers – Rio Tinto, South32, and Alcoa.

Key decarbonisation technologies

The Roadmap identifies and explores four key decarbonisation technologies that could change the way

refineries consume and use energy by enabling the uptake of renewable energy and eliminating the need for fossil fuels.

The four technologies are:

♦ Mechanical vapour recompression (MVR)

♦ Electric boilers

♦ Electric calcination

♦ Hydrogen calcination

Each of these technologies comes with its own benefits and constraints, with each at different levels of readiness for application in alumina refining.

According to the Roadmap, employing these technologies could provide credible pathways to cutting alumina refining emissions by up to 98 per cent.

The key decarbonisation technologies mentioned in the Roadmap are currently under development and investigation. As such, the report offers two abatement pathways: the Innovator Abatement Pathway and the Gradual Abatement Pathway.

The former would see the technologies applied by refineries over the course of five years, once they have reached technology maturity. As part of this pathway, the assumption is that there are no commercial or technical barriers to investment.

The latter of the two involves technologies deployed over ten years once they have reached technology maturity. This pathway takes into consideration staged deployment, evolving regulatory frameworks and potential capital constraints that may emerge. Despite this, the pathway is still in line with achieving net zero by 2050.

Mechanical Vapour Recompression (MVR)

The Bayer process of an alumina refinery is when bauxite is mixed with caustic soda – or sodium hydroxide – and then heated under pressure. In order to meet this heat demand, fossil fuel boilers are used to produce steam.

This steam pressure is between 5,000kPa and 10,000kPa –325°C to 400°C – for refineries with high temperature digestion, and 600 to 800kPa –175°C to 230°C – for low temperature digestion systems.

The difference between traditional operating systems and MVR is that the MVR process captures waste water vapour at relatively low pressure and temperatures, and recompresses it through a series of turbo fans and compressors, returning it to the temperature and pressure needed for the Bayer process.

The compressors in the MVR process capture the energy in the waste vapour system, acting as a highly effective means of providing heat. Compared to an electric boiler, only a relatively small amount of energy is required to recompress the captured vapour to the necessary pressure and temperature for the Bayer process – one third to be exact.

Without the MVR process, this waste heat would otherwise be lost to the atmosphere. In addition to this, the MVR process reduces water losses incurred throughout the Bayer process, and reduces demand for fossil fuel-fired boiler steam. Estimated water savings of approximately 5.2GL per year are expected if MVR processes are adopted by all Australian refineries.

As an additional step, renewable electricity-powered MVR for the Bayer system could pave the way for zero emissions heat in the Bayer process.

The recovery of waste energy means the MVR process is substantially more efficient than a traditional boiler and the renewable energy required is far less than the fossil fuel energy being displaced. Displacing the combustion of fossil fuels with renewable electricity for process heating and steam generation in the Bayer process could reduce refining emissions by up to 70 per cent.

In order to realise the full abatement potential of MVR technologies, significant capital is required. However before this investment can occur, the technology must be proven.

In May 2021, ARENA announced $11.3 million in funding to Alcoa to demonstrate MVR technology at its Wagerup alumina refinery in Western Australia, with this project a first-of-its-kind demonstration of MVR in Australia.

The technical and commercial viability of integrating renewable energy-powered MVR into Australian alumina refining processes was studied, with the results finding that the technology is feasible. Alcoa will progress to the next stage of the project by installing a 4MW MVR module at the Wagerup alumina refinery.

Electric boilers

Steam generation is responsible for approximately 70 per cent of the carbon emissions of an alumina refinery. Current practice employs the use of fossil fuel fired boilers to generate the steam required. However, in lieu of fossil fuel boilers, electric boilers can be used to provide the primary steam needed in the

alumina-refining process, with electric boilers suitable for use instead of traditional gas or coal fired boilers in both high and low temperature refineries.

As it stands, electric steam generation technology operating at the necessary pressure for high temperature refining has not yet been commercially proven. Despite this, it is still considered to be the most prospective decarbonisation technology to produce steam for high temperature refineries.

Electric boilers tend to have greater operating costs than current fossil fuel burners, and because they are quite a mature technology, there is less potential for further cost reductions through innovation. To make electric boiler technology feasible, other financial support processes, such as access to low-cost renewable energy may be necessary.

Whether used alongside MVR technologies or as an independent option in situations where MVR is not possible, utilising electric boilers – especially when powered by renewable energy – instead of fossil fuel fired boilers could significantly reduce or eliminate emissions in the Bayer process of alumina refining.

Electric calcination

The chief purpose of electric calcination is to replace the burning of fossil fuels with electric heating. Similar to hydrogen calcination, electric calcination produces pure steam that can be captured and reused in the Bayer process. This mitigates the need for other MVR-generated or other boiler steam.

Upon implementation, electric calcination is expected to need thermal storage to guarantee a continuous supply of thermal energy to calciners, with this thermal energy also offering refineries added flexibility to decrease grid electricity imports during peak pricing events. This, in turn, improves the overall economics of electric calcination. With this additional load flexibility, refineries are also able to participate in demand management.

Electric calcination is currently in the early stages of development, with low technology readiness. It is capital intensive and needs large-scale, low-cost, renewable electricity to be considered viable.

Investigations into the techno-economic feasibility of electric calcination technology are in progress through Alcoa’s pilotscale demonstration at its Pinjarra Alumina Refinery.

Alcoa’s project is the first of its kind and secured $8.6 million of funding from ARENA and $1.7 million from the Western Australia Clean Energy Fund. As well as seeking to increase understanding of the techno-economic feasibility of renewable energy-powered electric calcination, the study is aiming to improve understanding of the economic benefits that renewably powered electric calcination can achieve.

When used in conjunction with MVR technologies, electric calcination has the potential to reduce a refinery’s carbon emissions by up to 98 per cent and energy intensity by approximately half, as well as reducing water consumption.

Hydrogen calcination

The calcination process accounts for up to 30 per cent of alumina refining missions, and replacing natural gas in this process with renewable hydrogen is a significant step towards eliminating emissions.

Oxy-firing – the process by which hydrogen is combusted directly with oxygen – releases pure steam as a combustion product, with supplementary steam also generated as a consequence of the calcination process by removing chemically-bound water from the alumina trihydrate.

This steam is suitable for potential use in the alumina refinery, whereby MVR can capture and recycle this steam in the Bayer process, ultimately reducing steam production and water consumption, and improving energy efficiency.

Hurdles for decarbonisation

Contributions and input into the development of ARENA’s report were made through a series of workshops. During these workshops, participants raised and discussed some key barriers.

One of the consistently raised barriers to achieving decarbonisation was the uncertainty concerning the treatment of emissions under emerging regulatory or market frameworks, and the uncertainty of future energy price trajectories. These gave rise to concerns about the risks associated with being an early mover.

Another key concern was the need for significant investment in generation, and transmission and technology infrastructure. The necessity of such high investment might be off putting for refineries.

The ongoing labour and skills shortages around the country were highlighted as another potential barrier, as the skills required for the energy transition are in high demand across many industries in Australia, especially with the increase in hydrogen and solar projects and critical minerals exploration.

The key technologies’ requirement of a firmed renewable energy supply was also identified as a barrier, as each of the technologies require renewable energy to power the low emissions technologies and/or to produce renewable hydrogen.

The alumina industry, while playing a crucial role in Australia’s economy is one of the nation's hard-to-abate industries. The need to cut emissions in alumina refining is recognised and significant technologies are in development or undergoing feasibility studies to assess their viability in alumina refining.

Although A Roadmap for Decarbonising Australian Alumina Refining offers some great insight into decarbonisation, a united effort is needed by industry in order to reduce carbon emissions in alumina refining, further helping Australia to meet its zero emissions targets.

GOING A STEP FURTHER WITH HYDROGEN

By Rebecca Todesco, Editor, Mining Magazine

When thinking of renewable energy, usually solar and wind generation are the first sources that spring to mind. However, increased studies and technologies around hydrogen have underscored its growing importance in the green energy transition. Some new reports are going a step further and suggesting a further use for hydrogen: creating electro-fuels (e-fuels).

Australia is well known for its access to renewable energy sources, boasting an abundance of wind and solar power.

As such, the journey to meeting Australia’s net zero goals and transitioning to a greener future has piggybacked heavily off these two

This is in addition to pumped hydro, as there have been numerous hydrogen projects springing up across the country, including the Lake Lynell pumped hydro project, Snowy 2.0 and Tasmania’s Battery of the Nation.

But with Australia soon to have access to large amounts of clean hydrogen, its visibility is increasing alongside the other more established sources, and uses for this natural gas are being explored and undergoing feasibility studies, including instances where the natural gas is utilised to create ammonia.

Unpacking ammonia: what is it?

Ammonia is created through the Haber-Bosch process, in which hydrogen is mixed with nitrogen and processed at a high temperature and high pressure, with a catalyst. Ammonia is not the only synthetic liquid electro-fuel that can be created using hydrogen – e-methanol, e-methane, liquid e-hydrocarbons, and e-formic acid can also be produced.

As far as e-fuels go, ammonia in particular has significant potential to decarbonise global shipping fleets, and be used

in electricity generation and fertiliser production. However, in order to fully realise ammonia’s potential in electricity generation, development of new pipeline and storage infrastructure is needed, including at ports.

In its liquid form, hydrogen can be exported from Australia, with trial shipments commencing in January 2022. An alternative to this is converting the hydrogen to ammonia or other hydrogen containing compounds prior to exporting it. Ammonia is easier to transport than hydrogen and opens the door for increased Australian-produced hydrogen.

Low emissions ammonia production

Decarbonised electricity is already contributing to meeting current energy needs but there are still industrial activities which rely heavily on fuel, including shipping, aviation, raw material production, and heavy-duty transport. One suggested solution is producing and using hydrogen through low carbon emission technologies and then potentially converting it to ammonia.

The process of ammonia production through the carbonintensive Haber-Bosch process largely relies on fossil fuels to reach necessary temperatures and pressures. This process is emissions and energy intensive, which is why the Hydrogen to Ammonia Research and Development project was launched by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA).

Running from 2018 through to 2022, the project was conducted with the goal of developing an ammonia production process that is less energy intensive than the conventional Haber-Bosch process and does not contribute to any greenhouse gas emissions.

The process proposed by the project will develop technology that will enable ammonia production from renewable sources with 25 per cent less energy input per tonne of ammonia. The process has a number of benefits, including allowing ammonia production at lower pressures. The process also reduces the necessary energy input per tonne of ammonia, and is less capital intensive.

The efficiency improvements and lower levelised cost highlight progress in the journey of ammonia being used as an energy vector for renewable energy export.

Ammonia around the world

Ammonia’s potential in the energy transition is being recognised around the world for a multitude of uses, including in co-firing existing coal or gas fired power plants. Using hydrogen or hydrogen-based fuels, like ammonia, will enable these existing plants to contribute to electricity security while also rapidly lowering emissions.

Trials of ammonia co-firing coal-fired plants are already underway, with the goal of eventually moving to 100 per cent ammonia fuelling. Japan is striving for three million tonnes of ammonia use by 2030 – enough to co-fire approximately 6GW of coal fired plants at 20 per cent co-firing level.

There are feasibility studies currently underway around the globe to investigate further uses of hydrogen. In September 2020, the Australian and German Governments agreed to fund a joint feasibility study to explore hydrogen supply chains. Additionally, Australia has formed a partnership with Singapore aiming to reduce emissions in port and maritime operations

In the report, MCA CEO, Tania Constable, said that clean hydrogen already plays a monumental role in most scenarios in which the world decarbonises by 2050.

