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By D Lucato, B Haase, R Saha, S Limberger-Forte, J Lishman

Cadia East Mining operations have employed geometallurgical techniques to advance the understanding of the in situ rock hardness variability across existing Panel Caves (PC). Geometallurgy advances the understanding of variability across an orebody through the integration of geology, mineralogy and processing response and therefore enhances spatial mapping of comminution or separation properties. Spatially extensive geometallurgical measurements are necessary so that continuous rock properties can be generated and used for the development of comminution and processing domains using geostatistical modelling. Standard testing protocol across geological and mineralogical domains is vital to understand the variability in deposit wide comminution and separation properties. The high cost and large sample requirements associated with metallurgical test work typically results in insufficient data density and distribution, making it difficult to model and map deposit scale variability. Quantitative hardness proxy tools are useful to measure in situ rock hardness, however this data is typically either sparse or missing within advanced mining operations. In recent years, mineralogy and multi-element assay data has often been collected as part of the standard geological data set and is generally coincident with metallurgical test work. In this paper relationships between mineralogy and comminution parameters have been applied to multi-element assay data with coincident measured Bond Work Index (BWi) data to generate a predicted BWi using linear regression. The predicted BWi is intended to supplement existing measured BWi data to enable better extrapolation across the deposit. Geostatistical Conditional Simulation methods have then used the predicted and measured BWi data to produce a BWi variable as a new input to the resource model. The simulated BWi can be used as an input for specific energy models to predict required grinding energy consumption across a deposit.

Mar 22, 2022

By Z-Y Pi, B Zhang, S Wen

"The paper introduces the structure and work processes of outside auger hollow claw tipped mechanical sampler for coal. Twenty sets of claw tipped sampler performance tests show that: The design of inner hollow cylinder-type (?180 mm) can ensure to take a coal sample with nominal top size of 60 mm. Built-in self-cleaning piston pusher ensures no adherence and blocking of the sample. The operation practices show that the mechanical sampler can operate in order for taking coal sample with up to 16 per cent of total moisture. Claw closing design can avoid sample leaking or spilling during the claw lifting and ensure the integrity of primary increment. Ultrasonic positioning device makes the sampler capture the materials no less than 10 cm from the bottom of the wagons, basically meeting the requirement taking full depth of the sample. The precision and bias test indicates that the moisture and ash have no relative bias under the sampling process; the sampling precision is in accordance with the requirement in IS013909.At present, the spiral mechanical sampler is widely used for coal sampling but there are many limitations during application, for example: It is difficult to capture a large size sample, so the size range of a coal sample taken is limited. There is easy adhering or blocking for high moisture coal, which will result in the mixture of different increments, wear of sampler and the difficulties for cleaning and maintenance of sampler. It is difficult to capture the coal sample at lower than 30 cm from the bottom of the wagons, in order to avoid damage of the vehicle. It is possible for coal sample loss and spilling during the sampler lifting, due to the unsealed sampler.For the outside auger hollow claw tipped mechanical sampler designed for solving the above problems, the opening distance of the claw is the opening size of the sampler and makes the size range of the coal sample to be taken wide. During sampling, the two pieces of claws open and the sampler rotates vertically downward to capture an adequate coal sample after reaching the specific point. Then the two pieces of claws close tight automatically to ensure there is no coal leaking or spilling. The inner pusher of the sampler will prevent from the adherence and blocking of the coal sample effectively.CITATION:Zhang, B, Pi, Z-Y and Wen, S, 2012. Outside auger hollow claw tipped mechanical sampler for coal, in Proceedings Sampling 2012, pp 41-44 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne)."

Aug 21, 2012

By T Roesch, M Neurohr, S Stratton

"Dwindling commodity prices are forcing today’s mining operations to increase output. Sometimes the solution is to upgrade the existing infrastructure; however, in most cases it has to be achieved with the same or reduced workforce and with the same equipment capacity through improved process efficiency and higher uptime.Measure, Manage and Improveis the mantra for this years’ Mill Operators’ Conference and while this in most cases relates to the above process efficiency, Siemens has set its focus on the availability and uptime aspect since unscheduled downtime is one of the biggest threats to any grinding operation. Pinion misalignments, resonance, unbalance and bearing and gear meshing faults in geared trains, as well as long-term changes in the condition of the mechanical components or structures and auxiliary systems in gearless systems are the main reasons for unscheduled downtimes in today’s mill drive trains. Our paper outlines the efforts that have gone into adapting conventional condition monitoring methods in conventional, pinion driven mill drive trains as well as gearless systems to capture the gradual deterioration of wearing parts or structural changes in the drive train not only on fixed speed application but also on variable speed applications with multiple operating points. The paper further explores the use of condition monitoring systems as a tool to assess spare thermal motor capacity to potentially push equipment beyond its nameplate rating, along with the process that was followed to correlate measured frequency spectra and envelopes to ambient and load data to understand the kinematics of the drive train.Citation:Neurohr, M, Stratton, S and Roesch, T, 2016. Advancements in Condition Monitoring on Mill Drive Trains for Proactive Maintenance and Early Fault Detection Purposes, in Proceedings 13th AusIMM Mill Operators’ Conference 2016, pp 263–272 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne)."

Oct 10, 2016

By D David

The development of Western Australian magnetite deposits has lead to the design of some of the largest grinding mills and plants in the world. One of the projects demonstrates the efficiency gains possible by developing a simple yet thorough test program for circuit design. By drawing on the experience of current magnetite operations in Australia and the Mesabi and Marquette iron ranges in the United States, a basic flowsheet was developed. Through comprehensive testwork with AG, ball and stirred milling the flowsheet was optimized to take full advantage of each grinding mill’s strengths to reach the required final grind size. Laboratory work was verified in the pilot plant to optimize the energy efficiency of each grinding step while ensuring adequate liberation at each step for sufficient gangue rejection. By using three stages of grinding, the ball mill can best be employed in ensuring all top size gangue material is liberated and removed in the second magnetic separation step. The inclusion of the IsaMill, with its inherent steep product size distribution, as the tertiary grinding stage ensured that maximum grade was achieved and simplified the downstream process while giving further improvements in total grinding capital and operating costs. In this way the combination of the two technologies downstream from the AG mill is far more efficient than either would be on its own by reducing the total installed power by 1/3 and annual grinding media cost by 2/3.

Aug 8, 2011

By P Woodward, T Ly, N Muhamad

OZ Minerals' Prominent Hill copper-gold concentrator is located 650 km north-west of Adelaide in the Gawler Craton of South Australia. The concentrator was built in 2008 and commenced commercial production in early 2009. The Prominent Hill concentrator is comprised of a conventional grinding and flotation processing plant with a design capacity of 8 Mtpa. The flotation circuit includes six rougher cells, an IsaMill for regrinding the rougher concentrate and a Jameson cell preceding the three stage conventional cell cleaner circuit.Since its commissioning, the Prominent Hill flotation circuit has been the focus of a series of projects aimed at continual performance improvement. This has been achieved by a systematic approach of project identification, evaluation and implementation which has led to a progressive improvement in flotation performance. Innovations that have been successfully implemented include aspects of cell design and operation, and reagent suite optimisation.Improvements to the mechanical cells initially focused on the installation of a modified rotor-stator design in the rougher circuit, as recommended by Outotec. Isolated cells were fitted with this technology and proven to provide a benefit for copper recovery before the design was trialled in subsequent cells along the bank. Based on this success, further modifications were made to other aspects of the rougher and cleaner cells.Laboratory trials conducted at Prominent Hill involve a screening process identifying potential reagents from a list of products, which are then rigorously tested in the laboratory before one is selected for trial in the concentrator. Where these reagents have demonstrated a statistical improvement in performance they have typically been incorporated permanently into the flotation circuit. This paper discusses the process of continual improvement at the Prominent Hill flotation circuit and the optimisation achieved by the implementation of key initiatives.CITATION:Woodward, P, Muhamad, N and Ly, T, 2013. Optimisation of the Prominent Hill flotation circuit, in Proceedings MetPlant 2013 , pp 431-444 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Jul 15, 2013

Two key elements in the design of a pastefill or high density backfill system are the preparation of the backfill material and its distribution underground. This paper examines these two areas. Owing to the essentially impervious nature of total mill tailings, preparation of pastefill and high density fill from current tailings involves a physical dewatering process. There are currently three methods available for this process: Vacuum or pressure filters. These represent the ætraditionalÆ approach to the preparation of pastefill. Paste production storage mechanism. This is a thickening/storage mechanism developed with the specific objective of producingpaste/high density backfills. Fluidization. This system utilises silos fitted with simple dewatering devices and nozzles. Recently developed by CANMET, it provides the simplest and most economical approach.This paper describes and compares the three preparation methods, from a practical and an economic point of view. Once the pastefill/high density fill has been prepared and binder added, the backfill must be distributed underground into the stopes. A fundamental factor in the design of a distribution system is the rheology of the material. No two materials will exhibit the same properties, and a sequence of rheological and related testing is required prior to the completion of the design of the underground distribution system. This paper covers the testwork normally required and discusses the fundamental design parameters of pastefill distribution systems. The final section of this paper summarises the use of pastefill at three mines in Canada.

Jan 1, 1998

By M A. Llano-Serna, D J. Williams, L Bu

Tailings dam failures continue to occur worldwide at an unacceptable rate, averaging two events annually over the last 100 years. Furthermore, tailings dams continue to grow in size, increasing the potential release of tailings and water should they fail. Tailings are generally deposited in a slurry state, with the potential to flow if containment is lost. Understanding the generation and propagation of excess pore water pressure on failure is critical to predicting the flow and run-out of tailings. This paper presents numerical modelling using the material point method indicating that tailings run-out processes may be self-enhanced by the excess pore water pressure induced during the collapse of the containment. Moreover, it is shown that geomorphological features, such as the slope and its surface roughness downstream of the tailings dam, influence the pore water pressure dynamics upstream of the advancing toe.CITATION:Llano-Serna, M A, Bu, L and Williams, D J, 2018. Excess pore water pressure induced during tailings run-out, in Proceedings Mine Waste and Tailings Stewardship Conference 2018, pp 377–383 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Jul 23, 2018

By T Wambeke, J Benndorf

A risk-robust development of a heavy mineral resource requires an assessment of the geological uncertainty and spatial variability of the key factors impacting the mining and processing operation. Attributes of interest are the total heavy mineral grade, the slime content and the amount of oversized particles. The modelling of a mineral sand deposit presents two main challenges. Firstly, the exact location of the geological boundaries are obscure due to the complex interaction of the deposit formation processes. Secondly, the properties of interest exhibit a rather complex transitional behaviour across the so-called soft boundaries. Traditionally, the modelling exercise is restricted to a consecutive stochastic simulation of distinct geological facies and orebody properties. This results in different zones separated by hard boundaries, ignoring the typical transitional behaviour.This contribution presents an alternative approach which models the entire sand body as a single domain while accounting for the complex trends present. Error curves are used to infer covariance model parameters without the need of a prior removal of the trend. The principle is based on minimising the differences between empirical and theoretical errors resulting from two methods of prediction calculated for different rings of influence. The added value results from the unambiguous decomposition of the spatial variation into a deterministic trend and a stochastic residual. The trend model neither overfits nor underfits the data. The calculated residuals are thus unbiased and the uncertainty can be correctly assessed.The effort results in a characterisation of the resource uncertainty which provides a more realistic image of the spatial variability of the key properties in and across the geological domains of an existing heavy mineral sand deposit.CITATION:Wambeke, T and Benndorf, J, 2014. Optimal inference of modelling parameters to simulate complex trends across soft boundaries – a case study in heavy mineral sands, in Proceedings Orebody Modelling and Strategic Mine Planning Symposium 2014 , pp 73–84 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Nov 24, 2014

By D Suppel, Y Miezitis, S Jaireth

The competition between various options for the use of land is ever increasing. Commonly in Australia large tracts of land were un-encumbered by sweeping land use option limitations, but this situation has been rapidly altering in recent decades as governments are obliged to maximise the utility of the land for a broad range of competing interests. While the interests of miners have always been considered, the effects on limiting access to land for exploration and possible mining have not always been effectively incorporated into decision-making processes. As a result the challenge for national and state organisations representing these interests has been to develop a transparent process to allow for the mineral potential of an area to be systematically assessed and for information to be presented for use by specialists and non-specialists. Government agencies are called upon to implement government policy but also to provide accurate and meaningful advice which can assist in policy and land use decisions. Commonly timeframes are short and information can be less than complete. Nevertheless on-going decisions are made based upon the best available understanding. It is in this operational framework that the methods described in this paper are set. The paper describes a process for quickly and systematically providing advice on mineral potential for use by government agencies and ultimately the community within tight time and resource constraints. It is a method of combining the accumulated knowledge about mineral resources and their potential and presenting this information in an easily accessible form which can be used in a negotiation and policy development environment. Development of the method was undertaken to meet the needs of the Regional Forestry Agreement process in Australia. The method has been applied to study areas in New South Wales, Tasmania, Western Australia and elsewhere. Examples in this paper are taken from north eastern New South Wales.

Jan 1, 1999

By A Mcquillan, N Bar

Geotechnical models developed during the open pit mine planning stage are generally three-dimensional (3D) in component to capture the spatial variation in geological, structural, hydrogeological and geomechanical conditions. Yet when geotechnical analysis is completed, often the 3D geological, hydrogeological and structural models are simplified to two-dimensions (2D). This paper demonstrates this simplification, through referenced case studies, can lead to the wrong failure mechanism being analysed and/or a conservative Factor of Safety (FOS), or Strength Reduction Factor (SRF), being calculated, leading to a false sense of stability. There exists a paradigm that the FOS calculated using 2D limit equilibrium (LE), or the Strength Reduction Factor (SRF) calculated using 2D finite element (FE), modelling methods is generally conservative, ie lower, than the true FOS. However, this assumption that 3D FOS, or 3D SRF, is always higher than 2D FOS, or 2D SRF, is not always correct (Chen and Chameau, 1983; Bromhead and Martin, 2004; Herza et al, 2017; Pyke, 2017; Dana et al, 2018).

Nov 29, 2022

By D Andrew, G Stanway, P Mahoney, C Griebel

The iron ore mining industry is currently going through an adjustment from high to more moderate growth as China’s economy transitions from capital-intensive investment to a more services-oriented economy. We are now witnessing a renewed focus on productivity improvements and cost savings as planned expansions are completed. Despite the scale and importance that the mining industry plays in the global economy, innovation literature is generally more targeted at faster-moving industries with shorter innovation timeframes and lower capital requirements. To fill this gap, VCI set out to understand the state of innovation in the mining industry in 2014. This State of Play report aims to give an objective appraisal of the strengths and weaknesses of innovation in mining. The report has three sections covering both the structure and delivery of innovation in mining:Ecosystem – focused on understanding how the iron ore mining innovation ecosystem system works, including the roles of large and small miners, service companies, researchers and governments. Our recommendations focus on what is required for the system to work well and improve the level and quality of innovation in the industry.Strategy – how do companies define their innovation strategy in relation to their corporate strategy? How are these related to prevailing global and industry trends? How do they communicate this with their business? How successful are they? These are among the questions that this section attempts to answer. Our recommendations are pitched at the executive leadership of iron ore mining and service companies.Delivery – focused on how companies develop and deliver innovation, looking at the success of different structural options, leadership and culture, partnerships and the best approaches to change. Recommendations are aimed at improving outcomes within the iron ore mining value chain, including the role that suppliers play.CITATION:Stanway, G, Mahoney, P, Andrew, D and Griebel, C, 2015. Understanding the state of innovation in the iron ore industry, in Proceedings Iron Ore 2015, pp 631–646 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Jul 13, 2015

By B D. Sowerby, N G. Cutmore

Improved process control can be achieved through the accurate and reliable on-line measurement of critical process parameters in real time. Over the past few decades on-line analysis techniques have been developed and applied in the mineral and energy industries for the measurement of process stream composition, mineralogy, particle size and flow rates. This has led to increased throughput and product quality while reducing processing costs and minimising emissions. The support of a sustainable mineral processing industry will require the further development of on-line analysis and control technologies. The application of developments in instrumentation combined with improved control strategies will lead to improvements in process efficiency resulting in large economic benefits to the industry, reduced energy usage and lower process emissions. There is a clear convergence of interests in being able to better measure and control minerals processing in terms of the triple bottom line of economic, social and environmental impacts. Technology is increasingly becoming available enabling measurement across the entire spectrum of minerals processing from mining to hydrometallurgy and pyrometallurgy. CSIRO is developing a range of these new technologies. A number of these developments are discussed in the present paper, namely: on-line particle size analysis and acoustic emission methods to enhance the control and optimisation of grinding circuits; on-line mineralogy of dry powders and slurries; on-line bulk elemental analysers for application on conveyor belts and in smelters; and the development of new sensing technologies for sorting base metal ores.

Jan 1, 2002

The past year has been a difficult one for the mining industry in this country, but an active and successful one for the Branch. Membership has continued to increase, albeit at a slower rate than last year, and with the increase almost all from student membership. I dwelt at some length last year on the continued increase in student membership, which I ascribed largely to deliberate policies adopted by the Branch to foster this area of membership. I don't propose to reiterate these, suffice it to say that as usual, the Otago School of Mines has been a prolific source of student members, and it will be a pity if this source dries up û more on this subject later. In fact, students form just on 29 per cent of the Branch's total membership û a far higher percentage than for any other Branch in the Institute, whose membership as a whole comprises only ten per cent students.

Jan 1, 1985

By G Lane, S Morrell

The design of the 12 m diameter SAG mill installed at the Cadia Hill Mine in New South Wales followed after two years of extensive laboratory and pilot plant testwork. The testwork showed the Cadia ores to be hard and competent necessitating the use of both a variable speed SAG mill drive and pebble crushing. The grinding power requirements for the SAG mill was based on engineering in-house grinding software, pilot plant data and simulations using JK SimMet software. Surveys of the SAG mill operation during the first four weeks showed the feed size distribution, transfer size and pebble rate to be lower or less than those for which it was designed. To compensate for the lower pebble rate, the SAG ball load was increased. This resulted in the total comminution circuit power being some 0.5 kWh/t higher than predicted. The JK SimMet SAG model has been modified to take account of these variations.

Jan 1, 2000

One of the major changes in the resource industry in the nineties has been the re-internationalisation of the industry. The history of the resource business has been one of companies from the developed world utilising the cash flows from their operations to explore and develop mines in less developed regions of the world. This resource development has progressively generated wealth and economic development, which in turn, has led to a new generation of exploration and mining projects. In South America, Chile had led the way in a mining resurgence, now closely followed by Argentina, Brazil, Venezuela and Peru. Although Chile has long had a significant copper mining industry, the pre-nationalisation phase was driven by American capital; the current phase has been spearheaded by R.T.Z. - B.H.P. at Escondida with Canadian junior companies, in particular, providing major speculative impetus. The Australian junior companies have not been significant in South America.

Jan 1, 1995

By R Zhang, J Xu, X Lv, C Bai, S Zhang

This paper studies the grinding behaviour of vanadium-titanium magnetite concentrate in a ball mill. The grinding kinetics, surface morphology, lattice distortion, wettability and moisture capacity were analysed. Grinding kinetics equation was established based on population balances model with the size distribution data from a laser diffraction technique. The SEM photos of the ground concentrate showed that the surface gets rough with increasing grind time. Agglomeration of fine particles was enhanced when the grinding time reached 30 minutes. X-ray diffraction results showed that a loss in crystalline occurred with increasing the grinding time. The peaks of the X-ray diffraction patterns are significantly broadened with increasing grinding time. Wettability, characterised by contact angle between the material and water, improved due to the fact that the surface roughness increased with increasing grinding time. Moisture capacity of concentrate ascends abruptly in the first three minutes and then changed slowly with increasing grinding time. The water transfer coefficient in the particles increased rapidly in the first six minutes and then decreased quickly until grinding time reached 12 minutes.CITATION:Zhang, R, Lv, X, Bai, C, