Goondicum Resources CEO Mark McCauley said this operation is unique due to the inland location, high quality ilmenite, clay content of the surrounding soil and low amount of toxic elements.
Before anything comes out of the Goondicum ilmenite mine next year, there’s a lot of hard work that has to be put into it.
But they are an energetic bunch at the Monto mine site and more than 35 workers are in the process of creating major changes to the mine’s production process and transport route ahead of its reopening in June.
The man with the plans behind some big ideas is project manager Wicky Moffat, who has been hard at work for more than a year, despite the mine’s closure in mid-2013.
“When the mine closed I worked harder and longer in that time than I did when we were in production,” Mr. Moffat said.
“I analysed all of everything in detail. The design is now much more efficient and cost efficient.”
One of the major changes to the production process will be a new surge tank, which can hold up to 750 tonnes.
“It can store the product for up to six hours. It basically ensures that if one part of the production process has to stop, other parts can keep working,” Mr. Moffat said.
Other new additions are a 1000-tonne silo and LNG-powered dryer, used at the last stage of the production line before the ilmenite is trucked off to port.
“The dryer will heat up the material and dry it. That means we will not be paying to carry extra water overseas, because we are charged by the tonne when ilmenite goes on the ship,” Mr. Moffat said.
Goondicum Resources chief executive Mark McCauley said there would be a steady supply leaving the mine.
“We are going to be trucking out about 600tonnes of ilmenite a day and the silo can store 1000 tonnes. So that means if something stops production for a while, the trucks will still have a constant supply,” he said.
Other changes included bumping up the amount of product that can be processed at once, to double the mine’s daily output.
The new road that will connect the eastern side of the mine to Streeters Rd and the Bruce Hwy, and knock 100km off the trucks’ haulage distance, is also well under way.
“We could have upgraded Streeters Rd or gone over the top and built a new road through Kontaka, which would have been 10km shorter,” Mr. McCauley said.
“It was a really tough decision to make but in the end we decided it was better to upgrade existing infrastructure where possible.”
Mr. McCauley also wanted to highlight the new road would cut through the mining lease and would not provide a shortcut through to the Bruce Hwy from Monto.
“From Monto it will not be any shorter to the Bruce Hwy than going via Kalpowar and will in fact not be a through road as access through the mining lease is prohibited,” Mr. McCauley said.
Source: Central Telegraph
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