“The International Energy Agency suggests clean hydrogen production will need to double by 2030 and increase six-fold by 2050 to meet this target. This is an increase from current annual production levels of around 90 million tonnes (Mt) to more than 530Mt.”

Ms Constable said that Australia can be a low cost source of

that Australia can potentially become a global supplier of. Australia’s Emerging Hydrogen and Ammonia Industry introduces the idea that clean ammonia shares the same game-changing potential as hydrogen in the global race to net zero emissions by 2050. The report introduces the idea that alongside being a clean hydrogen provider, Australia can also be a leading global supplier of clean ammonia.

IS ORE - SAND THE SOLUTION

TO THE MINING INDUSTRY'S

WASTE PROBLEM?

By

Recent tailings dam failures are driving big changes in the way some mining companies are handling their waste. Circular economy approaches are encouraging companies to take a fresh look at whether metals ores might be a source of other mineral by-products.

Each and every year the mining industry generates more than 13 billion tonnes of tailings waste and many billions more of waste rock. That's more than one tonne of tailings, per person, per year. As the quality of mineral ores decline, more material is being mined for less product and dramatic increases in mining for the renewable energy transition are only going to add to the problem.1

Tailings are the ground-up rock leftover after mineral processing, and they have long been a major environmental and safety challenge. Tailings are typically stored in a tailings dam, with around 3,400 active tailing storage facilities in the world and the total number of active, inactive and closed facilities estimated at more than eight thousand.2

Recent tailings facility failures have caused many to question whether the disposal of vast volumes of ground-up rock is a responsible practice, and forced them to take a second look at the material that they are disposing.

Dr Juliana Segura-Salazar, Research Fellow at The Julius Kruttschnitt Mineral Research Centre, and Professor Daniel M. Franks, Deputy Director – Research at the Sustainable Minerals Institute, The University of Queensland

The Brumadinho legacy

It was a little after noon on Friday 25 January 2019. Hundreds of workers sat at the canteen of Vale’s Córrego do Feijão iron ore mine, nine kilometres northeast of the town of Brumadinho, in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil.

A loud crack shot through the air.

In less than ten seconds the slope of Tailings Dam 1 at the mine collapsed and in less than five minutes, 9.7 million cubic meters of ground-up rock had flowed out of the dam. The rock, although a solid, behaved like a liquid and flowed downstream at high speed.

The mud flow rapidly travelled through the mine’s canteen and made it all the way to the Paraopeba River, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake; offices, houses, farms, inns, bridges, roads, environments, communities, and lives, all devastated.

270 people perished on that Friday afternoon. And for Vale’s Córrego do Feijão workforce, losing so many colleagues was a devastating experience and an urgent call to action to instigate better waste management practices.

Following Brumadinho’s tragedy, the Brazilian government banned new upstream tailings storage facilities and mandated that old facilities – like the one that collapsed at the Córrego do Feijão mine – be decommissioned by 2021.3

This gave a small team within Vale, who had already been trialling methods to reduce tailings production, new impetus to revolutionise their processes and take their innovations to new heights.

One of such initiatives was the Quartz Project, developed by Dr Emile Scheepers while pursuing his Executive MBA in 2013.

Dr Scheepers’ innovation consisted of taking advantage of the silica-rich material typically discarded with tailings and converting it into an engineered stone capable of performing as a substitute for granite and marble.4 What was once merely a promising idea on paper, now became the seed for pioneering circular economy approaches.

Vale invested more than 50 million Brazilian reais (just under AU$15 million) in research and innovation and established partnerships with a wide range of research and development organisations to find circular economy solutions that target a wider variety of minerals in iron ore mining, and minimise the production of waste. The University of Queensland, University of Geneva and Federal University of Minas Gerais, were amongst the research groups that worked with Vale on this challenge.5

A by-products team was established, and they developed an innovative processing route with additional stages (concentration, classification, filtration) to co-produce a novel material alongside the primary iron ore concentrate at the Brucutu iron ore mine.

Ore-sand: a novel material

The material is a new type of manufactured sand, called ore-sand5, that can function as a substitute for conventional sand in various applications.

In 2020, Vale received its first environmental licence to become an ore-sand producer. In 2021 Vale produced around 250,000 tonnes of sand, which was supplied for sale or donation in construction applications. Vale quadrupled its ore-sand production in 2022 and expects to reach a production of around 2 million tonnes of ore-sand in 2023.

More recently, Vale has expanded this circular economy solution to other operations such as its Viga mine, also located in Minas Gerais, Brazil.6

While ore-sand production is undoubtedly influenced by the available infrastructure for transportation to markets, its

potential extends far beyond Brazil and can be co-produced from other mineral commodities, such as copper ores.

Ore-sand not only drastically helps to reduce the risks of conventional mine waste management but can also be a competitive option to conventional sand and thus contributes to alleviating the damage caused by the excessive extraction of sand from rivers and sensitive coastal environments.

Unsustainable sand supply and linear tailings management: two global crises

Minerals are fundamental to shaping the world as it is known today, but the traditional methods of mining are resulting in irreparable damage to people and the planet.

The world's hunger for sand and coarse aggregates has surged threefold in the last two decades, fuelled by changing consumption patterns, rapid urbanisation, and a burgeoning population.

Sand, gravel and crushed stone (collectively known as aggregates) are the second-most extracted and traded resources by volume, after water, and are integral to an array of countless applications, from constructing homes and bridges, to filtering water.

The truth is, however, that the appetite and demand for these fundamental materials comes at a staggering cost to the planet.

Much of the sand and coarse aggregates in use today comes from unsustainable extraction practices in sensitive areas that inflict irreparable damage to vulnerable ecosystems across many regions. Even though there are alternative sources of aggregates such as construction and demolition waste or slag, these do not satisfy the overall demand, making sand extraction from nature an inescapable reality.

HydroFloat technology installed at Newcrest's Cadia operation in New South Wales, Australia. Image credit: Newcrest Mining Limited

Every year, a staggering 50 billion tonnes of fine and coarse aggregates are extracted from quarries, rivers, and other environments, according to the United Nations Environment Programme.7

On the other hand, metal mining produces tens of billion tonnes of waste materials per year.

If current linear production patterns persist, the global production of mining waste (predominantly waste rock and tailings) associated with key commodities needed for the clean energy transition, such as copper, nickel, lithium, and manganese, will grow exponentially in the next three decades and may be in the order of 2 trillion tonnes1

It's time to adopt more sustainable, circular, resource efficient, and responsible practices.

Ore-sand and circular mining – the way forward

When it comes to the circular economy, many in the mining industry frequently relate this concept to the repurposing of waste materials generated within the traditional ‘take-make-usedispose’ model that prevails in the sector. While end-of-pipe solutions may be a necessary way to tackle the risks posed by waste, it must also be acknowledged that this material is rarely fit for other purposes and the public is understandably cautious about using the discards of the mining industry as products.

The industry must take more responsibility for the waste it generates and strive to innovate across all aspects of its operations – from processes and products to business models, policies, and standards.

The key to mining ores more sustainably is innovation.

By implementing practices to reduce waste generation at the source with more efficient extraction and processing technologies, the industry can unlock the full potential of the circular economy.

One solution to reduce mine waste is the generation of byproducts or co-products, such as ore-sand, in mineral processing circuits. This approach involves rethinking processes to prevent mine waste production by proactively redirecting silicate-rich (and other) minerals away from waste rock piles or tailings dams.

In a study published in 2022,5 researchers from The University of Queensland and University of Geneva investigated Vale’s by-product innovations and investigated whether the wider application of ore-sand could be a game-changer for the industry.

While transportation of construction by-products to markets is a crucial factor to consider, the researchers found that ore-sand could be used as a substitute for construction and industrial sand.

By mapping mining locations worldwide and modelling global sand consumption, the researchers found that nearly a third of mine sites could satisfy some demand for ore-sand within a 50km range. Moreover, almost half of the global sand market (by volume) could potentially have access to a local source of ore-sand.

Plenty of room exists to bring circular economy solutions based on ore-sand co-production to other mines, mineral commodities, and regions.

The research team at The University of Queensland has been working collaboratively with other mining companies.

Newcrest Mining Limited is evaluating the potential for coproducing ore-sand at their Cadia East copper-gold ore operation in New South Wales, Australia from the sandy reject of their HydroFloat cell. This technology has proven beneficial in reducing energy consumption during comminution and improving gold and copper recovery in coarser size fractions compared with conventional flotation equipment. Moreover, the HydroFloat technology offers an unexpected benefit: the recovery of coarser silica-rich material that can become an ore-sand.

The recent study8 concluded that this material could be a suitable substitute for fine aggregates in construction applications, opening up a world of possibilities for sustainable building solutions. Studies are progressing towards testing this material’s potential application in concreting and expanding the concept to other mines in Australia and worldwide.

There is still so much potential to unlock, and the team is excited to be at the forefront of this innovative movement to drive transformative change for a more sustainable future.

1. Valenta, R.K., Lèbre, É., Antonio, C., Franks, D.M., Jokovic, V., Micklethwaite, S., ParbhakarFox, A., Runge, K., Savinova, E., Segura-Salazar, J., Stringer, M., Verster, I. and Yahyaei, M., 2023. Decarbonisation to drive dramatic increase in mining waste–Options for reduction. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 190, 106859.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.resconrec.2022.106859

2. Franks, D.M., Stringer, M., Torres-Cruz, L.A., Baker, E., Valenta, R., Thygesen, K., Matthews, A., Howchin, J. and Barrie, S., 2021. Tailings facility disclosures reveal stability risks. Scientific reports, 11(1), 5353. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-84897-0

3. Reuters, 18 February 2019. Brazil bans upstream mining dams after deadly Vale disaster.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-vale-sa-disaster-idUSKCN1Q718C

4. Mining Magazine, 30 May 2022. Vale on its 'ore-sands' revolution.

https://www.miningmagazine.com/sustainability/news/1433168/vale-on-its-%E2%80%98oresands%E2%80%99-revolution

5. Golev, A., Gallagher, L., Vander Velpen, A., Lynggaard, J.R., Friot, D., Stringer, M., Chuah, S., Arbelaez-Ruiz, D., Mazzinghy, D., Moura, L., Peduzzi, P. and Franks, D.M., 2022. Ore-sand: A potential new solution to the mine tailings and global sand sustainability crises. The University of Queensland: Brisbane, QLD, Australia. https://smi.uq.edu.au/files/83107/ FinalReport_OreSand_v1.pdf

6. International Mining, August 17 2022. Vale brings second Sustainable Sand operation online. https://im-mining.com/2022/08/17/vale-brings-second-sustainable-sand-operation-online/

7. United Nations Environment Programme, 2019. Sand and Sustainability: Finding New Solutions for Environmental Governance of Global Sand Resources. https://wedocs.unep. org/20.500.11822/28163

8. Segura-Salazar, J. and Franks, D. M., 2023. Ore-sand co-production from Newcrest’s Cadia East HydroFloat Reject: an exploratory study. The University of Queensland: Brisbane, QLD, Australia. https://doi.org/10.14264/96249f6

Example of Vale’s Brucutu ore-sand upgraded for construction and industrial applications. Image credit: Dr Artem Golev

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A LINEAR ECONOMY

Adopting circular economy practices in the mining industry does not only refer to the on-site practices of employees and mining corporations, but also extends to include responsible management of the waste streams the industry produces. While the spotlight has certainly shifted to illuminate environmentally friendly practices like proper tailings storage, and more recently recycling mining uniforms, end-of-life (EOL) tyres is the latest waste stream undergoing upheaval.

In late 2022, Federal Minister for Environment and Water, Tanya Plibersek, pinpointed tyres as one of three waste streams on the Federal Government's annual priority list. This brought necessary attention to the lagging rates of used tyre recovery, particularly for OTR (off-the-road) tyres, effectively putting the industry on notice.

The Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water estimates that more than 130,000 tonnes of mining, agriculture and aviation tyres reach end of life each year, with a mere eleven per cent being recovered. On top of this, approximately 80,000 tonnes of additional related products, like rubber tracks and conveyor belts, are currently not being sustainably managed each year.

These EOL tyres often end up buried in-pit or dumped on land, resulting in significant environmental, health and safety hazards. The sheer magnitude of this waste stream and the dangers of improper waste management has underscored the need for product stewardship schemes and an increase in processes to recycle EOL tyres.

Product stewardship

Product stewardship in Australia refers to the shared responsibility of everyone who imports, sells, designs, produces, uses and disposes of products to lessen the environmental, and health and safety impacts of these products.

Examples of good product stewardship include companies designing products for easier recycling, companies limiting the hazardous materials its products contain, companies utilising more recycled materials and less resources to manufacture its products, and people recycling products and their packaging.

The National Product Stewardship Investment Fund provides financial support to set up new product stewardship arrangements or to improve existing ones.

Tyre Stewardship Australia

An initiative to combat the EOL tyre waste stream was first announced in 2014 by the then Minister for the Environment Greg Hunt.

Mr Hunt announced the formation of the national Tyre Product Stewardship Scheme (the Scheme) to support and promote the increase in environmentally sustainable collection and recycling processes, and to explore new uses for and products using recycled EOL tyres.

Some of the benefits for participants, the community and the tyre industry as a whole that the Scheme aims to achieve include:

♦ Increasing the use of a resource stream currently being disposed of

♦ A reduction in the number of tyres not going to an environmentally-sound use

♦ To enhance the Australian recycling industry and sustainable markets to reuse EOL tyres and tyrederived products

♦ An increased capacity to handle EOL tyres in Australia

♦ To create new markets for EOL tyres and tyre derived products through research and development

♦ Improving the business environment, particularly for tyre collectors and recyclers

♦ Increasing consumer awareness of the impacts of EOL tyre disposal

♦ Enhanced credibility for the tyre industry who can demonstrate leadership in environmental management and adopt corporate social responsibility strategies.

In order to facilitate the Scheme, Mr Hunt also announced the formation of Tyre Stewardship Australia (TSA) to provide a national framework for increased recycling of Australia’s used tyres. This was successful for domestic tyres, but is looking to expand its recovery efforts for off-the-road tyres used in mining, construction, agriculture, aviation, and manufacturing due to the very low rates of recovery.

Tyre Stewardship Australia’s CEO, Lina Goodman, said that TSA’s main purpose when established was to implement the national Tyre Product Stewardship Scheme and promote the development of viable markets for end-of-life tyres in Australia.

“TSA was formulated by the Australian Tyre Industry Council (ATIC), with the aim to establish a standalone organisation whose primary focus was finding solutions for tyres once they reach end of life,” Ms Goodman said.

The Scheme is currently supported by tyre importers and auto brands who voluntarily pay a levy on each tyre they sell or import into the Australian market. This represents, however, less than 50 per cent of all tyres imported into Australia. This has led to calls for a regulatory framework.

A Scheme underpinned by a regulatory framework would mean that a levy would apply to all tyres coming into Australia, ensuring that all organisations who sell tyres into the Australian market are also responsible for contributing to solutions once the tyres reach end of life.

“Today we have over 1,700 accredited participants in the Scheme, which include tyre retailers, collectors, recyclers and a small number of local councils and fleet organisations. Through their participation, they demonstrate their commitment to sustainable practices for their markets, stakeholders and future generations,” Ms Goodman said.

TSA works along the tyre recovery supply chain to minimise waste and increase value for government, industry, businesses and consumers by:

♦ Supporting the transformation of a waste product into a useful commodity

♦ Creating new markets, technologies and employment opportunities

♦ Reducing the environmental and social harm caused by the burying or illegal dumping of used tyres

“As of 2022, TSA has committed $9 million to 60-plus projects creating real-world outcomes and solutions for Australia’s end-of-life tyres including in roads, research, civil engineering, manufacturing, mining and rail sectors,” Ms Goodman said.

Current practice for end-of-life tyres

The current practices relating to how the industry handles EOL OTR tyres – including illegal dumping, stockpiling and even burning – can have significant and often harmful environmental,

health, and safety impacts on the community and the environment as a whole. These problems have been largely solved for domestic tyres, with recovery rates at more than 90 per cent versus less than eleven per cent recovery for OTR tyres. However collectively, a recovery rate of only 65 per cent is being reached for Australia's EOL tyres.

“If not managed responsibly, end-of-life tyres can cause environmental and social harm through the illegal dumping, stockpiling, or burying which can lead to fires and/or long term degradation of our land,” Ms Goodman said.

Although TSA is working to mitigate instances where these kinds of things occur, Ms Goodman said there are unfortunately still instances of rogue operators who collect tyres and dump them across various locations, on both private and public land, potentially causing harm and increasing the risk of fire hazards.

“Communities are left with clean up costs, largely borne by the rate payer – either through Local or State Government – associated with illegal dumping of tyres, and unsuspecting farmers are having tyres dumped on their land.

“Tyres that are stockpiled or illegally dumped are a breeding ground for mosquitoes which can create harm for the communities around them.”

This kind of harmful current practice underscores the urgent necessity for regulation, an increase in environmentally sustainable collection and recycling processes, and an end to the linear approach in lieu of a circular economy.

“The circular economy breaks away from the traditional, linear manufacturing process that sees materials extracted, used, and thrown away. Instead, it embraces a ‘closed-loop system’ to reuse and regenerate resources continually.

“Australia has made significant strides in demonstrating the potential for used tyres to become a valuable resource in the circular economy, in rubberised asphalt for roads, noise wall barriers, and agricultural mats.”

Ms Goodman said that recovering tyres is not just a matter of social responsibility, it also has profound opportunities for Australian businesses.

“We could improve energy management by replacing coalfired energy generation with tyre-derived alternative fuels, we could use crumbed tyres in new building materials.

“An innovative approach to tyre recovery can create new jobs and opportunities in regional and remote Australia, promote innovation and productivity, and turn what was a waste product into something valuable.”

Creating a circular economy for EOL tyres

It goes without saying that recycling of EOL tyres is a key step towards eliminating this waste stream and implementing circular economy practices. Ms Goodman said TSA is working to improve recovery and processing of EOL tyres in a few ways.

“We work to build collaboration and partnership to solve the challenges of recovery that affect each sector and user of tyres, to support a shared approach along the supply chain and realise unique solutions that require cooperation,” Ms Goodman said.

“We support research into new end products to demonstrate and develop innovative uses for EOL tyres, and we support market development initiatives to pilot the use of these products across Australia and the world.”

On top of this, TSA is continually working to find new markets and manufacturing processes that advance the consumption of crumb rubber in new value-added products across Australia’s circular economy.

Some of the applications for tyre-derived products can include crumbed rubber asphalt for improved road durability,

reuse for athletic tracks, permeable urban paving to reduce run off and provide water to surrounding trees and to construct noise and acoustic barriers.

Research that TSA has supported has investigated using tyre rubber for road construction, industrial spray sealants, volume expander, masonry including pavers and bricks, tyre additives to cement, binders, acoustic applications, road barriers, and permeable pavement.

Overcoming obstacles

One of the more obvious challenges with recycling mining tyres when compared to passenger vehicle tyres is the sheer size of them. Mining off the road (OTR) tyres are typically enormous, with the tyres used on earthmoving vehicles weighing up to 4.5 tonnes and measuring up to four metres in diameter. In addition to this, mining tyres are highly specialised.

“[Mining tyres] have substantial amounts of high-quality steel, and special formulations of rubber to improve material properties. These factors mean that recovery efforts need to be highly specialised to the particular tyre, to recover the valuable materials in a way that can best use them.”

Ms Goodman said that the equipment needed to recover these kinds of tyres needs to be “very big and very strong”, and the handling of these giant tyres requires specific infrastructure which is only just now becoming available in Australia.

“Passenger tyres, in contrast, are small and typically only contain cheap rubber with only some fibre. The machines to process these are much smaller and deployed for a different purpose.”

There are also additional health and safety standards and practices to keep in mind when handling the giant tyres, with improper usage and handling representing a potentially lethal risk to mining workforces and others.

“Their handling, management and storage across supply, replacement, on-vehicle use, inspection, and maintenance, and removal for end-of-life management stages, all need to meet safety standards to prevent accidents,” Ms Goodman said.

“Guidelines such as internal operating manuals, Australian Standards (e.g., Australian Standard 4457 for the maintenance and repair of OTR tyres), and other guidance, including guidelines published by states and territories, are used to support tyre safety.”

There are also geographical barriers to the recycling of OTR tyres due to the remoteness of some of Australia’s mine sites. The average distance between mining sites and used tyre processing sites in some states is around 200km, with Western Australia having the longest average distance of around 800km.

“Because of the significant distances from where waste mining tyres are generated and where current facilities operate, it is very difficult to transport them cheaply. There is limited incentive to invest in local processing for these tyres because they can currently be disposed of in-pit on mine sites.

“It is expensive to collect and process them and cheap to dispose of them in a pit. Because of this, there has been little investment into improving the processing capacity of mining tyres.”

Ms Goodman said TSA is “working with industry to discuss the potential creation of regional collection hubs/processing facilities to ease the logistical and transportation challenges associated with large mining tyres”.

Working to tackle this issue will involve stakeholder engagement to show that these kinds of issues can be tackled without disrupting business.

“We will need to review the permissions for burying in pit, support market development and investment, and engage miners, logistics companies, tyre manufacturers, and processors to develop comprehensive solutions.”

Other approaches to tackling this challenge include employing reverse logistics solutions, where waste tyres would be brought out on the same trucks and at the same time as new tyres are brought in, as well as involving some degree of on site processing to reduce the size of the tyres and make transport easier.

Embracing change

Adopting new changes is not always smooth sailing and there can often be pushback to implementing these new practices, but Ms Goodman said both the mining industry and the agriculture industry have been relatively receptive to change.

“Everyone knows that changes need to happen and that what was acceptable once, no longer is. Mining organisations are open to discussing options available to them and seeking practical solutions, but it is a big problem that cannot be solved quickly or without significant effort.

“The agriculture sector needs support on addressing the barriers to tyre recovery that uniquely affect them, but they do not have the resources that big mining companies have so the way we engage with them and what they are able to do is different.

“Everyone we have worked with has shown a great willingness and eagerness to engage with this problem, even if they don’t always agree on the exact way to do so.”

Around the world mandatory EOL tyre schemes have had positive effects on extending the life of tyres in mining, increasing recovery rates, creating economic growth and jobs and inspiring innovation. Changing on-site mining behaviour away from burying or stockpiling OTR tyres creates the volume needed to make all tyre recovery economically viable in regional and remote areas.

In efforts to tackle its own waste stream, Chile has implemented legislation that requires 100 per cent recovery of mining tyres by 2026. Ms Goodman said this kind of drastic change is not out of reach for Australia.

“Australia absolutely can recover close to 100 per cent of its end-of-life mining tyres, and we should. We need to ensure that on our pathway to 100 per cent recovery all stakeholders are involved in the process and that we tailor our approach to reflect Australia's unique challenges and opportunities. We cannot rush, but neither can we delay.

Ms Goodman said TSA’s goal is to “achieve world-class recovery rates for every tyre in every Australian location, no matter how challenging or remote”.

The voluntary nature of the Scheme means that those that participate do so without any mandate or regulation requiring them to, whereas a regulatory framework would require all tyre importers to Australia to participate.

“Ultimately, what we need is a regulated stewardship scheme to expedite tyre resource recovery and ensure that all importers of tyres are taking accountability and contributing towards sustainable outcomes for Australia’s used tyres.”

WESTE R N AUST R ALIAN BAUXITE MINING IN THE SPOTLIGHT

By Robert Davies, Public Relations Manager, Conservation Council of Western Australia

Five black cockatoos roost in native forest in WA's South West. Image credit: Philippa Beckerling

Australia’s forests are home to a unique collection of native flora and fauna, including a number of threatened species. Voices advocating for tracking deforestation and regulating logging companies in an attempt to preserve and save Australia’s native forests are progressively growing louder. However, a recent report co-authored by the Conservation Council of Western Australia, the West Australian Forest Alliance, and the Wilderness Society has shone a light on another key source of deforestation –bauxite mining – and offered solutions and recommendations for the State Government to employ to mitigate the potentially devastating effects of the industry on the forests of Western Australia.

The Northern Jarrah Forest in Western Australia is an integral part of the Southwest Australia Ecoregion. A global biodiversity hotspot, it is one of only 36 such areas worldwide, and is recognised as one of the world's most extraordinary places, harbouring vast numbers of plant and animal species.1

Stretching over 250km on the Darling Plateau, it boasts more than 780 native plant species, making it a botanical marvel. Furthermore, the forest harbours at least 235 vertebrate species and a staggering number of invertebrates, estimated to be in the tens of thousands, many of which are yet to be scientifically classified or named.

In short, the Northern Jarrah Forest is a natural treasure that merits global recognition. This forest faces significant threats from climate change and is at risk of ecosystem collapse. However, the immediate danger comes from a different source.

A Thousand Cuts

In May 2022, a joint report by the Conservation Council of Western Australia, the West Australian Forest Alliance, and the Wilderness Society sounded the alarm that the Northern Jarrah Forest is under enormous and increasing pressure from a range of sources, including native forest logging, urban development, dieback, agriculture, prescribed burning, and climate change. However, the report, A Thousand Cuts, emphasised that the most significant threat to the forest was continued devastation caused by bauxite mining.

The report stressed that the Northern Jarrah Forest, despite being under significant anthropogenic pressure, retains significant ecological value in terms of species diversity and ecosystem functionality, and has called for immediate action to safeguard its future.

between Collie and Armadale, spanning about 135km, could be fragmented, triggering an ecological collapse of the Northern Jarrah Forest.

Wildlife in danger of localised extinction

The impact of clearing and fragmentation on the Northern Jarrah Forest poses a significant threat to the survival of many vulnerable or endangered species that inhabit the area. Among them are the southern brown bandicoot, western quoll, dibbler, two phascogale species, mainland quokka, numbat, woylie, tammar wallaby, and western ringtail possum.

The forest is also a habitat for all three species of southwestern black cockatoo – namely Baudin's, Carnaby's, and the forest red-tailed cockatoo – all of which are classified as threatened under state and federal legislation.

Citing data from the Western Australian Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA), A Thousand Cuts shows that mining activity has already cleared at least 32,130ha of publicly-owned forest, while another 120,000ha have been heavily fragmented. These figures exclude the impact of mining on private land.

The situation is worsening as the rate of clearing accelerates. In the 1960s, bauxite mining cleared 440ha of publicly-owned land in the Northern Jarrah Forest, but between 2010 and 2019, the figure had surged to 10,420ha – a nearly 25-fold increase.

The report warns that if the current trend of bauxite mining continues, it could eventually clear up to 83,000ha of forest and fragment another 337,000ha. By 2060, most of the forest

For each of the vulnerable species mentioned, the loss of habitat resulting from clearing and fragmentation caused by bauxite mining is a major contributor to their decline. The three threatened species of black cockatoo are a prime example of this.

Current bauxite mining activity is the primary cause of deforestation in their Northern Jarrah Forest habitat, which, in turn, makes bauxite mining the primary cause of habitat loss in that area.

The recovery plans for all three species, which are developed under the Federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999, specifically acknowledge the impact of bauxite mining on their conservation prospects for the future.

Serpentine Dam with bauxite mining activity and clearing visible. Image credit: Jeremy Perey

Rehabilitation but not replication

Reducing the ecological and environmental footprint of mines through mine rehabilitation is a key aspect of many mine proposals and approvals. However, A Thousand Cuts explores the ways in which mine rehabilitation is different from the intact, pre-mined forest, and highlights the opportunity to redefine future mine rehabilitation strategies.

Rehabilitating ex-mine sites is critical and currently underperforming. The goal for rehabilitation is to re-establish a forest habitat identical to that which was there before – a task which the report states is impossible.

A new form of ecosystem will eventually emerge on the rehabilitated site, but it will never be the same as the original forest. There is a complex relationship between mineral deposits such as bauxite in the soil and the composition of species that will succeed in a forested landscape. Removing the bauxite prevents the ecosystem from re-establishing as it was.

Before 1988, rehabilitation could include the use of nonendemic pine trees and exotic eucalypts which were resistant to dieback – a pathogen-caused rot which deprives the plant of water. Many species endemic to the Northern Jarrah Forest are susceptible to dieback, which is most easily spread by human activity, such as that which might occur around mine sites. As a result of the use of non-endemic trees and other past practice, as of the end of 2006, 31 per cent of rehabilitated areas were non-endemic vegetation.

Native fauna species displaced by bauxite mining are unlikely to return to a rehabilitated area, especially for sites planted with non-endemic species. Even if rehabilitation is carried out to the highest standards, it may take centuries for some species to recolonise those areas. Some species may never return, and others may only return infrequently or not stay for long.

The dependence of black cockatoos on mature native trees for food and nesting makes them particularly vulnerable to habitat loss. Once breeding trees are lost, rehabilitation efforts are unlikely to be successful as it takes at least 100-200 years for eucalypts, like jarrah, to develop nesting hollows large enough for use by black cockatoos. This situation is exacerbated

by the prior practice of using non-native trees for mine site rehabilitation until as recently as 1988, creating unsuitable rehabilitated habitat for black cockatoos to breed.

Forests on the front line fighting climate change

The resilience of rehabilitated mine sites is also a concern, as the Northern Jarrah Forest in its natural state includes resprouting species of vegetation that are able to regrow after disturbances such as fire or drought. However, rehabilitated sites historically have had fewer resprouters present, and reintroducing these species to rehabilitated sites is a significant challenge. This is due in part to the fact that the conditions in which these species initially grew have been irreversibly altered.

Equally concerning is the fact that rehabilitated mine sites in the Northern Jarrah Forest have historically had a lower standard of soil quality with lower water holding capacity. Additionally, larger, older, and old growth jarrah trees have been found to take less water from the ground compared to smaller, younger, regrowth jarrah trees (17 per cent compared to 35 per cent). This results in much drier and fire-prone conditions than would have been present before mining and this issue will be worsened by climate change as it creates a drier overall environment.

If left intact, the Northern Jarrah Forest serves as a vital natural carbon store and a crucial barrier against rising emissions. Over the last 100 years, Australia has warmed by an average of approximately 1°C, with an increase in the frequency of hot days and nights coinciding with a decrease in the frequency of cold days and nights.

Research has shown that trees in Australia can cool the land surface by 2-3°C but clearing of vegetation adds to temperature increases.

For its part, the bauxite mining process releases organic carbon from the ground and emits CO2 through the decay of logs and stumps and the use of heavy machinery, contributing to warming effects.

Healthy forests are essential in mitigating climate change impacts which was recognised when more than 100 countries,

Native Jarrah Forest in WA's South West. Image credit: Jess Beckerling

including Australia, agreed to end deforestation by 2030 at UNFCCC COP26 in Glasgow.

In short, the potential climate benefits of the Western Australian Government’s landmark decision to end native forest logging in Western Australia will be diminished if bauxite miners are still allowed to continue to clear and fragment the forest as they have been to date.

A path for the future

Bauxite mining in the Northern Jarrah Forest has attracted even greater public scrutiny in 2023. Investigative reports in the media have led to serious questions about the activity of bauxite miners in the region and the negative environmental and social impacts of clearing and fragmenting the forest.

Parliamentary and public scrutiny of the State Agreements between the State Government and the bauxite mining companies is restricted because the agreements are not available in an up-to-date integrated form except upon request to the Department of Jobs, Tourism, Science and Innovation.

In June 2021, following repeated questions and prompting in Parliament, the Western Australian Government pledged to make up to date consolidated versions of State Agreements publicly available, but has so far failed to do so.

The Conservation Council of Western Australia, the West Australian Forest Alliance, and the Wilderness Society together have made five recommendations which, if employed, could mitigate the effects of bauxite mining on the Northern Jarrah Forest.

It’s clear the Northern Jarrah Forest is of national significance and must be protected. As such, the report recommends a clear halt of fragmentation or clearing of the nation forest in order to mine bauxite.

Further recommendations include:

♦ The Environmental Protection Agency should undertake a strategic assessment of the accumulating impacts of past, current and proposed developments and projects in the Northern Jarrah Forest, including logging, prescribed burning and bauxite mining

♦ A Western Australian Government enquiry should be launched into the following:

» The effectiveness of current processes – such as Habitat Protection Plans and Recovery Plans – in halting the decline of threatened native forest species including mainland quokkas, forest red-tailed black cockatoos, Baudin’s cockatoo and Carnaby’s cockatoo

» The barriers to executing recovery actions recommended by the aforementioned processes

» Determining whether there is a need for an emergency action plan to arrest the decline of the above threatened native forest species

♦ The Western Australian Government should create and maintain a publicly-accessible, up-to-date record of biodiversity and native vegetation data, documenting its condition and extent across the state including the amount cleared by each sector in each bioregion.

♦ The Western Australian Government should immediately create consolidated, updated versions of all State Agreements available to the public

The battle to preserve the Northern Jarrah Forest

In February 2023, Western Australia’s independent watchdog, the Western Australian Environmental Protection Authority (EPA), was asked to review plans by Alcoa to mine new areas of native forest for bauxite. This followed widespread shock over mining practices by the Pittsburgh-based company which threatened to contaminate a major public water source to Perth.

In March 2023, photographs of sites which Alcoa had claimed to have rehabilitated were widely shared amid claims that the miner was “treating the WA public with callous disregard” and that its rehabilitation was woefully inadequate, resulting in large expanses of barren open space.

Western Australians have come to the same central conclusion as A Thousand Cuts – namely, that immediate measures should be taken to prevent further deforestation in the Northern Jarrah Forest and that bauxite mining companies cannot continue to mine as they have if the unique forest is to be saved and conserved.

The perimeter of the Boddington bauxite mine, showing native forest clearing. Image credit: Jess Beckerling

R EHABILITATION TO REPU R POSE:

APPROACHES TO POST - MINING LAND USE

By Tess Macallan, Journalist, Mining Magazine

When mineral resources are depleted and the machinery switches off, the significant impact a mine site has on the environment and surrounding communities remains. In Australia, mine operators have a responsibility to act sustainably and deliver enduring value to the regions in which they operate, including developing plans for post-mining land use. Here, we explore the different approaches to post-mining land use and take a look at some of the current processes underway for when mining operations cease.

In Australia, mine operators must comply with regulations related to land rehabilitation and post-mining land use. Such regulations are implemented across federal, state and local government levels.

There is no one-size-fits-all approach to reshaping and reusing a site after mining, with plans involving anything from restoration or rehabilitation of the land, to repurposing the site for agriculture, conservation, recreation or urban development. The process for determining a course of action often entails site assessments, working with relevant stakeholders, and developing a land use plan.

Determining best practices

When it comes to post-mining land use, it is important to distinguish between rehabilitation and restoration. Restoration is the process of re-establishing the ecosystem structure and the function of the land to its state prior to mining, or replicating a similar ecosystem to what previously existed.

In contrast, rehabilitation covers processes that do not involve land being restored to its original or close-to-original ecosystem. Rehabilitated land may, however, progress to a restored ecosystem over time.

Most states and territories have their own guidelines and regulations for rehabilitation. This often involves a requirement for companies to lodge cash bonds, unconditional financial institution guarantees or non-refundable contributions to pooled funds before any mining begins. These funds are generally intended to cover the full third party costs of rehabilitating mine sites.

Beyond legal requirements, implementing rehabilitation best practice is crucial for operators to maintain their reputation and keep the support of communities and governments.

Mine rehabilitation is a long and often complex process. Approaches to rehabilitation vary depending on, or even within, a site, and must take into account relevant regulations and the considerations of various stakeholders.

Best practice rehabilitation starts at the outset of a mining project and continues through to mine closure and the lease is relinquished.

According to the Federal Government’s Leading Practice Sustainable Development Program for the Mining Industry mine rehabilitation handbook, rehabilitation comprises “the design and construction of landforms as well as the establishment of sustainable ecosystems or alternative vegetation, depending upon desired post-operational land use”.

The handbook outlines three key objectives that mine site rehabilitation should be designed to meet:

1. The long-term stability and sustainability of the landforms, soils and hydrology of the site

2. The partial or full repair of ecosystem capacity to provide habitats for biota and services for people

3. The prevention of pollution of the surrounding environment

Ripe for rehabilitation

Fosterville Gold Mine

The Fosterville Gold Mine in Victoria is an example of how mine rehabilitation begins long before a mine ceases operation. Rehabilitation plans at Fosterville are intended to return sites to a similar vegetation function and structure as existed prior to mining. However, plans may change depending on the new landform at the closure of the mine. In this case, species selection will be required.

According to the Minerals Council of Australia’s (MCA) Mine Rehabilitation: rehabilitation, closure planning and regulation report, the Fosterville rehabilitation plan aims to return parts of native forest back to a self-sustaining native forest while increasing the number of indigenous species and connecting up biodiversity corridors where possible.

The rehabilitation practices at Fosterville are under frequent review. Since 1989, Goldfields Revegetation has provided rehabilitation services to the mine, including seed collection of local indigenous species, seed treatment and propagation, and planting and monitoring. Current rehabilitation also includes landscaping, topsoiling, ripping and mulching.

Coal & Allied alluvial land rehabilitation

Australian coal mining company Coal & Allied undertook an unprecedented trial to demonstrate how alluvial land used for mining can be rehabilitated to match the crop production levels of nearby farms.

As a condition of Coal & Allied receiving approval to mine 165ha of farming land in the Upper Hunter Valley Region, the company was required to reinstate 65ha of the land to Class 1 and 2 lands suitable for irrigated agriculture.

In order to demonstrate that the land had been restored as required, Coal & Allied was required to produce Lucerne hay with a productivity yield equivalent to the average crop productivity yields for the Upper Hunter Region for three consecutive years.

David Ugle picnic area –Lake Kepwari

The plans for rehabilitation commenced in 1990 – before mining activities had even begun. Mapping of the soil profile was carried out and topsoil and subsoil were stockpiled separately. By 2003, backfilling of the eastern section of the land was complete and rehabilitation commenced. The stockpiled subsoil and topsoil were replaced to a depth of 1.5m to accommodate crops with deep roots like Lucerne.

Following three years of consecutive production, hay yields were above the district average. The land was tendered out for commercial cropping in 2013 and is currently being used to grow crops such as Lucerne and triticale (a hybrid of wheat and rye used in cereals).

The Coal & Allied process demonstrated the potential for rehabilitation of agricultural land. The area will continue to be farmed and monitored and a valuable asset will remain even after mining operations cease.

Repurposing resources

It is sometimes extremely difficult – or impossible – to deliver productive agricultural landscapes or vegetation similar to original ecosystems post-mining. In this case, different rehabilitation or repurposing objectives are required. Australia’s mine operators must consult with regulators to determine appropriate post-mining land uses.

The process of repurposing former mines for a diversity of economic, social and environmental purposes, such as tourism and recreation, is commonplace.

Lake Kepwari

The repurposing of part of a coal mine in Collie, Western Australia, is an example of how mining assets can be repurposed to a variety of uses that support a region’s economic transition following a long period of reliance on the mining industry.

The Collie deep coal mine pit was part of a larger coal mine site, which produced black coal for Western Australian domestic and industrial power. Mining at the Lake Kepwari site began 50 years ago and concluded in 1996. The pit lake was repurposed and relinquished back to the Western Australia Government and the Collie community in 2020 as Lake Kepwari.

Kepwari is a Noongar word meaning “playing in water”. The transformation of the site also included the rehabilitation and revegetation of 120ha of land surrounding the lake.

25 years of studies, monitoring and reporting went into ensuring the successful transition of the Collie mining pit into a safe and usable asset that met the stakeholder-agreed closure objectives. Safe for swimming, boating and fishing, Lake Kepwari supports the promotion of the Collie region as a tourist destination. Fish and crustaceans have been successfully reintroduced and the lake has been incorporated into the Collie River Waugal Aboriginal Heritage site, which includes the entire Collie River system.

Stawell

Gold mining has long been integral to the local economy of Stawell. At its peak in 2011, the Stawell Gold Mines (SGM) was the largest employer in the area and contributed over $58.3 million to the local community in wages, purchased goods and services per year1

In 2013, following warnings by SGM that its operations might soon be closing, the community started seeking alternative uses for the mine that would maintain local employment levels.

1. Northern Grampians Shire Council 2014, The Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory: The Northern Grampians Shire Council's Response to the Regional Development Australia Gramians Committee GREAT Project Assessment Tool, Stawell.

2. Slezak, M 2014, Panning for dark matter in an Australian gold mine, New Scientist. Retrieved from https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg22329782-800-panning-for-dark-matter-in-anaustralian-goldmine/?ignored=irrelevant

The Northern Grampians Shire formed a Project Control Group consisting of a range of community representatives, local government, state government agencies, business operators and the mining industry, including SGM, to consider potential transformation and repurposing initiatives for the SGM assets.

At the same time, physicists were seeking a southern hemisphere location for a deep cavern in a rock protected location to conduct experiments for the potential detection of dark matter – the mysterious substance that is thought to make up 80 per cent of matter in the universe.

The Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory (SUPL) was subsequently proposed, located 1km below ground in what was, until 2012, a deep volcanic basalt gold mine cavern. The depth, equivalent to a shield of 3km of water, blocks the earth’s surface radioactive cosmic waves which are unable to infiltrate the abandoned mining tunnels. This maximises the effectiveness of the very sensitive detectors and sensors for exploring the theorised existence of dark matter.2

In July 2019, a formal agreement between Stawell Gold Mines, the Northern Grampians Shire Council and the University of Melbourne was signed to build and operate the laboratory with funding from the Federal and Victorian Governments as well as the Australian Research Council.

SGM agreed to excavate the required underground cavern. While the mine continues to operate, it provides ventilation, vehicular access, power and fibre-optic infrastructure and water management for the SUPL.

Stage one of the project involved constructing the laboratory, which was unveiled in August 2022. It occupies a bespoke cavity created by excavating two interconnected caverns. There is enough room for experimental laboratories, physical plant and other support facilities, loading bays and lay down areas.3

The next step to be completed is the transporting of the Sodium Iodide with Active Background Rejection Experiment (SABRE) into the lab. Data collection is expected to begin later in 2023.

The Stawell facility, once operational, will attract physicists, scientists, research students and potentially even scientific tourists from around the world for extended periods, offering a tourism boost for the town.

SUPL will provide further research opportunities beyond dark matter. It is expected that SUPL and other projects in the lab will generate 80 new jobs and an estimated $18 million annual boost to the local economy through the attraction of new business opportunities to the town.4

When it comes to post-mining land use, rehabilitation and restoration are not the only routes available. Recent years have seen an increase in land repurposing for tourism, recreation and economic opportunities.

The repurposing activities at Stawell and Lake Kepwari demonstrate how long-term planning and collaboration between mining operators, the community, stakeholders and government can lead to the creation of valuable assets once mining operations cease. However, while achievements have been made in rehabilitating and repurposing mine sites across Australia, there are abundant opportunities to ensure degraded land is restored or rehabilitated with the best possible result. Following leading practice in post-mining land use secures more sustainable outcomes for communities and leaves behind a positive legacy.

3. Urquijo, P 2016, Searching for dark matter at the Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory. Paper presented at the Heavy Ion Acceleration Symposium 2016, pp 1–7. arXiv:1605.03299. doi:10.1051/epjconf/201612304002, Canberra

4. Northern Grampians Shire Council 2014, The Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory: The Northern Grampians Shire Council's Response to the Regional Development Australia Gramians Committee GREAT Project Assessment Tool, Stawell

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PORTABLE WASTEWATER TREATMENT SYSTEMS FOR REMOTE MINES

Remote mine sites that house workers require an effective wastewater treatment system. However, in isolated locations, these sites may not be connected to municipal sewerage mains. Situations like these require systems that are portable, self-contained and easy to use.

ACentral Queensland mine recently found itself in need of a new wastewater system, after outgrowing its existing sewerage system and being forced to discharge raw effluent on the lease site. Government regulations around ensuring any land used for mining purposes be rehabilitated to prevent environmental harm and to allow further land-use post-mining meant this effluent discharge became a serious issue.

A cost-effective, environmentally friendly solution

The mine approached Kelair Pumps Australia for a solution, with the company suggesting the Kelair-Blivet – a standalone packaged sewage treatment plant that effectively turns effluent into usable irrigation water and can be installed quickly with minimum civil works.

As a modular unit, the Blivet design is completely adaptable to suit a variety of applications and is suitable for use in areas not connected to municipal sewerage mains. Additionally, with individual models suitable for populations from 30 to 400 people, adding discrete modular units allows phased development in step with the projected growth of the mine site.

Kelair Pumps General Manager, Myro Bratkovic, said, “Another important factor to the mining sector is the responsibility to

create a contaminant-free landscape, leaving the land in prime condition once mining operations have ceased.

“The Blivet provides a clean solution to wastewater and ensures waterways and the ground remain uncontaminated, and rehabilitation of the mine at the end of life is minimal.

“Meeting these standards has many benefits to mining companies including in terms of ESG, obtaining licenses for further exploration or new mine sites.”

Project commences

Once the proposal was accepted, Kelair Pumps Mackay branch were engaged to build, transport and install the Blivet at the mine, with each piece of the system – tanks, pumps, pipework and valves – supplied by Kelair.

“As a fully portable, fully packaged, and completely contained unit, all able to fit comfortably within standard container size dimensions, transportation to the mine site was seamless,” Mr Bratkovic said.

“Once the civil work had been completed, the components were easily installed by contractors on-site at the mine.”

A simple and efficient outcome

The Blivet has proven to be a popular option in extreme remote locations and for this isolated mine site, its simple installation, operation, and minimal power usage provided clear advantages over the old system.

Furthermore, specialist operators are not required, as all maintenance and running tasks were able to be performed by general maintenance staff already on-site.

Seeking a solution to outgrowing the previous wastewater system instead of continuing unsafe environmental practices – such as discharging effluent – is an example of a mining company taking its stewardship of the land seriously and working with farmers to benefit both leaseholders and the environment, ensuring the land is left in prime condition.

For more information, please contact Kelair Pumps on 1300 789 466 or visit kelairpumps.com.au

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TURNING ABANDONED MINES INTO

BATTE � IES

By Julian David Hunt, Research Scholar in the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis’ Energy, Climate, and Environment Program

As companies turn away from traditional thermal power capacity to embrace greener energy production options, mines across the country are being decommissioned and closed, leaving operators scrambling to find another use for them. A novel technique called Underground Gravity Energy Storage, developed by a team of researchers from the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), turns decommissioned mines into long-term energy storage solutions, thereby supporting the sustainable energy transition.

Renewable energy sources are central to the energy transition toward a more sustainable future.

However, as sources like sunshine and wind are inherently variable and inconsistent, finding ways to store energy in an accessible and efficient way is crucial. While there are many effective solutions for daily energy storage – the most common being batteries – a cost-effective, long-term solution is still lacking.

In a new IIASA-led study, an international team of researchers developed a novel way to store energy by transporting sand into abandoned underground mines. The new technique, called Underground Gravity Energy Storage (UGES), proposes an effective long-term energy storage solution, while also making use of now-defunct mining sites, which likely number in the millions globally.

The researchers released a paper detailing their findings and delving into the various elements of UGES.

How UGES generate electricity

UGES is a gravitational energy storage technology that consists of filling an underground mine with sand to generate electricity

when the cost of electricity is high and then removing the sand from the mine to store energy when electricity is cheap.

UGES generates electricity when the price is high by lowering sand into an underground mine and converting the potential energy of the sand into electricity via regenerative braking, and then lifting the sand from the mine to an upper reservoir using electric motors to store energy when electricity is cheap.

The main components of UGES are the shaft, motor/generator, upper and lower storage sites, and mining equipment (Figure 1).

The crucial components of UGES

The UGES shaft has variable depths and diameters – the deeper and broader the mine shaft, the more power can be extracted from the plant. Additionally, the more space in the shaft, the higher the plant's capacity.

To maximise power capacity, the sand containers in the shaft occupy around 50 per cent of the shaft's volume. The other 50 per cent of space is required for filling and emptying the containers with sand. To reduce the costs and number of cables to support the sand containers and the forces exerted on the motor/generator, we propose several motors/generators throughout the shaft.

The containers in Figure 2 are independent, i.e. each module can be put into operation or removed independently (to complete loading and unloading), ensuring that the system does not stop due to the putting in or removal of carriers.

In addition to independence, the container must enable rapid loading and unloading of heavy objects (sand). So we consider setting up loading stations, which can be similar to ski lift stations.

The containers applied in the shaft are foldable to optimise the utilisation of the shaft.

During storage mode, the sand is removed from the container on the shaft’s top and then returned to the bottom of the shaft to be filled again. The container is folded to occupy the least space on the shaft, as shown in Figure 2.

Foldable containers that are not completely sealed could leak sand during operation. This would cause energy loss and damage equipment in the mine or block the shaft.

To mitigate this problem, we propose foldable containers with inner bags as carriers, where the bags act as liners for the foldable containers. This results in a space-saving foldable carrier while preventing the safety hazard of sand leakage.

Specifics of UGES motors and generators

The motor/generators are installed on both sides of the mine shaft, as shown in Figure 1. They should be installed on top of the filling and empty stations to minimise the risk of damage.

The total power capacity of the plant consists of the sum of the capacity of all motors/generators. Other advantages of having several motors/generators are that motors/generators with a small capacity are easy to find in the market and are cheap.

It should be noted that the motors in Figure 2 are electrically connected in parallel to ensure the independence of each motor input and removal – if one motor/generator brakes or requires maintenance, the others can continue operation.

Depending on the power requirements for energy storage, the system can alter the lift’s speed. The lift can raise its speed if the power requirements are high, but it might lower the system’s overall efficiency.

Lead author of the study and researcher in the IIASA Energy, Climate, and Environment Program, Julian Hunt, said, “When a mine closes, it lays off thousands of workers. This devastates communities that rely only on the mine for their economic output.

“UGES would create a few vacancies as the mine would provide energy storage services after it stops operations.

“Mines already have the basic infrastructure and are connected to the power grid, which significantly reduces the cost and facilitates the implementation of UGES plants.”

Other energy storage methods, like batteries, lose energy via self-discharge over long periods. The energy storage medium of UGES is sand, meaning that there is no energy lost to selfdischarge, enabling ultra-long time energy storage ranging from weeks to several years.

The investment costs of UGES are about US$1-US$10/kWh and power capacity costs of US$2.000/kW. The technology is estimated to have a global potential of seven to 70TWh, with most of this potential concentrated in China, India, Russia, and the US.

Behnam Zakeri, study co-author and researcher in the IIASA Energy, Climate, and Environment Program, said, “To decarbonise the economy, we need to rethink the energy system based on innovative solutions using existing resources.

“Turning abandoned mines into energy storage is one example of many solutions that exist around us, and we only need to change the way we deploy them.”

Figure 1: Underground Gravity Energy Storage system: a schematic of different system sections.

Figure 2: (a) Foldable container to optimise the utilisation of the shaft (b) motor/generator sheaves to increase traction on the rotor (side view), and (c) rotor and generator.

UGES versus other energy storage options

Electricity generation should operate in a continuous mode. The system should be designed to provide a constant power supply. However, due to possible power fluctuation as a result of the dropping and loading of the sand to the system, a battery or ultra-capacitor system should be implemented together with UGES to guarantee a constant power supply.

The proposed UGES design presented in the IIASA paper has multiple motors/generators, ensuring continuity in the generation profile. Slight deviations in the continuous supply are expected, of -10 to +10, which needs to be balanced with grid balancing measures.

The upper storage site of a UGES plant is designed to store as much sand as possible on the surface surrounding the mine shaft to minimise the energy required to store the sand on the surface.

We propose a circular sand pile surrounding the mine shaft, as shown in Figure 3a.

The sand pile’s outer diameter will depend on the availability and cost of land – if land cost is high, the sand pile can rise vertically as the trucks dump the sand on top of the sand pile. The sand pile can reach heights of 50m or more.

Figure 3b presents the upper storage site filled up and the UGES plant fully charged.

The lower storage site consists of filling the entire underground mine with sand. The mine is filled from its extremes until the channels reach its shaft. Figure 3c presents the lower storage site filled up, and the UGES plant discharged.

The mining equipment is essential to manage the sand in the upper and lower reservoirs. They consist of dump trucks, conveyor booms, bucket wheel excavators, and soil compactors.

Dump trucks or conveyor belts transport the sand from the mine shaft to the storage sites and back. The dump truck should

be electric. This is because they can recharge their battery while driving down sand piles or tunnels in the underground mine, increasing the efficiency of the UGES plant.

Conveyor belts can also create a sand pile around the mine shaft. Conveyor belts should also generate electricity when lowering weights. The excavators and bucket wheel excavators extract sand from the upper and lower storage sites to load the dump trucks or conveyor belts. The soil compactor is applied to the sand piles to allow dump trucks to drive in the sand piles and increase their stability.

Cost-benefit analysis of UGES technology

The IIASA paper supposes that the mine shaft and the underground tunnels are already in place. However, there is still the need to buy the sand and the mining auxiliary equipment and install the cables, motor/generators, and foldable containers.

This IIASA paper does not consider the additional charge to rent the mine and its top to store the containers and sand.

The costs of UGES components are described in Table 1.

A mine with 40,000,000t of sand and an average height difference of 1,000m is being utilised to demonstrate the system’s cost. A US$1.6/kWh price tag is projected for energy storage. The cost of storing energy with UGES decreases with an increase in the height difference between the lower and upper storage locations.

Table 1 presents the UGES energy storage costs and power capacities at different depths. It should be noted that because natural underground mine caverns are irregular, there may be associated remediation costs, which are not considered in the paper due to the difficulty of assessment.

In light of the findings of this study, to produce a modest but constant amount of energy for a long time, UGES could

Figure 3: (a) upper storage site arrangement of Underground Gravity Energy Storage and UGES (b) fully charged and (c) discharged.

be designed to store energy over weekly, monthly or seasonal scales, depending on the demand for energy storage.

To offset the short-term changes in electricity consumption of solar and wind generation, this modest but consistent electricity generation might be supplemented with other storage technologies, such as batteries and PHS.

The cost of installed energy storage for UGES is estimated in the IIASA paper to vary from US$1.0-US$10.0/kWh, assuming an average height difference between the upper and lower storage sites of 1,500 and 200 metres, respectively.

The project is less expensive the more significant the height difference. The power generation capacity varies with the mine's depths, the sand storage capacity, and the sand moving speed.

The IIASA paper proposed constructing several motors/ generators along the shaft to reduce the cables' costs and allow using smaller, more common/affordable motors/generators. The system's technical lifespan can range from 20 to 30 years.

A precise description of the UGES system performance is outside this paper's scope.

The IIASA paper proposes a more detailed analysis of the system's performance and efficiency for future work as a precise description of the UGES system performance is outside the paper's scope.

UGES is a particularly interesting technology for long-term energy storage to reduce seasonal fluctuations in electricity demand and wind and solar generation.

This item includes the cables, the motor/generators, and the electrical equipment to increase the voltage of the electricity. The power is estimated to have a cost of 2,000 USD/kW. The plant has a speed of 0.5 m/s and a power capacity of 30 MW. The lifetime of the power generation system is 20 years.

and 30MW power capacity.

REFERENCE

Hunt, J.D., Zakeri, B., Jurasz, J., Tong, W., Dabek, P.B., Brandão, R., Patro, E.R., Ðurin, B., Leal Filho, W., Wada, Y., van Ruijven, B., Riahi, K. (2023). Underground Gravity Energy Storage: A Solution for Long-Term Energy Storage. Energies. 16, 825. DOI: 10.3390/en16020825

Table 1: Cost estimate for UGES with 40,000,000 tons of sand, 1000m,

MANAGING FATIGUE AND REDUCING RISKS IN MINES

By Rebecca Todesco, Editor, Mining Magazine

With their heavy machinery, often monumental scale and occasional use of explosives, mine sites aren’t always considered the safest places to work. But now a new safety concern is making its way into the industry spotlight: the mental health and fatigue levels of mine employees. A recent University of Queensland (UQ) report looks at fatigue and its impacts on health and safety, and employees’ mental health on mine sites across Queensland and, ultimately, the whole of Australia.

Recent years have seen an increase in safety precautions and awareness in an attempt to mitigate the risks and hazards at mine sites to ensure the safety of workers. Now, more than ever, this awareness is extending to include the mental health and wellbeing of mine workers, not only their physical wellbeing.

As such, the industry has seen an increase in studies and programs working to safeguard employees’ mental health.

A recent report by the Australian Resources and Energy Employer Association is tackling the way the resources industry views mental health and removing associated stigma, as well as the Building Safe and Respectful Workplaces pilot program that took place in November 2022 demonstrated the industry’s willingness and commitment to progress.

Taking worker fatigue into consideration

In the aftermath and continued recovery from COVID-19, as well as Australia’s ongoing labour and skills shortages, workplaces across a variety of sectors – and the resources industry in particular – are dealing with overworking and workers suffering from fatigue and ill mental health.

A Worksafe Health and Safety Queensland report1 defines fatigue as the feeling of being tired or drowsy and, in a work context, fatigue is a state of physical or mental exhaustion which can negatively impact a worker’s ability to carry out work effectively and safely. Fatigue can be caused by a number of factors including inadequate or interrupted sleep, physical or mental exertion, excessive work or prolonged waking times.

Fatigue-related incidents can have three-pronged consequences: individual, workplace, community. Individual consequences include impacts to cognitive function and short-term memory, poorer psychological and physical health, and an increased likelihood of being involved in an incident. Workplace consequences include an increase in fatigue-related error and incidents, increased costs associated with incident management and potential dissatisfaction and morale in the workplace. Community consequences include an increased need for trauma counselling services and ripple-on effects of serious injury, disability and death in the community.

A study exploring fatigue and mental health in the resources industry is explored in the recent report by UQ. Fatigue Management in the Queensland Mining Industry and its relationship with Mental Health highlights study findings and works to raise awareness of and mitigate fatigue in Queensland mines. The report also explores the correlation between fatigue and safety, and mental health in mining.

The study was one of the first projects to explore the correlation between fatigue, and mental health and safety in mining, and utilised a wide range of materials and documentation – including safety performance and health reports and reports of fatigue-related notifiable instances held by New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australian mining regulatory bodies.

Analysing fatigue and its management

In order to measure the potential relationship between these factors, a fatigue management baseline was established by researchers, including:

♦ A focused review of ongoing information about fatigue management from industry, academic and regulatory resources

♦ Analysis of incident data in order to better understand fatigue as a hazard factor in Australian mining

♦ A gap analysis to assess the effectiveness of current fatigue management processes at a selection of mine sites

To better understand the prevalence of fatigue, fatiguereported incident data was collected from Queensland, New South Wales, and Western Australia. The Queensland data indicated fatigue as a factor in 2.5 per cent of all reported notifiable incidents, with most fatigue-related incidents occurring when heavy vehicles were driven on surface mines.

The relationships between fatigue, mental health, and health and safety were also explored through additional fatigue management literature review. This review showed that a variety of interventions were used in mining and related industries, including training, lighting and environmental conditions. The greatest number of these studies, however, focused on shift design and rostering.

Drawing conclusions

Following the extensive study, analysis of fatigue-related incident reports and review of the current fatigue intervention process in place the report came to a variety of conclusions and offered suggestions and recommendations for the future.

Fatigue incident data collection

Further commitment and work to collect more extensive fatigue incident data is necessary, as there is a high likelihood that the registered fatigue incident numbers are under-reported.

Fatigue incidents

Proposing action plans that target fatigue risks for heavy vehicle drivers on surface mines during night shifts, with a necessary emphasis on the initial shifts of the roster cycle.

Fatigue management

The effectiveness of fatigue management controls should be established and substantiated, with the controls undergoing regular review. The report also proposes a review of legislation against best practice for continuous improvement. This is of particular importance given the obstacles sometimes encountered when workplaces seek to execute fatigue management controls but are prevented by mandated thresholds for agreement in consultation processes.

As part of this, studies that are well-designed and can evaluate the effectiveness and success of fatigue management interventions are necessary.

1. https://www.worksafe.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0018/26109/preventing-and-managing-fatigue-related-risk-in-the-workplace.pdf

Fatigue management gaps in the industry

After careful review of mine site documents, the report advocates for better monitoring of the long-term health effects of fatigue, an assessment of mental health outcomes, greater use of fatigue detection technologies, and an increased emphasis of the significance of mining fatigue management.

Fatigue and mental health

The report also strongly encouraged the industry to do more in terms of mental health, including investigating fatigue as a factor in mental health outcomes, and mental health as a potential predictor of fatigue and health and safety outcomes.

Mentally healthy workplaces toolkit

The report proposes that government and industry stakeholders collaborate to develop a toolkit which can assist workplaces in the assessment of psychosocial hazards and risks

that may relate to fatigue and mental health outcomes. As well as being used during major mine site changes, including the introduction of automation, and during incident investigations, this toolkit can also be used to inform prevention activities

Despite the difficulties in quantifying its direct link to injuries, incidents and illnesses in the workplace, fatigue has been linked to performance decrements in Australia’s minerals industry. Although the percentage of reported incidents that mention fatigue as a factor is quite low, it’s still a relatively preventable risk.

With the ongoing labour and skills shortages continuing to plague Australia’s mining industry and showing no signs of abating, the action plans, greater use of fatigue detection technologies, and toolkits to assess fatigue-related risks suggested in the report can help employers to strive towards safeguarding workers’ safety on mine sites.

CREATING A SAFE AND HEALTHY WORKFO R CE IN T HE MINING INDUSTRY

By Rebecca Todesco, Editor, Mining Magazine

Creating a safe, inclusive and welcoming workplace environment is paramount to the long-term wellbeing, happiness and success of employees. The mining and resources industry has recently come under scrutiny for reports of concerning behaviour in regards to racism, sexual harassment and bullying, prompting governments and mining companies to launch programs to tackle these issues.

Mining has long been considered a maledominated industry but recent figures from the latest Queensland Resources Council (QRC) gender-diversity data reveal that a record number of women are working for mining and energy companies. Women now represent 22 per cent of the workforce, up from almost 20 per cent in 2022.

In order to continue building the female workforce in the mining and resources industry, mining companies and mine operators need to ensure they are providing safe and inclusive workplaces and environments. More than just making the industry more welcoming to women, it’s crucial that the industry focus on creating an inclusive and diverse environment for minority groups as well.

A mining company that has decided to take action is Rio Tinto, launching its Everyday Respect Taskforce and ordering a comprehensive external review of its workplace culture, in efforts to create a safe, respectful and inclusive workplace. A mining giant that has followed this example is BHP, recently

announcing that it was reviewing its policies, processes and behaviours to prevent racism in its workplace.

Everyday Respect Taskforce

Rio Tinto commissioned an independent review of its workplace culture in 2021, in the hopes of better understanding, preventing and responding to harmful behaviours across its global operations.

Published in February 2022, Report into Workplace Culture at Rio Tinto identified concerning instances of sexual harassment, racism, bullying, and other forms of discrimination throughout the company.

Conducted over eight months, the study explored 10,000-plus peoples’ experiences, views and insights via an online survey. Additionally, close to 140 individual written submissions, more than 100 group listening sessions, and 85 private individual listening sessions were conducted to better understand employees’ experiences.

The report outlines 26 recommendations to stamp out harmful behaviour throughout the company, with suggestions encompassing bullying, women’s experience, racism and

LGBTQIA+ discrimination. The recommendations will guide the work Rio Tinto is undertaking to respond to and prevent unacceptable workplace behaviour and discrimination across its operations over the coming years.

Tackling the issue at a government level

It’s not just mining companies that are taking action on mitigating these issues. The Western Australian Government launched the Mental Awareness, Respect and Safety (MARS) Program in 2021 – a four-year research and evaluation project that is striving towards the goal of creating safe, respectful workplaces.

The program aims to achieve this goal by focusing on three key areas:

♦ Creating mentally healthy workplaces by promoting positive practices at work that support mental health and wellbeing, and managing psychosocial hazards

♦ Constructing a culture of respect and safety with healthy, inclusive, respectful, safe and gender-equitable workplaces

♦ Preparing for workplace safety in future mining by making sure workers are educated and trained in safety, encouraging safety innovation in new technologies, and addressing emerging risks

The program accompanies other work that the Western Australian Government is doing to tackle sexual violence and is a collaboration between the Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety, the Mental Health Commission, the Equal Opportunity Commission, and the Department of Communities.

Reporting on current practice

In September 2022, as part of the MARS Program, the Towards a healthy and safe workforce in the mining industry: A review and mapping of current practice report1 was published, detailing data collection and analysis on the significance mining companies place on ensuring the mental health, dignity and physical safety of their employees.

The report highlights some of the challenges that are unique to the mining industry that can pose risks to the wellbeing of workers, including remote working and travel, shift work, temporary accommodation, exposure to health and safety hazards and the male-dominated nature of the workforce.

The analysis of the state of workforce wellbeing as explored in the report showed a higher share of employees are satisfied with their jobs now than 15 years ago, however the number of very satisfied workers has reduced.

According to the report, despite being in the top five industries in regards to workers with excellent or very good selfreported physical health, the sector has the lowest share of very satisfied workers compared to other industries. In addition to this, the number of the sector’s employees reporting high or very high levels of psychological distress has increased significantly over the past decade.

The results from this report are in no way definitive and underscore the fact that further empirical research and surveys are necessary to get a clearer picture of workers’ experiences in regards to mental health in the industry.

Have your say and create a better future

One of the MARS Program’s more recent initiatives is the launch of a new Landmark Study Worker Survey by The Centre for Transformative Work Design in April 2023. It is hoped that the study will give insight into workers’ experiences in the mining industry in Western Australia.

Workers across the industry are being invited to take the survey, encompassing direct employees, contract workers, professional staff, office workers, managers and labour hires. Participants will be asked questions covering their experiences and perceptions across the MARS Program’s three focus areas.

This is an opportunity to contribute to the evaluation and understanding of the Western Australian mining industry, and to provide information that will help shape recommendations for positive change.

The feedback gathered will be utilised by The Centre for Transformative Work Design to guide the evidence-based recommendations it will make to the State Government. The survey is anonymous and will be available until the end of May 2023.

In order for an industry to be successful, its workforce must also be successful, happy, and well. Building safe, inclusive, and diverse workplaces and mitigating racism, bullying and sexual harassment leads to improved mental health and wellbeing for employees and is a task being undertaken across a variety of industries.

There is no silver bullet for solving these kinds of issues: what’s important is the continued efforts of the mining and resources industry to understand workers’ experiences to better inform future initiatives and programs.

MAGNETIC RESONANCE TECHNOLOGY: BREAKING GROUND IN ORE SORTING

Keeping up with the increasing mineral demand – especially those that are critical to the clean energy transition – is a challenge faced by mine operators around the world. Large-scale haul trucks, drill and blast technology and industrial automation are just some of the new technologies being deployed on mine sites to accelerate mining processes. Magnetic resonance (MR) technology, although not necessarily new, is making waves on mine sites for its ability to report grade measurements in real time.

n hard-rock mining, the process of extracting valuable metal components remains largely reliant on crushing, grinding and processing. Although innovations and advancements have improved these procedures, there is a growing need for other approaches that can significantly increase the productivity of mining in the face of intensive energy, water and chemical processes. It was this challenge that CSIRO’s Mineral Resources scientists decided to tackle, setting out to create technology which could measure the ore concentrations of extracted material in bulk and at speed, enabling the rejection of low concentration matter before undergoing further processing.

Developing the technology

CSIRO’s Research Program Director, Sensing and Sorting, Mineral Resources, Dr David Miljak, said that CSIRO first embarked on developing the Magnetic Resonance (MR) technology in the early 2000s.

“Our first exploratory developments were small laboratory-scale, where sample volumes and sensors were just a few cubic centimetres.

Gradually, we developed techniques for scaling the measurement to much larger volumes, now exceeding many cubic metres. Also, solutions for practical deployment were developed.

“As the MR technology is a radio-based method, solutions to avoid pickup of various radio sources in real-world environments must be applied to allow useful detection capability.”

Dr Miljak said that CSIRO has built considerable know-how and capability around various approaches for mitigating the effects of real-world, electrically “noisy” environments and, in parallel, have also had to re-examine the underlying ‘physics’ of the method, to reassess the best way to approach the measurements in very large volumes.

Since then, CSIRO has also completed more fundamental studies. This has led to the discovery of new mineral resonances that can be exploited for measurement in CSIRO-developed MR measurement systems.

“Despite the challenges in the huge engineering scale-up over the years, there were several major technical benefits to establishing the technology for mining applications that drove CSIRO to continue the work over a long period.

“Firstly, the method allows detection through thick layers of rock (sometimes many metres for some rock matrices). This is because the radio frequencies used in MR are relatively low.

“Secondly, the method can be configured for a fully quantitative measurement of mineral targets, with relatively simple calibration requirements.

“Thirdly, depending on the mineral target, the method can rapidly detect very low mineral grades, well below typical mine cut-offs.

Dr Miljak said that these attributes together provide a unique sensing offering that can be applied to new measurement applications.

Identifying a need in the market

The need for these kinds of technologies comes from longterm mining trends and they have begun to appear in earnest over recent years, with the decline of mined grades spurring an increasing need to find productivity improvements in mining and processing.

“Hand-in-hand with that trend, there is a parallel need to improve sustainability of mining, for example, in terms of water usage, footprint and emissions,” Dr Miljak said.

From quite early on, CSIRO’s target market involved applications that no other sensing technology could easily support.

“These included low level mineralogical phase measurement in processing plants for control purposes, the measurement of material on conveyors for bulk sorting and then later the adaption of the technology for measurement on haul vehicles

or on mine benches at the pre-blast stage. Each of these applications benefit strongly from the unique MR measurement capability.

“The later applications are based squarely on the mining side, an area which historically has tended to be more difficult to apply sensing technology, but where the right sensing approach can deliver step change improvements through enabling bulk sorting or selective mining.”

Since the early development of the technology the target market has remained relatively unchanged, but the awareness around pre-concentration strategies like sorting or selective mining has been steadily growing since CSIRO first embarked on the developments.

“CSIRO was certainly aware from the early days around the potential for the technology to make a substantial difference to mining and

How MR technology sorts ore at speed

“The MR technology developed by CSIRO is based on a ‘cousin’ of the more familiar spectroscopy used in clinical or chemistry applications, such as Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) or Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR),” Dr Miljak said.

In these methods, the subjects or materials are placed in a strong static magnetic field and radio waves are used to manipulate and detect hydrogen or other nuclei.

“The CSIRO technology uses other spectroscopies that are known to occur in solid crystalline materials, but which do not require the application of a static field; only the radio waves are required to detect the targeted material.

“This is an important advantage for real-time measurement, allowing reduction of the size and complexity of the measurement equipment.

“Unlike conventional NMR, the spectroscopies used are very sensitive to the particular mineral phase being targeted, allowing highly discriminating mineral measurement. On the other hand, the spectroscopies used in the CSIRO systems can only be practically applied for a more limited number of nuclei and mineral phases.”

Bringing the technology to market

Once this technology had been developed, it was necessary to commercialise it and take it to the market. This resulted in the creation of NextOre in 2017 – a company where commercial and technical expertise could be combined to guide companies through all the stages of sorting implementation.

According to NextOre CEO, Chris Beal, the technology was developed, and the company ultimately formed, to fill a gap in sensing solutions available to the mining industry.

“Existing sensor systems, the likes of XRF, XRT and PGNAA, have been in use now for decades across the mining industry. These have been very useful and successful, but they weren’t designed for the demands of bulk sorting. CSIRO realised there wasn’t a sensor which could give sufficiently precise, fast and reliable measurements that could be trusted by operators to separate waste and ore on a tonne-by-tonne basis.”

Mr Beal said that reliability is a major problem for traditional sensor technologies, as they often have to be recalibrated, which in turn has a profound effect on how the data can be used.

“If you take a measurement, but you don’t trust what it says until you go check it against a known quantity, then you simply can’t use that machine for real-time control. It's certainly still a useful tool, but it doesn’t suit real-time applications.

“Similarly, sampling bias is a real problem for point-type measurements. Some technologies only measure a small patch on the very top surface of ore, the very first few microns. With these, you often struggle to know whether that measurement is really properly representative; maybe it’s been raining and there was mud covering the rock. These types of variables can have huge consequences if they introduce bias.

“NextOre’s sensors resolve these reliability issues, MR does not need to be recalibrated and measures the entirety of what flows through it on a conveyor belt. It also retains these qualities and excels for very large throughput applications at the biggest mines, where most of the world’s metals are produced.”

From then to now: how the tech has changed

“The core MR technology we licensed from CSIRO is very solid, so our focus since NextOre began has been making these solutions practical and usable,” Mr Beal said.

“Mining projects are carefully balanced systems operated by hundreds or thousands of people who all rely on consistency. While the concept of keeping good material and rejecting bad in theory is fairly obvious, it can represent a significant change from operation as usual.

“Adding 10-20 per cent annually of metal production or, say, eliminating 30 per cent of waste dilution from the processing plant has significant effects across the operation.”

“There’s a rule of thumb in processing that each tonne of rock processed will require a cubic metre of water to be added during the processing stage. So a moderate-sized mining operation processing ten million tonnes per year is going to need ten million cubic metres of water, or ten billion litres.”

Mr Beal said that if 30 per cent of feed as waste is able to be cut out, and still deliver nominally the same copper product, then water consumption has been reduced by three billion litres. This is the same for tailings production.

“Any removal of waste from the processing stream is a direct reduction in the amount of tailings produced, and at rates of 4.5 to 6.3 billion tonnes of tailings production per year (2013 figure) that’s a big impact as well. Likewise for reagent consumption, electricity, and fuel. There are potentially vast improvements across the board in terms of environmental benefits, and improvements that are sorely needed.”

Moreover, miners are aware that the cost of making even minor changes can be large, and the consequences of incorrectly implementing new technology can be severe.

Mr Beal said that incorporating results into the complex feasibility and planning processes for setting up mining operations was a necessity to get it right. What this meant was demonstrations at full scale, fast installations, straightforward use and with minimal disruptions to the main production of the mine.

Two examples of outputs from this effort are the mobile bulk sorting plant and the truck analyser.

Mobile bulk sorting plant (MBSP)

“The mobile bulk sorting plant was developed to deliver mine-scale (400t per hour of feed) bulk sorting results quickly

and cost-effectively. This can either be relied upon for feasibility work to justify larger scale implementation or used to solve an urgent problem for the mine.”

Mr Beal said that some common problems the MBSP has been used to solve are providing extra feed material to a processing plant from a mineralised waste stockpile or pulling high-grade rock out of geologically complex, low-grade ores.

The mobile bulk sorter offers a solution for one of bulk ore sorting’s biggest problems – lab testing. Using flotation as an example, to run a flotation test program the process involves sending ore samples weighing a few kilograms each to a lab. The lab will run tests and control for variables like chemistry and grind size before supplying the results. Despite the challenges in sampling and representativity, Mr Beal said you can depend on the results and be confident they will scale.

“With bulk sorting, we rely on the preservation of in-situ heterogeneity. The results of bulk sorting will change depending on how you handle the material, and they’ll change a lot based on the scale that you perform a test. For this reason, a test done outside of the full-scale production environment is unreliable.

“You essentially have to run bulk sorting at full scale to know what the results will be. It’s a chicken and egg problem.

“The solution is pretty obvious – you make a mobile version of the system that can be rented and easily deployed.”

Mr Beal said the reason it hasn’t been done before can be attributed to the strength of MR as a technology, and the real difference the mobile bulk analyser’s speed makes.

NextOre’s mobile bulk sorting analyser can measure the grade of material in less than ten second intervals, with some others on the market taking as long as two minutes.

“The length of the measurement interval dictates the length of the conveyor you need. All else equal, what MR can do with a 10m conveyor belt, other technologies may need a 300m conveyor belt to do. That’s not possible in a mobile solution,” Mr Beal said.

Truck analyser system

“We’ve also worked with CSIRO to develop the truck analyser system. This is something that miners have been making very clear that they want since before NextOre was formed.

“Having a reliable measurement solution for trucks gives miners the ability to improve mining recoveries and eliminate inefficiencies in real-time. It is also a very flexible solution that miners can use in ways that suit their operations.”

He said that there are a couple big benefits to measuring ore while it’s still in a truck – heterogeneity being one of them.

“In bulk sorting we rely on material being mixed as little as possible. The less ore is handled, the less it is mixed and the more benefit there is from bulk sorting, so we benefit from being “closer to the face” of the mining operation.

"The other benefit is that you’re catching misassignments earlier in the process. This can mean that you catch good ore which would otherwise have ended up on the waste dump, or vice versa, without first having to put it through a crusher and get it on a conveyor.

“The trade-off is that you’re making decisions at a ‘resolution’ of tens or hundreds of tonnes, whereas bulk sorting on a conveyor can be done at a resolution of individual tonnes or even less,” Mr Beal said.

The ripple effect in the industry

Mr Beal said a lot of mining companies are looking to use this high-quality data as a fundamental part of the mining strategy for developing new mines.

“Miners, by nature, are working on projects that will extend out decades into the future, and they want to make sure they are applying technologies from the start that will give them the best value.

“But we’re also seeing the technology used at existing and aging mining operations to make sure that no good material is being left behind. Our technology is often seen as a way of extending a mine life.”

The impact the technology is making to the industry was demonstrated in December 2022, when NextOre was awarded Mining Technology Company of the Year for excellence in innovation at the global Mines and Money Connect conference.

Mr Beal said the award further underscored the fact that industry participants see bulk sorting’s potential for improving the environmental impacts and fundamental economics of mines across the world.

“The judging panel for Mines and Money awards were a collection of roughly two dozen senior executives from mining organisations, investment funds, consultants and advisory panels to the mining industry.

“They’re professionals tasked with looking into the future and addressing the significant barriers that our industry faces, and their focus is on technologies that provide a step change in performance, not just tweaking the margins.

“The founders of NextOre started with just that vision and the way we seek to apply sensing and bulk sorting has very lofty ambitions. Knowing that the industry sees that vision as achievable as well will continue to push us further.”

Focusing on the future

Progressing the technology to encompass even more applications is on the agenda, with NextOre looking forward to showing off the 200t truck analyser system which is due to be commissioned in the middle of 2023.

“Our main focus for the past five years has been very much on-conveyor sorting for copper sulphides. Now that we’ve done that successfully and can show these units operating at full scale, you can expect to see this expanding further and becoming more widely adopted by those larger and more risk-averse companies,” Mr Beal said.

“You should also expect to see our truck analysers popping up at surface operations and underground.

While we’ve really had our hands full to date with copper miners, you can also expect to see us expanding further into iron ore and gold commodities.”

With this MR technology, the long and tedious process of ore sorting is becoming a thing of the past and as this technology continues to innovate and expand its reach across the industry, mining corporations can expect to see new applications which will help to accelerate other mining processes on-site.