Canadian Mining Journal May 2016

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May 2016

A serious look at

MINE SAFETY HOW AUTONOMOUS MINING PROVIDES NEW BENEFITS TO THOSE WILLING TO TAKE THE RISK

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CANADIAN Mining Journal www.canadianminingjournal.com

MAY 2016 VOL. 137, NO. 4

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FEATURES AUTONOMOUS MINING 10 Autonomous mining has been in the making for at least 20 years but it’s now starting to catch on around the world because one of its main features… safety.

14 Equipment operators find it easier and safer to control machinery from the surface at huge underground mine in Ontario.

18 Converting an underground mine into an open-pit operation is made easier and safer by using a wireless network to monitor equipment operations.

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MINE SAFETY 20 Northern mines shake up safety culture by using tougher measures (including dogs) to detect potential problems.

24 Security teams live and work on Canada’s Ice Highway to help ensure safe passage for motorists using the 450-km-long road from January to the end of March.

26 Site safety, particularly when it comes to containing potentially dangerous fuels and lubricants, is the focus of this article on containerization.

DEPARTMENTS 5 EDITORIAL This month Editor Russell Noble take exception to people pointing fingers and criticizing someone else’s creativity by saying: “That’s not the way I would have done it” long after the work is done.

6 FIRST NATIONS A reaction to the 2016 Federal Budget.

8 LAW A column by Lindsay Mullen, a lawyer with Norton Rose Fulbright talks about evaluating company health and safety management systems and programs.

28 COMMENT Matthew Peters, a tax partner with Bennett Jones, reviews the Federal Government’s recent budget and talks about how it brings welcome news to the Canadian mining industry.

20 ABOUT THE COVER

Cover photo provided by Sandvik.

30 CONVEYORS A technical look at some of the various conveyor systems being used to move materials in and around mine sites around the world.

36 CSR AND MINING A regular column by Michael Torrance, a lawyer with Norton, Rose, Fulbright’s Toronto office, on Corporate Social Responsibility.

38 UNEARTHING TRENDS

By Michelle Grant, EY Transaction Advisory Services Leader for Mining & Metals Sector in B.C.

MAY 2016

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Coming in June A look at mining in Saskatchewan and Manitoba.

For More Information

Please visit www.canadianminingjournal.com for regular updates on what’s happening with Canadian mining companies and their personnel both here and abroad. A digital version of the magazine is also available at www.digital.canadianminingjournal.com

CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

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CANADIAN Mining Journal

EDITORIAL

That’s not the way I would have done it

May 2016 Vol. 137 — No. 4 38 Lesmill Rd. Unit 2, Toronto, Ontario M3B 2T5 Tel. (416) 510-6789 Fax (416) 447-7658 www.canadianminingjournal.com

Editor Russell B. Noble 416-510-6742 rnoble@canadianminingjournal.com Field Editor Marilyn Scales 613-270-0213 mscales@canadianminingjournal.com Production Manager Jessica Jubb Circulation Manager Cindi Holder 416-510-6789, ext. 43544 cholder@glacierbizinfo.com Publisher & Sales Robert Seagraves 416-510-6891 rseagraves@canadianminingjournal.com Sales Western Canada, Western U.S.A. and Quebec Joelle Glasroth 416-510-5104 jglasroth@canadianminingjournal.com Toll Free Canada & U.S.A.: 1-888-502-3456 ext 2 or 43734 Group Publisher Anthony Vaccaro

Established 1882 Canadian Mining Journal provides articles and information of practical

use to those who work in the technical, administrative and supervisory aspects of exploration, mining and processing in the Canadian mineral exploration and mining industry. Canadian Mining Journal (ISSN 0008-4492) is published 10 times a year by BIG L.P. Mining.

BIG is located at 38 Lesmill Rd., Unit 2. Toronto, ON, M3B 2T5.

Phone (416) 510-6891.

Legal deposit: National Library, Ottawa. Printed in Canada. All rights reserved. The contents of this magazine are protected by copyright and may be used only for your personal non-commercial purposes. All other rights are reserved and commercial use is prohibited. To make use of any of this material you must first obtain the permission of the owner of the copyright. For further information please contact Russell Noble at 416-510-6742.

Subscriptions — Canada: $51.95 per year; $81.50 for two years.

USA: US$64.95 per year. Foreign: US$77.95 per year. Single copies: Canada $10; USA and foreign: US$10. Canadian subscribers must add HST and Provincial tax where necessary. HST registration # 809744071RT001.

From time to time we make our subscription list available to select companies and organizations whose product or service may interest you. If you do not wish your contact information to be made available, please contact us via one of the following methods: Phone: 1-888-502-3456 ext 2; Fax: 416-447-7658; E-mail: cholder@glacierbizinfo.com Mail to: Cindi Holder, BIG Mining LP, 38 Lesmill Rd, Unit 2, Toronto. ON, M3B 2T5.

We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Magazine Fund toward our editorial costs.

MAY 2016

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By Russell Noble

O

ccasionally I find there are too many topics worthy of discussion here because, as you all know, just about everything that happens in the day-to-day business world has an impact on mining.

It doesn’t matter if it’s political, financial, or criminal in nature, there’s always something that somehow ties in with the mining community.

Take politics, for example, it’s probably the number one topic when it comes to making the news, and mining news is no exception.

Regardless of whether it’s on the federal, provincial, municipal, or even county level, it almost goes without saying that politics will somehow creep into the conversation.

It’s human nature to express opinions on how politicians are controlling things by the decisions they make. But, as anyone who creates, or makes decisions know, it’s the easiest thing in the world for others to criticize what someone else has usually spent many stressful hours creating.

In fact, as a ‘creator’ myself, (nobody writes my Editorial, nor the stories where my byline appears) I know just how easy it is for others to say, “That’s not the way I would have done it.”

Again, easy to criticise, harder to do, and that’s why when I read articles like the one published recently by The Globe and Mail entitled: Closed mine leaves toxic footprint, a story talking about the closure of the Giant Mine in Yellowknife in 1999, I find comments (17 years later) that poke holes in a decision that was made years ago, disturbing, and of little merit.

First of all, in the Giant Mine case, The Globe and Mail story is based on a study that claims that arsenic and mercury levels found in small lakes surrounding the closed mine site are dangerously high, and that the mine is the source of the contaminants.

While there’s probably no denying that the contamination is linked to industrial emissions from decades ago when gold-bearing ore was heated in a roaster, resulting in tonnes of arsenic-laden dust being sent skyward, and eventually settling in the lakes, but why did it take 17 years for a study by the University of Ottawa, and commented on by NWT Department of Environment and Natural Resources, to point fingers now, when it was known in 1999 what was going on?

It seems to me that if the Department of Environment and Natural Resources knew about the situation at the mine for so many years, which it presumably did because of records that indicate that about 237,000 tonnes of arsenic-trioxide dust are known to have been produced and captured during roasting operations up until 1999, then why wait until now to be so concerned about the additional 20,000 tonnes that had already escaped, as early as 1958 before capture methods were put in place, to put Giant Mine`s back in the headlines?

What’s done is done, and as far I’m concerned, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources should have been all over this issue 17 years ago and not wait until now (with a presumably expensive University of Ottawa report in its hands) to blame the miners for a problem that I’m sure they would have gladly worked with the government to help resolve.

Through creativity, Giant Mine’s Yellowknife mine could have served as a perfect examples for showing corporate social responsibility instead of being the target as the source of “That’s not the way I would have done it” comments. CMJ CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

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FIRST NATIONS

Reaction to 2016 Federal Budget

By Isadore Day, Wiindawtegowinini, Assembly of First Nations, Regional Chief Ontario

T

he March 22nd federal budget contained the largest ever investment for Indigenous Peoples – $8.4 billion in new spending spread out over the next five years. But is it really enough? When you do the math, it works out to $1.68 billion per year. And upon further examination, the majority of funding doesn’t kick in until four or five years from now.

Over the last 20 years, First Nations have lost approximately $25 billion due to a two per cent funding cap imposed by a previous Liberal government. Over the past 20 years, far too many First Nations communities have only been able to manage their misery as a result of severe government underfunding.

This has led to multiple and growing crises – suicide, water, health. This has led to far too many of our children taken from their families and placed in state care. This has led to far too many of our people in prison; and far too many of our girls and women either missing or murdered.

Since last fall, the Chiefs of Ontario have presented five key areas that must be immediately addressed by the federal government: w 1. Ending the First Nations health crisis, which can only be addressed by fixing the water crisis, ensuring access to health services, and fixing health benefits for First Nations; w 2. Eliminating abject poverty through investments in hous ing, healthy affordable food, infrastructure, education and training; w 3. Immediately implementing mental health and addiction services to address the youth suicide crisis, prescription drug abuse, and mental wellness; w 4. Recognizing First Nations authority over land and resources, as recognized within our Treaties; and w 5. Access to new technologies, such as broadband internet and green energy.

Twenty years ago, in 1996, we had over 400 recommendations made by the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP). If all of those recommendations had been implemented, First Nations would now be living at the same socio-economic level as the rest of Canada.

Those recommendations that required major funding investments were ignored. In fact, the government response to RCAP

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was the two per cent cap. We must also deal with the shackles of the paternalistic Indian Act that is now 140 years old as of April 12, 2016. This is the same act that South Africa used as a model for apartheid.

One of RCAP’s major recommendations was to dismantle the Indian Act and replace the Indian Affairs bureaucracy with a more streamlined, responsive agency. Instead of 20 years of major investments in our own governments, economies and education systems, we have faced cutbacks and bureaucratic indifference. It is now 2016. Last year, Prime Minister Trudeau said the most important relationship for him and his government is with Indigenous Peoples. Every single minister has a mandate letter which emphasizes the need to work with Indigenous Peoples as a top priority.

I have great respect for Indigenous Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett. She is committed to ending the poverty and despair that grips far too many of our communities. I recall that the biggest standing ovation she received at last December’s Special Chiefs Assembly was when she said: “Rather than take children away from their families, we need to put food in the fridge so they can stay at home.”

Well, now it’s time to put all of those words into action. Now it’s time to fulfill those mandate letters. Now it’s time to breathe life into RCAP. Now is especially the time to fully implement last year’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 Calls to Action. Besides a renewed relationship, this is the other major commitment made by Prime Minister Trudeau – Implementation of the TRC Calls to Action.

In many respects, the TRC is an updated RCAP for the 21st century. The majority of the Calls to Action address five critical areas that must be improved: 1. Child welfare; 2. Education; 3. Health; 4. Justice; and 5. Language and culture.

By dealing with the determinants of health, we can move onto education and economic development. Once our children and youth are healthy, they will be able to learn properly. They will finally be mentally and physically strong enough to build happy, healthy communities. Then – and only then – will First Nations break the cycle of poverty, and finally be able to secure our rightful place in Canada. CMJ

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LAW IN MY MINE(D)

Evaluating company health and safety management systems and programs

By Lindsay Mullen

S

pring is here and with it comes spring cleaning, the all-too-familiar time of the year when we roll up our sleeves and scrub down the walls, the floors and throw out items that have long overstayed their welcome.

Cleaning makes us look and feel better and healthier about ourselves and our belongings. It puts our house in order.

There is no reason that spring cleaning should stop at our porch steps. In fact, recent developments in the mining industry and in health and safety rules have made “spring cleaning” of health and safety programs essential.

In November of 2015, following an investigation of the Mount Polley Mine tailings storage facility breach in British Columbia on August 4, 2014, the chief inspector of mines made 19 recommendations directed toward the mining operator, the mining industry, professional organizations and the government regulator. One such recommendation was establishing a dedicated investigation, compliance and enforcement team within the British Columbia Ministry of Energy and Mines, led by the deputy chief inspector of mines.

In addition, the minister of energy and mines introduced Bill 8 – 2016, Mines Amendment Act, in response to the incident, to strengthen compliance and enforcement for mining. The proposed changes include: n Adding administrative penalties, which would allow inspectors to take enforcement measures without going to court; and n Increasing the penalty for non-compliance from $100,000 and/or up to one year imprisonment, to $1 million and/or up to three years imprisonment for non-compliance.

While this incident primarily resulted in environmental impacts, the findings from the investigation will lead to broad changes affecting the entire industry. OHS practices will be held under greater scrutiny, while the consequences for having weak or non-existent safety practices will become even more severe.

This trend toward more comprehensive compliance review and enforcement procedures and tools is not restricted to British Columbia, or the mining industry; rather, amplified inspection and enforcement measures and industry requirements continue to evolve across Canada. In 2013, amendments were made to Alberta’s OHS legislation providing new enforcement tools to OHS officers. Officers now have the power to issue administrative penalties for violating, or failing to comply with, most OHS 8|

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requirements. Administrative penalties can be up to $10,000 per violation per day.

In Ontario, following a coroner’s inquest into the death of two workers at the Stobie Mine on June 8, 2011, the jury issued 24 recommendations, which then formed a broader review of mining safety by the Mining, Health, Safety and Prevention Review Committee. The committee’s review resulted in various recommendations to amend Ontario’s OHS regulation pertaining to mines and mining plants, including requiring that mines and mining plants conduct risk assessments, have formal traffic management programs, strengthen water management and ground control programs, and update training requirements for surface diamond drill operations. The recommendations also called for more announced and unannounced inspections of mines.

The changes have already begun. In Ontario, a new noise regulation under Ontario’s OHS Act replaces the noise protection requirements set out in the regulations for mines and mining plants. It will be important to watch for further changes in Ontario and British Columbia. Ultimately, increased standards that are adopted in one province can reasonably be expected to be adopted in other provinces as well, or at the very least provide guidance as to industry best practices.

A regular and concentrated effort to stay current with and be committed to OHS management systems and programs is fundamental to ensuring compliance with the law. In addition, it has the added benefit of improving worker productivity, quality of work and morale, which, while always important, is vital in a time of economic tumult.

Spring cleaning should then involve: a review to confirm that company OHS policies and practices are up to date and meet all current legislated requirements and industry best practices; confirmation that there are clearly defined and well-communicated health and safety roles and responsibilities for all levels of the company; a review of hazard identification, assessment and control processes; planning of regular worksite inspections; a review of worker competency and training; confirmation of emergency response planning, and proper program administration.

Such spring cleaning will go a long way towards ensuring a safe and productive workplace, and an orderly home, for whenever the inspector decides to visit. CMJ LINDSAY MULLEN is a partner at Norton Rose Fulbright, Toronto.

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HANDS

OFF Can pay (hand) some rewards

Two pieces of heavy equipment work deep underground and far from the operators located safely at a command centre located in a different part of the mine.

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BY RUS S E LL N O B L E

T

he thought of autonomous mining is a relatively new concept for many mining companies because it’s still considered a futuristic technology in the minds of many of today’s miners.

Having an expensive piece of equipment working without an on-board operator at the controls is something that’s still too risky for many owners to invest in because of the potential losses should something go wrong.

And, understandably, things can go wrong, and the potential liabilities are still too high, particularly when mine owners and operators are now watching their bottom lines more than ever thanks to today’s economy.

However, taking risks is the backbone of mining and regardless of how potentially dangerous they may be, some forward-thinking companies are venturing into the world of autonomous mining.

And, the concept of remote-controlled equipment isn’t new. In fact, Caterpillar’s WWW.CANADIANMININGJOURNAL.COM

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Joysticks and monitors make operating mining equipment underground much more comfortable, and safer, than actually sitting on the iron.

Chief Engineer Michael Murphy says, “Some equipment manufacturers and their suppliers have been studying autonomous mining for more than 20 years and are now transforming their research into realities. After years of building and testing prototypes, designers and engineers have now succeeded in making small components capable of controlling massive pieces of equipment through a hand-held device containing a few switches and a couple of joysticks.”

For example, Murphy says, automating underground loaders, also commonly known as load-haul-dump machines (LHDs), is a convincing one. He says there are at least a dozen mines around the world right now that are benefitting from autonomous mining and tele-remote control of their equipment.

Murphy says that Caterpillar has been a leader in this field by developing a system for semi-autonomous operation of LHDs, called Command for underground.

Command is a capability set within Cat MAY 2016

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MineStar System, which includes technologies for both surface and underground mining.

Technically, Murphy said the Command system for underground mining enables both remote and autonomous operation for part of the work cycle of the equipment.

Primarily, he said, it was developed for safety by reducing human exposure to the immediate workplace.

In addition to working at a safer distance from the equipment, Murphy said that by removing the operator from a potentially hazardous environment, it also allows the operator to work in a more comfortable, ergonomic operator station.

The station itself is modeled on the actual cab of the machine, with all ergonomic controls, alarms and features operating just as they do in the machine. The system can be equipped for line-of-sight operation, or for tele-remote operation with the addition of video feeds from the site and optional video and audio feeds from the equipment.

Grade control and avoidance zones are also designed into the system, and with a switching-control feature, the operator can move from one machine to another, which enables one operator to control multiple pieces of equipment when the work does not require simultaneous operation.

Murphy further explained that remote operation allows machines to be used under highwalls, and in other situations that present potential safety and health hazards. He described typical applications to include edge work, operation on, or near, unstable ground, leach-pad ripping and maintenance, aggressive ripping, and pushing stockpile material to underground feeders.

As mentioned earlier, safety is the main priority, but the remote operator station also helps contribute to productivity because shift changes are faster as one operator takes another’s place in the seat.

Faster shift changes also reduce machine downtime and optimize productivity.

“Remote operation also enables a machine to continue working immediately CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

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after blasting operations, rather than waiting for the air to clear,” said Murphy.

It’s estimated that automated haul trucks can provide an extra 500 machine hours per year, which in some cases, can mean upwards of 10 per cent more hours of machine life.

Murphy said that automation also decreases the need for expensive training and retraining of new operators when there’s worker turnover. A breakdown of mining costs shows that 16 per cent of the cost of mining is in training and administration; followed by 14 per cent for haul support, 45 per cent for actual hauling, 15 per cent for loading, six per cent for blasting, and four percent for drilling.

Adding to this, conventional mining takes 4.5 people per truck to operate and, “When you take people out of the operating picture, it’s far more controlled by allowing for the improved execution of the tasks which ultimately, often means greater production and profitability,” said Murphy.

“I think that’s what people forget about automation; it allows for a better way to measure the process, and then measure process variants, thus improving on that process.”

Building on its fixed-location control stations, Murphy continued by saying that Caterpillar is working to develop a semi-autonomous dozing system, which enables one operator to manage multiple dozers simultaneously.

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ment testing facilities in Arizona, Editor Russell Noble was given some hands-on time (see adjacent photo) to operate one of CAT’s large dozers.

As you can see in the photo, one small device can control one large machine, but as mentioned earlier, multiple machines can be controlled simultaneously to improve productivity.

However, Command for underground is the main focus with its three levels of operational control that are supplemented with video from on-board cameras to provide a real-time view of the machine location and status.

