ABB to support expansion of Tanami underground goldmine

Newmont has commissioned ABB to design, supply, install and provide long-term service for the entire mine hoist mechanical and electrical systems for the mine production shaft at Tanami. The goldmine is located in the Tanami Desert, 563 km northwest of Alice Springs and 949 km southwest of Darwin in Northern Territory, Australia.

The AU$24 million contract marks part of Newmont’s Tanami Expansion 2 (TE2) project, which is expected to increase the annual capacity of the processing site to 3.5 million tonnes per annum from 2.6 million tonnes and extend the life of the mine beyond 2040. Over a 90-week period, ABB will deliver two complete mine hoist systems: a double drum personnel-riding hoist and a friction hoist.

The Tanami underground goldmine is operated by Newmont Mining Service Pty Ltd, a division of global mining player Newmont. Since 1986, the mine has produced more than 10 million ounces of gold from various open pits and underground mines. The mine currently produces from the Callie underground operation at Dead Bullock Soak with ore processed at the Granites Mill, more than 40 km to the east.

Currently, ore is trucked from the Tanami underground mine to the surface via a system of declines, which presents logistical, ventilation and cooling requirement challenges and constraints to the planned expansion of the mine.

“The Tanami expansion project (TE2) includes construction of a 5.4 m shaft that can reach 1460 m below surface depth to enable recovery of ore at a depth,” said Neil Steyn, Regional Project Director at Newmont. “This provides a viable solution to extend the mine, and with an additional investment in processing is expected to increase production to 3.5 million tonnes per year. ABB’s in-house mechanical hoist design capability will help deliver a tailor-made solution in a cost-effective way.”

As part of the TE2 project, ABB’s solutions package also includes digital applications covering functional safety, a PLC control system, remote operations, shaft communication and the latest drive systems technology.

“This contract highlights ABB's capability to offer end-to-end mine hoist system solutions,” said Ralf Eckert, Manager for Sales - Mining, Aluminium and Cement Systems at ABB Australia. “As sole supplier, we are designing and delivering equipment, providing service and spare parts, which will help lower lifecycle costs and reduce project execution time at Tanami, while ensuring reliability and system availability.”

ABB has achieved SIL product certification for the entire safety system prior to installation, and has delivered SIL-certified hoisting solutions globally. The company says it is the only company that can deliver mine hoists with several certified products up to SIL3 in Australia.