In co-pilot mode, the operator is able to monitor equipment locations in a mine plan, and by using joysticks to give the machine directional input. On-board scanners, combined with radio network infrastructure, ensure the machine selfsteers along a safe path.

The most advanced element of control, auto-pilot, allows the machine to auto tram, dump and return for operator control of the loading process. Zones within the operations area can be configured to regulate machine speed and to establish boundaries at required points.

At any time, full operator control of the system can

Controls and monitors (top left) located above ground make operating various machines more efficient and productive. Keeping trucks (above) moving at a steady pace and at a controlled distance apart, helps ensure a constant flow of material within the mine. Immediately above shows a variety of equipment working in staged harmony. There are no operators on any of the equipment above.

be obtained through tele-remote mode and by providing three different levels of operational control, helps maintain the versatility that an LHD provides to a mining operation.

Separate radio networks can be fed to a single operator station allowing the control of multiple machines in different areas

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of the mine. Automatic camera switching and the staggering of load cycles ensure the operator maintains safe control of all machines at the same time.

The system also has features that reduce hazards in the working area of the machine.

The Area Isolation System ensures that Command for underground will not operate in the event of personnel entering or equipment leaving the operations area while the machine is being controlled from the operator station.

The system has the ability to be relocated to allow for changing operational needs. In brief, a barrier control panel is located at each entry to the operations area. Connected to either a gate proximity switch, or LADAR, these barriers ensure that the machine is disabled if it has detected entry into the operations area.

Command for underground components are purpose-built for underground mining with rugged features targeted to underground applications. Additionally, they can report extensive machine health and operational data to the operator station if needed. There is no need to send a technician to the machine to check machine health.

Command for underground only requires a mine map to be loaded into the server, and the system is designed to work Editor Russell Noble (foreground) operates a massive dozer/ripper with portable controls strapped over his shoulders as a CAT instructor watches as the machine is put through its paces.

within the mine profile. There is no need to drive a machine manually to “train” the system initially and each time routes or road conditions change.

Many greenfield mine developments now include automation in the overall scope of the project due to cost-per-tonne analysis. Mining companies that operate automated systems now understand the efficiencies gained and develop their mines to take best advantage, but the automated

and autonomous mine is not something that’s built overnight.

As mentioned earlier, the journey to autonomy is made from years of trial and error, but as technology gets more advanced, and technologists become more familiar with the capabilities of today’s mining equipment, there’s no denying that automation will continue to make operations more predictable and consistent, but most of all… safer. CMJ

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joystick

A

GENERATION

BY RUS S E LL N OBLE

Remote systems provide safer approach to mining

O

wning and operating one of the larger gold mines in Canada involves far more than producing gold at a rate that earns the miner an international status for being a world-class producer.

In fact, gold is almost secondary when it comes to Goldcorp’s Business Plan for also making its Red Lake Mine in Northwestern Ontario one of the safer mines in the world.

Aerial view of Goldcorp’s Red Lake Mine where Hard-Line’s Teleop System is in place underground.

MAY 2016

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With a workforce of more than 1,250 people, including contractors on site, the mine covers more than 2,330 hectares within one of the world’s more prolific gold camps.

Located about 230km northwest of Dryden, adjacent to Highway 105 connecting with the Trans-Canada Highway, the Red Lake Mine is also very accessible for the busy year-round delivering of goods and services, and shipping its gold to market.

Last year, for example, gold production totaled 375,700 ounces, with an average grade of 18 grams of gold per tonne.

All underground mining at Red Lake is carried out by using three mining methods of ore extraction: Overhand Cut and Fill (OCF), Underhand Cut and Fill (UFC), and Long Hole (LH).

The high-grade zone, which primarily consists of a narrow vein system, is mined at the rate of 450 tonnes per day with an average grade of over 45 grams per tonne (1.3 ounces per tonne).

Thanks to innovative mining techniques, such as a wet shotcrete system, the use of larger trucks, use of electric-man carriers, and a portable diamond drill mounted on a jumbo carrier, efficiencies at the mine continue to improve.

The operation is supported by two mill processing facilities, providing a total milling capacity of 3,100 tonnes per day, including crushing, processing and pastefill plants.

Processing operations consist of grinding, gravity concentrating, leaching, carbon-in-pulp (CIP), carbon elution and reactivation, electrowinning, bullion smelting/refining and cyanide destruction, flotation and concentrate handling—all of which are required to recover the gold.

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gold, the company’s work on enlarging and upgrading the existing shaft to its neighbouring Cochenour deposit that, once again, serves as a perfect example of this commitment to moving forward.

By completing a 6.0-km-long haulage drift between the existing Red Lake underground mine and Cochenour, the haulage drift now enables Goldcorp to haul ore for processing at the existing mill.

The drift also opens up exploration of more than 6.0 km of untested ground in one of the world’s richer gold districts.

It’s this kind of advanced thinking that’s keeping the company at the top of its game but, regardless, the focus at Red Lake still remains on asset optimization, cost reductions, and most of all… safety.

In fact, because of this mandate to expand its footprint, Goldcorp is also transitioning to mechanized mining, bulk mining and material movement automation in an effort to lower mining costs and improve safety.

And, it’s because of this business plan that the company is taking major steps towards more autonomous mining because it recognizes the safety and performance benefits it can derive from moving from the traditional methods of operating its equipment.

Because today’s machine operators are generally better than yesterday’s, and tomorrow’s ‘joystick generation’ will be even better than today’s, advances in machine technology, particularly where autonomous operation is concerned, will help make operating mining equipment more user friendly.

And it goes without question, that computers, and in particular, computer games and the hand-eye coordination required to play them, is creating an entirely new generation of technically savvy people capable of manipulating their

way around a keyboard or joystick like never before.

Kent Cook, Superintendent, Operational Excellence, at Goldcorp says, “We have no autonomous equipment yet, but we do have tele-remote control systems known as Teleop from Hard-Line that certainly have the capability to go to the next level of autonomous operation. Our initial plan is to institute the use of teleoperations to bring our personnel, obviously from a safety perspective, in tune with operating machinery from the surface. At present, we have three fully functioning teleoperated scoops in operation at Red Lake Mine.”

Cook said that Goldcorp intends to install additional teleop systems over the next few months, and that it will probably consider automating (to some degree) one or more of the systems.

Moving towards more automation naturally involves more training and Cook said, “Goldcorp already has a number of existing underground equipment operators that we’ve included in our regular business practices, and one of those elements is the training element. The training module that we have at Red Lake here typically includes our line-of-sight remote operators familiar with radio remote-operated scoops. Those operators are already familiar with the radio remote world, and they are typically the ones that we target so they go through additional training in which Hard-Line has actually provided us.”

But not all Goldcorp personnel involved in the training are seasoned miners. Cook says that while it’s true that most of those that are training on the Teleop system have some form of underground experience, we do have a couple of operators that have very little mining experience and they do just fine with the system.”

To reinforce this point, Max Gray, VP, Sales and Marketing for Hard-Line of WWW.CANADIANMININGJOURNAL.COM

2016-04-18 10:55 AM

A Teleop operator keeps a close eye on what’s going on underground (inset photo) at the Red lake Mine in Northwestern Ontario.

Dowling, Ontario, says, “The Teleop system provides ultimate safety, even for novice operators, because it enables the operator to control heavy equipment from a safe place, on the surface, far away from where the machinery is located.”

“There’s no operator underground. He or she is driving from the surface using a tele-operational station which is a chair set up with monitors. It’s the ultimate in safety, and it’s important to note that teleop can be used for virtually any type of heavy equipment. It doesn’t matter what it is.”

For example, Kent Cook once again referred to the company’s 6.0-km-long Cochenour drift where; “We have dedicated tramming levels where we’re moving ore via locomotives, underground trains, as it were. We have ore cars and we are designing the system to allow operation of those locomotives so that we can move ore from one ore pass system to another ore pass system 24 hours a day through a teleoperation set up on surface. The operator will be sitting on the surface and operating locomotives and the associated ore pass chutes and dumps from surface.”

Cook further explained that Goldcorp has a teleoperation command centre located right in the heart of the administration building that enables other employees MAY 2016

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to observe the operators working the machines from the Teleop station. This, he says, also works as an informal training session for others who may someday operate underground equipment, even if they have never really touched a piece of heavy equipment.

Currently, Cook says, there are five systems (with additional systems being installed) in the command centre controlling the underground scoops, as well as a designated system for the locomotive.

“That is one of the distinct advantages of going with Teleop, says Cook. “In an underground mining environment, again, for safety reasons, the mine has to be cleared in order to blast. So, during those blasting windows, we shut down, basically shut down underground operations. And no one is allowed entry until it is confirmed that it is safe to do so. So the distinct advantage of teleoperations is that you don’t have to worry about those windows. You set the equipment up for teleop use, and even if an operator has been running a scoop, for example, through his regular shift in manual mode, manual operation, no radio line of sight operation, he can set his machine up for Teleop, go up to the surface at his regularly scheduled time, and just hop back in

the chair and go back to work” Chad Rhude, Hard-Line’s VP, Production and Design, once again touched on the company’s locomotive project.

“There is quite a bit of automation going into that. The runs between the various ore passes and chutes are automated and we’re using some 3D laser technology to recognize where we are within the drift. The chutes and the operations have some automated features, things like automated ore pass cover.

We’ve automated some of the functions so that basically when the LHD comes in to where the ore pass is, the door opens up automatically. The operator can dump, and when he leaves, it closes, so he’s safe that way. And, also from another safety point of view, we work with procedures and a gate system which is monitored by our system that doesn’t allow the overall teleop system to operate unless the gates are closed. Cameras are also used so that we can see the gates to make sure everything is safe.”

And that’s the bottom line.

“Making sure everything is safe,” and it appears to Goldcorp and Hard-Line and its Teleop System are working together to make this a reality at the Red Lake Mine. CMJ CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

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SPECIAL

REPORT

C

onverting an underground gold mine into an open-pit operation is no small feat, just ask Goldcorp Porcupine Gold Mines (PGM) about its historic Hollinger Project in Timmins, Ontario.

When PGM officially closed the underground operation in 1989, after operating the mine from 1910 to 1968, it was faced with the traditional challenges of contending with mine shaft openings, near surface stopes, small pits and ground subsidences.

Options for the property varied but the one thing that PGM knew very early in the conversion was that it had to install a modern communications network to help ensure that the transition from underground to open-pit went smoothly, and safely.

While determining the best set-up, PGM had major considerations to address on the way to fully operationalizing the site; one of which was implementing and maintaining a private wireless network for communications.

The company determined that it required a private network because broadcasting over a public Wi-fi network posed security

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risks, so in 2004, PGM installed MineStar, from Caterpillar, and was broadcasting communications between the office and its fleet of equipment via the 900 megahertz frequency.

Even 12 years ago, PGM was working on the leading edge of technology because it was using its communications network for applications such as automating its drills.

As the years passed, however, PGM learned that MineStar would not support 900 MHz for much longer, so the company had to find a different solution; one that would not require regular upgrades.

Because of the mine’s location in Timmins, the topography made implementing any wireless network a tricky endeavour.

The city was one cause of the interference, especially after it installed its own 900 MHz frequency system, which fought with PGM’s system for bandwidth.

A five-mile haul road between the open pit and the crusher was also subject to interference, as it wound through a dense pine forest.

Goldcorp soon realized that it had a challenge on its hands because it needed a network built to withstand a rugged, mobile WWW.CANADIANMININGJOURNAL.COM

2016-04-18 10:57 AM

Converting

TO A WIRELESS WORLD environment plagued with interference issues. Plus, they had a number of security issues that required an airtight system that would be reliable in all bandwidth situations.

A Kinetic Mesh wireless network from Rajant Corporation proved to be the answer for Goldcorp because the company was able to design a network with the ability to do on-the-fly network changes that can handle interference from crossing multiple channels.

With proven military applications, plus mining, oil and gas, transportation and public transit, Rajant technicians analyzed Goldcorp’s Hollinger site and its fleet of equipment and installed 30 nodes on mobile equipment and seven fixed nodes at key communications points throughout the site, including the drills, haul road and main office building.

Since the network does not require the level of power usage that other systems do, technicians were able to install some of the nodes on solar trailers. The nodes are the backbone of the wireless network by serving as an intelligent repeater; a wireless access point and wireless-to-wired bridge. Each node is available in various frequenMAY 2016

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Many pieces of heavy mining equipment are monitored at the Hollinger Mine in Timmins using a wireless system capable of working in an area surrounded by other communication channels.

cies for use within the mine, and can be battery or DC powered.

Because the nodes are located throughout the mine, they are designed with the flexibility to transmit and receive data throughout a myriad of connectivity solutions, including LTE, satellite, point-to-point wireless and wired networks.

Since the nodes are able to communicate with each other rather than relying on a single controller node, PGM is able to operate all data communication over a common wireless infrastructure with no single point of failure.

In addition, voice, data and video communications can ‘hop’ from node to node with very little administrative overhead burdening the network. The network can also rebuild and ‘heal’ itself based on whatever wireless nodes are available.

Plus, nodes can be added as desired to further enhance network performance. CMJ CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

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Shaking

UP

safety culture The days of the dodging the safety boss are over.

Today, everybody owns safety – and that’s something to sniff at.

BY N ORTH ER N CO R R E S P O N D E N T B IL L BRADEN

A

t a recent crew change heading up to Kennady Diamond’s Kelvin camp northeast of Yellowknife, a dozen or so geologists, camp workers and a cook milled around the loading bay at the Air Tindi hangar. Pallets of fresh food and carts piled with duffle bags crowded the floor while a small fork lift jockeyed about, preparing to load the Dash 7 warming up outside.

But before anything or anybody went aboard, a rambunctious, outrageously friendly Black Labrador Retriever named OD – short for OverDose – had a very serious job to do. His astonishingly sensitive nose quickly and thoroughly sniffed every box, bag and person to make sure they were clean of alcohol or illicit drugs.

OD and his easy-going handler, Mark Hicks of North of Sixty K-9 Services, were not there to find bad guys and turn them over to police. Rather, they are among the leading innovations that companies are using to foster a paradigm shift in values and attitudes around health and safety in the mining industry.

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Benefits are Immediate “The kind of behaviour about drugs or alcohol that was accepted 20 years ago in exploration camps is not tolerated today,” says Hicks, a retired RCMP staff sergeant with two decades of canine security experience. “I created the first canine company in Canada [in 2011] to do this from a health and safety perspective.”

His business strategy is simple: A well-trained dog, a skilled handler, and good policy will help companies and workers stay safe.

“At first it wasn’t met with open arms,” Hicks says. He had to overcome skepticism that if the dog did find bad stuff, there would be retribution against the employee. Here’s where the innovation comes it: Hicks works with clients across Canada to write their drug and alcohol policies to avoid threat or punishment, and open the door to helping a worker change behaviour and overcome substance problems.

“You get everybody together, explain what you want to do, and get buy-in,” he explains. And, if an employee makes a mistake and gets caught, it’s not the end. “There’s a grace period.

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+ MINE SAFETY

A series of photos show dog-handler Mark Hicks leading a Black Labrador Retriever named OD (short for OverDose) through his paces, sniffing luggage and freight for drugs and alcohol before the cargo flight heads north. (billbradenphoto).

You want to give them a chance to change.”

Aurora Geosciences of Yellowknife provides full program management for Kennady Diamonds at their Kennady North project. This past winter season, up to 60 drillers, geologists and camp support workers were on site, and that could grow to over 200 later this year.

Darrell Matchett, Aurora Geosciences Ltd. Safety Officer, brought NOS K-9 into the Kennady program late in 2014.

“Even though the big mines have zero tolerance, this type of program at the exploration stage of the game is one of the most MAY 2016

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important steps to promote that.”

“It has to be driven from the top,” Hicks stresses. “The benefits are immediate... the savings in HR, in turnover, insurance, WCB premiums, and retention of good employees.”

Back at the airport hangar, the crew obviously respects the job Hicks is doing. They’re also quite fond of the gregarious OD, taking the test with considerable good humour and teasing if they’re outed. That signal comes when OD ‘sits’ at any bag or person he sniffs with a suspicious scent. That’s the cue for the bag to be searched or the person questioned.

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+ MINE SAFETY Aurora has also employed Hicks to search aircraft, helicopters and the entire campsite, and yes, they have found stuff. But after a year in practice, Matchett says the program has been a huge success, and the incidence of real problems is now negligible.

Just how sensitive is OD’s shiny wet nose? It will easily pick up sealed medications, boozy breath from last night’s libations, or a trace of that joint smoked a few days ago. During a demonstration at one office, he nosed out an empty whisky bottle, forgotten for months in a storage box after last year’s Christmas party.

only one medical aid incident and zero lost-time events in 2015.

The Diavik Diamond Mine, owned 60 per cent by international miner Rio Tinto, is in the early stages of rolling out Rio’s world-wide safety campaign labelled CRM – Critical Risk Management. It’ll take about two years to fully implement from the top down, says Steve Bourn, Diavik’s Manager of Health, Safety and Environment.

CRM uses years of Rio Tinto and mining data on what can cause serious accidents or fatalities to standardize the checklists and practices that crews will apply to critical tasks, every day.

“A lot of that already happens, but this standardizes it,” says Bourn. Diavik’s bonus program for operational crews is tied directly to safety along with production and financial performance, awarded monthly, “so rather than waiting ‘til the end of the year, it’s reset every month.”

Bourn says they get upwards of 15 suggestions a month in

Growing a Culture of Safety In interviews with lead safety managers from the North’s Triple D of diamond miners – De Beers, Diavik and Dominion – the values and culture of safety consistently come up.

“It’s changed tremendously in the past eight years,” says Doug Brown, Health and Safety Manager for De Beers Canada. “Gone is the attitude that it’s acceptable to get hurt, or contract any type of industrial disease or illness. It’s Mines across Canada invest been quite a journey, to get people to believe in the heavily in training mine possibility that no injuries can really occur. rescue teams as part of their mine-safety programs.

“It’s been demonstrated in the Victor mine’s (billbradenphoto). excellent safety records over its eight year life,” said Brown. “Part of the reason for that is the culture that’s in place there, and across all three De Beers sites in Canada.”

“Each employee owns safety. It’s not owned by or policed by the safety division – it’s embedded into each employee’s own responsibilities,” he says.

Brown says good safety practice is even crossing into employees’ homes and communities. It’s a culture that’s firmly embedded at the top corporate level, says Tom Ormsby, Head of External and Corporate Affairs at De Beers Canada.

“Without [the involvement of leadership] people would see it won’t need to apply to them. We’ve had to make it real.

We don’t want to just be compliant. We have to be ahead of where we see any potential harm.”

De Beers’ first measure of performance – ahead of tonnes or carats or budgets – is safety. Incentive rewards for all performance matrix can be as high as 25% of salary. Cash bonuses are paid to employees quarterly, while managements is assessed twice a year and paid annually.

De Beers has moved beyond the typical lost-time accident reporting standard to its own Total Recordable Case Frequency (TRCF)matrix. It covers all incidents, including A mine-rescue team huddles minor medical aid. The Victor mine in Northern for a safety briefing at Ontario is in the running for this year’s eastern Dominion Diamond’s Ekati division John T. Ryan trophy – Canada’s top award Mine. (A Dominion Diamond for safety achievement – with an impressive TRCF of Corporation photo).

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Diavik’s peer-to-peer recognition program, where workers nominate each other as “unsung heroes” for following and promoting safe practice. Its rewards might not be big – a jacket or a travel bag – but the value of peer-to-peer recognition is what counts.

Bourn is also responsible for Emergency Response Teams at the 1,000-plus employee diamond mine. To cover for shift rotations and maintain experience, Diavik keeps its ERT squad at between 65 and 80, investing three days in every two week rotation in training.

“We definitely promote it with a lot of pride. There’s benefits for the guys and girls on the team, they’re getting a lot of world class training that they’ll be able to take with them the rest of their life. Lots of them are volunteer firefighters back home, and the camaraderie among each other is unreal.”

Elite ERT members serve on Diavik’s mine rescue competition team, dedicating weeks to intensive training before annual competitions in Yellowknife. And along with De Beers, Dominion and Agnico Eagle mines, a mutual aid protocol pledges support in the event of a large-scale emergency. Annual joint rescue exercises have also been staged over the past three years, and Bourn anticipates that T-Mac Resources, Baffinland Iron and Giant Mine will also sign on.

“For Dominion Diamond, safety is a value rather than a priority,” says Chantal Lavoie, President of Dominion Diamond Ekati Corporation. “In order to shift our safety culture in a new direction, Dominion Diamond is implementing a behavioral-based safety program called the Zero Incident Process (ZIP).”

CIM Taught by industrial psychologists, the Exp Come program aims to change the way people o 2 see think about safety. By giving employees the 01 6 - us at tools to take control of their thoughts and Bo feelings, they will learn how to make the oth 13 proper choices as they pertain to safety, says 09 Lavoie in an email.

Noting that most injuries happen at home, Dominion hopes that employees and contractors will take ZIP’s learning and apply it to all facets of their lives.

Dominion has also shown safety leadership as the NWT’s first COR-certified diamond mine, awarded in 2015. It’s a national certification that demands compliance with a tough set of standards for A good investment is not determined by the price, but by the cost safety practice and protocol. Dominion’s of ownership. That’s why we make pumps designed for the things mine rescue team has done the company proud as the overall underground winner that really matter: long operating time, less need for supervision in 2015 at the 12th Biennial National and low costs for maintenance and spare parts.

Western Regional Mine Rescue Competition in Fernie, BC. And earlier Because quality pays in the long run. this year, the company’s Jay Pipe expansion project marked 300,000 hours without a single recordable injury, earning www.grindex.com • info.us@grindex.com Dominion accolades from the Association for Mineral Exploration BC. CMJ

A good investment shows in the long run.

That’s what our pumps are all about.

MAY 2016

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+ MINE SAFETY

Living

Photo by Valerie Pond

WHERE OTHERS WON’T

Patrolling the frozen North is a ‘safety-first’ occupation

BY R I C H A R D JA L B E RT

D

oes living and working on Canada’s Ice Highway appeal to everyone?

The obvious answer is “NO,” because the word “ice” is in its name. And, as many people in Canada would probably agree, that’s something they could easily live without.

But for the men and women who work at Scarlet Security Ltd in Yellowknife, Canada’s world-renowned winter road has been providing steady security work for the company on the ice road project for many years.

Every year from late January until March 31, Scarlet Security’s 40-person team (consisting of retired Police Officers who come from across Canada with backgrounds in traffic enforcement and investigations) help ensure that mine sites in the far north have access to the unique way of trucking equipment and supplies across an ice highway to their sites.

Typical supplies include fuel and building materials, plus the necessary food and other necessities required by the thousands of people working at the mines.

Because of this year’s unusually mild weather conditions, many new challenges for building the ice highway arose; not the least of which involved safety. In fact, regardless of it’s a mild winter or a typically cold and relentless one, safety is the number one priority. Before the team arrives in Yellowknife every season, everyone undergoes intense on-line orientation involving Winter Road Rules and Regulations.

Rules include speed restrictions and spacing requirements when driving on the road. Speed limits vary, but loaded trucks must not exceed 25 km/hr when travelling northbound with supplies, and must be 500 metres apart while driving on ice.

The road is approximately 450 kilometres long, with about 87 24 |

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per cent of it across ice. The remaining 13 per cent is portaged.

Once the team arrives in Yellowknife, it goes through another two days of further orientation, but this involves greater focus on the environment. Naturally, safety is always the underlying tone, but the Winter Road Rules and Regulations discussed also look at the risks and other factors involved with working in a very harsh environment.

Temperatures often drop below -45°C , and there is also the wind factor, as well as white-out and blizzard conditions associated with the Canadian Arctic that must be addressed and fully understood.

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), for example, is mandatory on the road and must always be worn when working. Ice cleats are also part of Scarlet’s PPE to add an extra measure of safety.

Once the team is fully trained, its officers are provided one-tonne pick-up trucks which are specified by the mines to ensure they have the right equipment and tools to respond to accidents, spills, etc.

Every pick-up truck is equipped with a mounted radio as well as satellite phone to ensure that officers are always reachable.

Because the officers work different 12-hour shifts during the three-month season to provide 24/7 coverage, they stay at camps spaced along the road.

When not in camp, working alone on the road in an isolated arctic environment can present many challenges, and even seemingly minor incidents have the potential to quickly turn serious.

For this reason, dedicated personnel in Yellowknife make contact with on-duty officers at two-hour intervals.

Should efforts to contact an officer be unsuccessful, a company Security Supervisor is notified and search efforts are made at the discretion of the Supervisor. All officers must contact another WWW.CANADIANMININGJOURNAL.COM

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Photo by Valerie Pond

DDC _ CanadianMiningJournal _3.375x10_Colour _160411 PRINT

team member if they are planning to be out of radio contact for more than a few minutes.

As mentioned earlier, working on Canada’s Ice Highway is serious business, and as everyone involved with mining knows, vehicle and equipment maintenance is paramount to any successful operation, and that applies to Scarlet Security Ltd too.

All of its fleet of trucks are checked at the beginning of each shift and the communications equipment, in particular, is checked through any given shift. Also, because of the cold environment, all fuel tanks are kept above one-quarter of a tank to help prevent any fuel problems because of the cold.

Because the pick-ups are small by comparison to most of the trucks on the highway, all officers use extreme caution and make eye contact with the operators of the heavier equipment. At night, flashlights and reflective outerwear are required, especially when outside of the vehicle.

One of the more dangerous things about being on the highway involves working near an accident or breakdown that involves a towing or recovery operation. Again, because of the cold, tow ropes and straps can break and recoil, plus wheel chock blocks can slip and become projectiles, thus endangering anyone in the immediate area.

Most of the safety procedures involve common sense but, nevertheless, the officers on the highway are always reminded of the potential for accidents. For example; an ice highway is always slippery and trailers can often slide on corners, there’s limited visibility, parked equipment, and there’s always road maintenance equipment along the route; plus wildlife.

Pressure ridges, also knows a ‘Pop-Ups,’ can appear at any time and look like part of the smooth highway until the driver is almost upon them and within stopping distance. Unfrozen flood zones and overflows across a submerged surface are also common problems.

All in all, working and driving on Canada’s Ice Highway takes a great deal of courage, but more than that, it takes a conscientious effort by everyone to make safety their Number One priority.

That’s what the officers at Scarlet Security Ltd in Yellowknife do, and through their on-going training and appreciation for Mother Nature, they plan to continue doing so in Canada’s far north for many more years. CMJ

Look North.

It’s where you’ll find Dominion Diamond, Canada’s largest independent diamond producer and third largest in the world by volume.

RICHARD JALBERT is General Manager of Scarlet Security Ltd in Yellowknife, and he’s also a retired RCMP Officer.

A Scarlet Security pick-up truck is dwarfed by a huge off-road hauler on Canada’s Ice Highway.

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www.ddcorp.ca

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CONTAIN M T

IS ALWAYS CRITICAL

anks and drums containing hazardous and flammable liquids require secondary and tertiary protection to prevent a potential incident. That should be obvious, but, unfortunately, it all-too-often takes an incident to drive home the importance of keeping potentially deadly chemicals like fuels and lubricants safe and protected from threats of spillage or explosions.

As a common-sense safety measure, storage of hazardous and flammable liquids should be stored in areas where walls and floors, and penetration joints are leak-tight. Surfaces should be free from any cracks, discontinuities and joint failures that may allow relatively unhindered liquid trans-boundary migration.

As a priority, it’s highly recommended that existing storage facilities should be checked on a routine basis for any damage or disrepair, which may render the structure less than leak-tight.

In case after case, however, there are too many chemicalrelated incidents and near misses. For example, in one case back in 1999, 16.561 tonnes of a 30 per cent solution of sodium cyanide was released at a site through a leak in a holding tank.

Of that total quantity, only 4.260 tonnes were recovered with the remaining material lost to the ground and water. The ultimate recommendation called for improvements to the secondary containment area.

The incident does not state what level of protection this site had, if any, but it can be assumed that since three quarters of the leaked material escaped, the protection was either not there, its chemical resistance was insufficient, or this storage facility developed cracks, allowing for the chemicals to seep out.

National Codes of Practice Following dangerous occurrences varying in scale from minor near misses to those with catastrophic consequences, many countries have adopted codes of practice directed at installing and maintaining suitable secondary containment.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), for instance, refers to stationary tank bunds in the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Subpart J, Tank Systems (40 CFR 264. 193).

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and operated to prevent any migration of wastes or accumulated liquid out of the system to the soil, ground water, or surface water at any time during the use of the tank system; and be capable of detecting and collecting releases and accumulated liquids until the collected material is removed.”

To meet these requirements, the secondary containment area must be: “Constructed of, or lined with, materials that are compatible with the waste(s) to be placed in the tank system[…]” and, be “free of cracks or gaps.”

In the U.K., Control of Pollutions Regulations 2001 also states that “the container must be situated within a secondary containment system which satisfies the following requirements[and that its base and walls be impermeable.”

Secondary containment areas are typically constructed using concrete, because it is cost-effective and provides good structural strength. However, due to its porosity, concrete can be easily permeated and has poor chemical resistance, making it susceptible to deterioration through chemical attack.

In addition, concrete is highly prone to cracking due to substrate movement and freeze-thaw cycles.

Barrier Coatings for Secondary Containment Areas As concrete does not address the requirement for chemical resistance, an additional barrier atop is needed to prevent potential spillages from permeating the secondary containment area. Over the years, a variety of solutions have been trialled, from bitumen-based paints to epoxy-resin based systems.

The right solution would depend on the type of media stored within the tank, size of the containment area, expected traffic and weather conditions, among others.

Where the highest chemical resistance is required in cases of extremely aggressive chemicals, such as concentrated mineral acids, alkali, amines and alcohols; solvent-free epoxy novolac resin based coatings are typically specified.

The drawback of these coatings, however, has long been associated with the very feature that made them chemically resistant – their rigidity. The chemical reaction between the base and solidifier creates an almost impenetrable “physical barrier.”

Subsequently, once hardened and cured, these epoxy systems WWW.CANADIANMININGJOURNAL.COM

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N MENT become completely liquid-impermeable and will have excellent resistance to immersion and exposure to a wide range of oil and chemical spillages. Rigidity of these coatings, however, also makes them inflexible and not best suited for heavy trafficked areas, or in cases where the underlying concrete develops cracks.

Cracks in concrete Concrete can develop cracks for many reasons, from excessive loading, to thermal expansion/contraction, or during freeze-thaw cycles which lead to the concrete’s movement and settlement. A rigid coating would crack with the concrete, thus terminating chemical protection in case of a spill. Recent advancements in polymer technology have resulted in the development of a hybrid epoxy coating, which combines high cross-linking with rubbery domains in the polymer chain, giving the coating a desired degree of flexibility.

New Material Development One of the recently introduced coatings, called Belzona 4361, to incorporate these features comes from Belzona Canada of Richmond Hill, Ontario.

To determine the coating’s crack-bridging abilities, the product was first tested for elongation. When cured at 20°C, the coating’s residual elongation was recorded at 20 per cent, which would be sufficient to bridge a typical crack. To ensure the coating maintains its flexibility at low temperatures, a mandrel bend test was also performed, resulting in a pass at temperatures down to 0°C. To further test the coating’s crack-bridging abilities, it was submitted for a long-term testing at the University of Stuttgart, Germany. The university carries out testing to award a German Federal Water Act (WHG) Approval which is part of a German water law for protecting surface water and groundwater.

Only chemical containment coatings with WHG Approval can be used in areas where strict regulations are in place, in order to protect ground water against chemical pollutants. The testing takes two years to complete, and consists of a combination of crack-bridging, chemical resistance and aging tests.

Crack-bridging tests are first performed by creating a crack within the concrete and ensuring the coating remains intact. This is followed by chemical resistance testing where the chemical is positioned onto the test coating so that the crack in the concrete is directly underneath.

Signs of chemical attack are visually observed, in particular to see if the chemical reagent attacks the test coating severely enough to penetrate through the crack due to the reduction in film thickness over the crack.

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SPECIAL SAFETY

REPORT

To replicate real-life exposure or aging, the coated test blocks are stored in damp sand and placed outdoors. After six months and two years respectively of aging exposure, crack-bridging and chemical resistance tests are repeated. Belzona 4361 passed the crack-bridging and chemical resistance tests after six months of aging exposure, which will be repeated again to complete the two year’s testing.

Chemical resistance was tested by coating rods and immersing them in specified chemicals for a period of up to 12 months. The coating is suitable to resist aggressive chemicals, as protection is only required to last until the leaked chemical can be recovered from the bund. Best practice reports in some countries do not specify a universal length of time the coating needs to resist the spilled chemical and some documents state 72 hours as an acceptable length of protection.

Chemical Protection in Action Following its introduction in 2015, the coating was applied to protect the most critical assets; one being at a secondary containment area in a U.S. power plant. It was coated after the existing chemical protection weakened. The original coating was used to contain spillages from a 93 per cent sulphuric acid tank experiencing splashes, spills and poor clean-up procedures. In addition to movement, small gaps formed between the floor and bottom of the wall inside the containment area.

The power station in question had already been using a variety of materials to help solve a leak problem, but it recently opted to finally solve the problem with Belzona 4361 due to its chemical resistance, flexibility and good adhesion facilitating long-term sealing between the facility’s wall and floor.

One-hundred per cent solid epoxy materials adhere well not only to concrete, but can also be used to protect a metal substrate from the chemicals.

Added flexibility of the coating expands and contracts in sympathy with the underlying metal substrate.

As the industry keeps improving the safety of their operations, material manufacturers need to keep up and continue to innovate by utilising novel raw materials.

Of course, provision of an adequate secondary containment area is only one of the many improvements that can be done to manage hazards and minimise risks.

Some of the other areas to consider include system automation and software, with leak detection technologies and alarm sounding. Such systems can dramatically help reduce human error.

Information for this Special Report provided by Marina Silva, Belzona Polymerics Ltd., U.K. Belzona also has a Canadian office in Richmond Hill, Ontario. CMJ CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

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2016-04-18 11:11 AM

THE FEDERAL BUDGET

GOOD

NEW$

Photo: Design Pics, Thinkstock

By Matthew Peters

A federal budget with miners in mind

O

n March 22, 2016, Canada’s Liberal party released its first Federal Budget since taking office last year, and despite projecting a staggering deficit of approximately $30 billion, the Budget brings welcome news for the Canadian mining industry in both what in contains, and what it does not.

Business as usual with flow-through shares For instance, the 2016 Budget proposes to extend the availability of the Federal Mineral Exploration Tax Credit (METC) another year. The METC is central to the flow-through share tax regime as it provides investors with the ability to claim a 15 per cent tax credit in respect of certain “grassroots” mineral exploration expenses incurred by the issuer of flow-through shares.

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MATTHEW PETERS

The METC is in addition to the ability of the investor to personally deduct expenses renounced by the issuer. The METC thus provides a significant additional incentive to investment in the capital-intensive industry of grassroots Canadian mineral exploration. The METC was otherwise set to expire on March 31,

2016, and its renewal demonstrates a continued strong level of governmental support for tax-efficient financing of junior Canadian mining companies.

There was some speculation leading up to Budget 2016 that the Liberals might further tighten the rules concerning the nature of certain mining expenses that qualify for renunciation to holders of flow-through shares.

As background, certain expenses that qualify as a “Canadian exploration expense” (CEE) are generally 100 per cent deductible to the holder of a flow-through share in the year in which they are renounced, whereas expenses that qualify as a “Canadian development expense” (CDE) are generally deductible to such holder on a 30 per cent declining balance basis.

Recall that in Budget 2013, in an effort to save several million dollars of federal tax revenue, the former Conservative governWWW.CANADIANMININGJOURNAL.COM

2016-04-18 11:13 AM

Photo: Design Pics, Thinkstock

ment amended the Income Tax Act (Canada) to phase in a recharacterization of certain pre-production mining expenses (which had up to then qualified as CEE) as CDE. This was a material change to the flowthrough share regime for certain grassroots Canadian mining companies that were anticipating a shift into the production phase.

The positive news is that Budget 2016 proposes no further changes to the characterization of expenses as either CEE or CDE. Employee Stock Options Stock options are an integral part of the compensation packages offered by many Canadian companies, including in the mining industry. The attractiveness of stock options is enhanced by their current tax treatment; properly structured options can generally provide tax deferral opportunities and favourable tax rates that are not available in respect of cash or certain other forms of equity compensation.

As a result of comments made by the Liberals in their 2015 election platform, there was significant concern leading up to Budget 2016 that the stock option tax regime would be overhauled by implementing a fairly low cap on the amount of stock options that could benefit from reduced tax rates.

In other words, many option holders who thought they would be taxed at rates equivalent to capital gains could instead be subject to tax at full income rates.

These concerns were sufficient enough for some option holders to take proactive steps prior to Budget 2016 to exercise in-the-money options and lock in preferred tax rates on the resulting benefit rather than risk losing this benefit as a result of the Budget.

Thankfully, no such changes materialized in Budget 2016. Rather, the Liberals announced following the release of the Budget that, based on consultations with Canadian businesses, they no longer plan to limit benefits on employee stock options. Accordingly, it is “business as usual” for employee stock options from a tax perspective.

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HIGHLIGHTS INCLUDE $1 billion (or more) to support the growth of clean technology and enhance environmental performance in resource industries

n

n

$82.5 million to Natural Resources Canada to support research, development and demonstration of clean energy technologies

n

$16.5 million to the National Energy Board, Natural Resources Canada and Transportation Canada to strengthen public and Indigenous participation in consultations relating to environmental assessments

n

$14.2 million to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency to increase consultations with public and Indigenous groups and to assist the Agency in undertaking efficient regulatory reviews of mining / energy projects.

Funding Initiatives Budget 2016 contains several new funding measures relating to the research, use and development of “clean technology,” as well as strengthening the environmental assessment process including more

efficient consultations with affected communities. CMJ MATTHEW PETERS is a tax partner in the Toronto office of Bennett Jones specializing in cross-border M&A and financing.

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2016-04-18 1:21 PM

beauty OR

BEASTLY?

BY R U SSELL NOBLE

S

ome consider them eyesores, others think they’re almost pieces of art, but regardless of how people look at them, conveyor systems are a bit of both in that they do create a distinct impression.

Like them or not, there’s no mistaking what these structures are, and what purpose they serve.

From the back of hay wagons to the top of barn lofts, from basements to wheelbarrows, to the far-reaching depths of massive mines, conveyor systems are the tools of many trades, including mining.

In fact, long before they became common fixtures on many mine sites, primitive conveyor belts have been used since the 19th Century.

In 1892, Thomas Robins began a series of inventions which led to the development of a conveyor belt used for carrying coal, ores and other products. In 1901, Sandvik invented and started the production of steel conveyor belts, and in 1905, Richard Sutcliffe invented the first conveyor belts for use in coal mines which revolutionized the mining industry.

Today, conveying systems are found throughout the world as they carry huge amounts and weights of materials underground, over mountains, and across vast expanses as they span deep valleys and gorges.

They are almost unstoppable as they conquer seemingly unbeatable obstacles in their quest to deliver massive amounts of materials with reliability and ease.

And, like the materials they carry, they differ in design and strength.

The longest (belt) conveyor system in the world is in Western Saraha. It’s 98-km long and runs from the phosphate mines of Bu Craa the coast south of El-Aaium.

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2016-04-18 12:12 PM

CONVEYORS Syntron

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The Boddington Bauxite Mine in Western Australia is officially recognized as having the world’s longest and second-longest single belts with a 31-km-long belt feeding a 20-km long belt. This system feeds bauxite through the difficult terrain of the Darling Ranges to the Worsley Alumina refinery.

The longest single-belt international conveyor runs from Meghalaya in India to a cement factory at Chhatak Bangladesh.

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Weir

It’s about 17 km long and conveys limestone and shale at 960 tons/hour, from the quarry in India to the cement factory (7-km long in India and 10-km long in Bangladesh).

The conveyor is actuated by three synchronized drive units for a total power of about 1.8 MW supplied by two drives at the head end in Bangladesh, and one drive at the tail end in India.

The conveyor belt was manufactured in 300-m lengths on the Indian side and 500-m lengths on the Bangladesh side. The idlers, or rollers, of the system are unique in that they are designed to accommodate both horizontal and vertical curves along the terrain. Dedicated vehicles were designed for the maintenance of the conveyor, which is always at a minimum height of 5 metres above the ground to avoid being flooded during monsoon periods.

These are just a few examples of the extraordinary dimensions and capacities of today’s conveyors systems.

It’s long been argued that conveyor systems are cheaper to operate and contribute more to the bottom-line savings than

Weir

trucks when it comes to moving materials, but like trucks, they do require routine service and maintenance because of their design and component makeup.

As mentioned earlier, conveyor systems are designed to include a number of idlers, rollers, bearings and belts that require servicing because of the harsh treatment they experience from the constant pounding they receive from the heavy payloads they carry.

Naturally, belts are subject to the most wear and tear but seemingly indestructible metal frames and other undercarriage components also require routine inspection to help ensure that the entire conveying system is rigid and balanced.

Regardless of their seemingly bullet-proof designs, conveyor systems are like all other pieces of equipment on a mine site in that they require routine service and maintenance, and unless owners and operators follow the manufacturers’ guidelines, production can stop without warning because of an equipment failure.

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CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

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2016-04-18 11:14 AM

ADVERTORIAL

RETROFITS REAP REWARDS ■ Exploration plans get the green light as preeminent gold miner Agnico Eagle safely and efficiently searches for gold almost 3,000 metres below the surface of the earth.

Text: JEAN-PAUL SMALL Photo: SAMIR SOUDAH

T

HERE IS GOLD here

in the southwestern wilds of Quebec, Canada. The ore is typically found in volcanic rocks that were deposited more than 2.7 billion years ago on what was then the sea floor. This is the home of the Abitibi gold belt, a region that has produced more than 100 mines and 170 million ounces of gold since the beginning of the 20th century. Val d’Or, French for “valley of gold,” sits practically on the “buckle” of the Abitibi gold belt, and has itself produced around 45 million ounces of gold since the 1930s.

Agnico Eagle’s flagship operation, the LaRonde mine, is about 60 kilometres due west of Val d’Or. The Canadian miner is an expert at extracting the glittering precious metal. Since the gold price took its more than 40 percent plunge from a 2011 high,

ABOUT LARONDE ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ Location: Between Val-d’Or and Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec, Canada Mine type: Underground Est. mine life: 2024 2015 production: 267,921 oz gold/1.275 million oz silver/10,515 tonnes zinc/4,997 tonnes copper 2015 total cash costs: $590/oz gold Designed throughput: 7,200 tonnes per day Employees: 841

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Agnico Eagle has more than survived: it has blossomed. In the third quarter of 2015, for every dollar of gold the resilient miner sold, 49 cents was gross profit, the best performance among 15 major producers tracked by Bloomberg Business.

LaRonde is a 7,200-tonne-per-day mine.

Its processing plant has produced 4.6 million ounces of gold, and the mine still has around 3.4 million ounces in proven and probable reserves. In 2015, payable gold production reached 267,921 ounces at LaRonde. The mine also produced 1.275 million ounces of silver, 10,515 tonnes of zinc and 4,997 tonnes of copper for that same period.

Operations at the mine run like clockwork. In fact, ore is processed at its mineral processing centre literally across the road from the current mine site. Agnico Eagle expects to increase gold production rates at LaRonde, but in order to do so the current mine must be extended in the only direction it can: downwards.

“After discovering and mining out the LaRonde ore body from 2000 to 2012, we planned to dig deeper,” says Christian Goulet, general mine superintendent at Agnico Eagle’s LaRonde mine. “It is the same ore body, but since 2012 we started mining below 2.5 kilometres, which is what we refer to as the LaRonde extension.

“The next step for us is to generate a feasibility study for a possible LaRonde 3, which would be between 3.1 and 3.7 kilometres.”

BEFORE THEIR SHIFTS start

in the early morning hours, miners mill around the well-lit staging area inside Agnico Eagle’s functionally modern facility, preparing to descend 2,800 metres and start their workday. There is a definite strut to their walk and lightness in their demeanour born of confidence in one’s abilities. Laughter rings out on the elevator ride down but comes to an abrupt halt when the alarm buzzes, indicating the elevator has reached its destination.

Just accessing the gold and other precious metals so far underground is daunting. At 2.8 kilometres deep, the temperature rises to around 30 degrees Celsius. Add to that the heat generated by the equipment and the conditions can be harsh, which is why the company installed a cooling unit to relieve the heat stress. And then there are the seismic events. At this depth, seismic activity is the norm rather than the exception. Every so often there is a sharp popping sound that shakes the earth and all those in it.

“At LaRonde, it is vital that we understand the conditions of the mine,” says Stephane Lacroix, Sandvik Mining field service manager. “Sometimes there are seismic events, which can be surprisingly loud.”

Goulet concurs, calling the seismicity one of his mine’s greatest challenges.

“As we go deeper, the pressure in the rock increases,” he says. “The rock also WWW.CANADIANMININGJOURNAL.COM

2016-04-18 11:17 AM

ADVERTORIAL In 2014, LaRonde purchased some cutting tools from Sandvik to be used on competitor equipment. Among them were some Sandvik RD314 rock drills. Monitoring equipment performance is part of his job, so when Audet noticed that the increased output and reliability, he made a decision to implement sweeping changes.

“The Sandvik RD314 drills a hole in 50 to 60 seconds on average,” Audet says.

“The competitor’s drill clocked in at a minute and 10 seconds to a minute and a half, which is 20 percent slower than the Sandvik RD314. Over the course of a month, that’s up to a 1,500-metre difference in drill efficiency. We end up saving about CAD $0.50 per metre, and at 90,000 metres per bolter that’s a savings of $45,000 per bolter per year.

“Stephane Lacroix from Sandvik was working very closely with me at the time, and so we decided to implement a change plan to get Sandvik RD314s on more rigs,” Audet says. “That was two years ago. At the moment, we have eight bolting machines out of a fleet of 12 working with the Sandvik RD314 rock drill.”

The close relationship allowed TECH SPECS SANDVIK RD314 Lacroix to custom-design the MAIN DIMENSIONS rock drill, changing the feed Hole diameter bolting 33 – 43 mm engine for steadier drilling and a Hole diameter drilling 43 – 51 mm bigger water hose to flush the Hole diameter reaming 64 – 89 mm hole quicker.

Power class 14 kW “After this, and a few other Percussion rate 110 Hz little tweaks, we had a much OPERATING PRESSURE better performing drill,” Lacroix Percussion (bolting) 120 – 180 bar says. “This drill does 500 hours Percussion (drilling) 120 – 180 bar on average before our preventive Rotation (max.)

175 bar Rotation motor type OMS 100 or OMS 125 maintenance schedule requires us to remove and inspect it. We DRILL STEELS make modifications according to Bolting R32 – HEX25 – R25 the needs of the mine, so more Drilling HEX35 mm drifter rods than anything we need to have SHANKS good lines of communication to Bolting R32 (female) understand those needs explicitR32 (male short, only for bolting) ly.”

Drilling R32 (male), T38 (male), T35 male) Weight 122 kg (bolting) 127 kg (drilling) Goulet adds, “We like Sandvik drilling units and we feel that they fit with our overall that ground support is easily put into place. strategy. Getting those drills was a good Our miners are working hard on installamove for us as they are faster and more tions, so our challenge is to provide them available, so we obviously reap better with an efficient and reliable drill. Thanks savings. We always want to be in a win-win to our relationship with Sandvik, we were situation, and with these drills in place we able to do that when we implemented the can focus on developing our expansion Sandvik RD314 rock drill.” plans and delivering on time and on Audet goes on to give a small history budget.” ■ lesson about the rock drill retrofit solution.

At 90,000 metres per bolter, that’s a savings of $45,000 per bolter per year

becomes more brittle around depths of 2.5 to 3 kilometres, which generates increased seismicity. So we have to adapt the ground support, put a lot of seismic sensors in place and carefully follow the safety protocol whenever we have these seismic events.”

Richard Audet, Agnico Eagle optimization specialist for drilling equipment, says the safety of the workers is paramount. His job involves continuous improvement of operations, particularly drilling, so he is well versed on how everything works at the mine. He says that in the “mark, uc drill, blast” process, 60 percent of that time is taken up with bolting. Doing so efficiently reaps obvious time and cost benefits while keeping the team safe.

“Because of the make-up of the rock here, we have to use different supports than in other mines,” says Audet, “hence the importance of the drill’s performance. It’s vital that the holes are made smoothly and MAY 2016

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CSR MINING IN MY& MINE(D)

Avoiding duplication in sustainability disclosure

By Michael Torrance

S

hareholders are increasingly assertive in requesting sustainability related disclosure from North American mining companies, particularly related to climate change issues. Proxy advisory services such as ISS have adopted guidelines for 2016 to “…generally vote for resolutions requesting that a company disclose information on the risks related to climate change on its operations and investments.”

One of the leading proponents of climate change related disclosure is the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), an international not-for-profit/charity, with a mandate to reduce companies’ GHG emissions and mitigate climate change risks. In pursuit of this objective, CDP requests climate change information from publicly listed companies globally. CDP data is utilized by a large number of investors that utilize the information in investment and proxy voting decision making. CDP reports that these investors account for approximately $100 trillion in assets.

EXTERNAL VALIDATION OF DATA

IS NOT REQUIRED BY CDP BUT ENCOURAGED. In terms of data collection, detailed questionnaires are sent from CDP to companies covering a variety of topics including, Climate Change, Water and Forests. Climate Change questions cover areas such as governance, incentives for management, strategy, tracking and quantifying emissions, setting targets and initiatives to reduce emissions and plans for emissions in future. External validation of data is not required by CDP but encouraged.

This type of disclosure and reporting is purely voluntary. A company can decide whether to disclose to CDP or not and there is no legal requirement to do so. However, failure to report after a request to do so could have reputational impacts on companies.

CDP can choose to estimate disclosures in the absence of actual data, and provide that information to their investor clients. So, companies may be driven towards reporting to ensure fair and accurate information is in the market place.

Legislative requirements are not irrelevant, however, emissions reporting requirements currently exist across Canada and are progressively increasing as the issue grows in important for policy 36 |

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makers. For example, changes to Ontario’s GHG emissions reporting regime took effect January 1, 2016, in order to facilitate the introduction of a “cap and trade” program for GHG emissions in Ontario. New regulations in the area of GHG reporting are possible in light of the recent COP21 agreements regarding climate change and an enhanced focus on this topic by the Federal Government.

Existing securities disclosure requirements also includes environmental reporting that could cover climate change issues. For example, CSA Staff Notice 51-333 on Environmental Reporting Guidance. This Guidance reporting on matters meeting materiality thresholds for environmental risks, risk oversight and management and forward looking information. Risks include litigation, physical, reputational and business model risks and liabilities. Governance approaches include Board level committees and oversight, implementation of disclosure controls and procedures and data collection. This information can be disclosed in Management Discussion and Analysis and Annual Information Forms filed in compliance with securities regulations.

CDP reporting, focusing on climate change, may also overlap with other sustainability related reporting standards, like the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), which is one of the leading reporting frameworks for environmental, social and governance issues. GRI reporting covers a broad range of topics including economic, environmental and societal impacts of business. The GRI provides detailed metrics for companies to measure and quantify impacts for disclosure. The GRI requirements, generally speaking, are broader than the CDP requirements. For instance, while GRI will ask about an organization’s plan to deal with economic, environmental, and social issues, the CDP requirements will ask a similar question, but with respect to climate change specifically. The GRI requirements typically give more choice in reporting metrics or standards, whereas CDP often asks for a specific metric or standard. In these cases, an organization could comply with both GRI and CDP by using the CDP metric, but they may have already chosen a different metric for their GRI report. Despite these differences, the GRI does overlap with the CDP and simultaneous compliance with both is possible and encouraged by the GRI and CDP. Companies can therefore utilize this to their advantage to avoid unnecessary duplication in sustainability reporting. CMJ MICHAEL TORRANCE is a lawyer in Northern Rose Fulbright’s Toronto office.

WWW.CANADIANMININGJOURNAL.COM

2016-04-18 11:21 AM

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Kalenborn Canada Inc. 602 – 755 boulevard Saint-Jean Pointe-Claire (Québec) H9R 5M9 Tel: 514 426-0460 • Fax: 514 426-0462 E-mail: seb@abresistkalenborn.ca www.abresistkalenborn.ca CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

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2016-04-18 11:42 AM

UNEARTHING TRENDS

Raising capital in times of distress

By Michelle Grant

W

e’ve all heard the adage “cash is king,” but what can a company do to raise capital when the markets are effectively closed for business? The persistent down-cycle of the past five years has made raising external capital extremely challenging. As such, many companies have looked internally for opportunities to raise capital – including releasing cash through operational initiatives or through divestments.

ONE AREA OF RECENT FOCUS IN

THE MINING AND METALS SECTOR

IS AROUND RELEASING CASH THROUGH WORKING CAPITAL MANAGEMENT. Operational cash release

Releasing cash from operations goes beyond cutting discretionary spending and reducing head count. Other areas to focus on include: productivity improvements, working capital management and innovation.

One area of recent focus in the mining and metals sector is around releasing cash through working capital management. A recent EY report, Make Working Capital Work For You, notes companies have been focusing on the following to free up cash: w Using supply chain as a source of finance. For example, extend ing supplier payment terms or looking to implement supply chain finance products. w Reconfiguring logistics and supply chains to make them leaner and more agile, and allow sharing of spare parts inventory across mining operations. w Improving planning, buying and inventory management processes. w Changing asset maintenance strategies to move away from life cycle, to condition or risk-based models. w Taking a closer look at customer trade terms, order processing and delivery scheduling. w Reducing work in progress stock piles that have historically been set aside due to grade or quality.

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Making working capital work for you instead of against you can dramatically improve liquidity in the short and long term.

In our experience, companies are more likely to achieve working capital improvements when they take an enterprise-led approach combined with a bottom-up change management program focused on the front-line.

Divesting core or non-core assets

Divestment of non-core, or possibly even selling core assets, along with a broader review of portfolio optimization is not new, but it has become an increasing focus across the sector and will continue to be so in the short term.

EY’s recent Global Corporate Divestment Study reveals that successful deals meet three criteria: 1. Have a positive impact on the valuation of the remaining company.

2. Generate a sale price above expectations.

3. Close ahead of timing expectations.

Only 19% of the sellers in the survey met these three criteria.

What set them apart? Three things: 1. They planned well in advance for the divestiture; 2. They understood the potential buyer pool and the buyers’ needs; and 3. They communicated the value of the transaction to internal and external stakeholders.

To maximize value companies need to put some rigour around portfolio reviews to determine what projects should be divested either out of necessity or for opportunistic reasons.

Once a project is identified as a potential for divestment, assembling the financial information, building the robust value story, understanding structuring options and clearly defining what is being sold will go a long way towards enhancing value and setting the divestment up for success.

It’s true that in times of distress, cash is king – but it’s not always easy to come by. To preserve value, ensure high performing projects are not starved of capital and to shore up liquidity companies need to look internally for opportunities to raise capital. Certain operational initiatives will provide immediate access to cash, while divestitures have longer lead times and require significant planning to achieve optimal results. CMJ Michelle Grant, is EY Transaction Advisory Services Leader for Mining & Metals Sector in BC WWW.CANADIANMININGJOURNAL.COM

2016-04-18 11:23 AM

Delivering the right mix of mining services, so you always make the most of your resources.

Now and in the future.

That’s how we make the big difference, the Metso Way.

True performance in today’s complex mining operations is measured by getting the most out of your plant processes. Metso is meeting this challenge with customized service solutions that boost profitability: •

• •

Life Cycle Services take the entire range of Metso services and bundles them into customizable, easily-manageable packages to help you meet your business goals.

Field Services: Metso’s highly-trained, certified field service teams are here 24/7 to maximize your equipment’s availability.

Repair Services: Metso provides a full set of services to repair and refurbish equipment so that it is returned to as new, or latest-design condition.

Combining our global service network and deep industry knowledge with your operational expertise ensures that we provide the best solutions to deliver increased productivity, eliminate waste, and reduce risk.

Learn more at metso.com/mining #TheMetsoWay

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2016-04-18 9:42 AM 3/29/13 4:50 PM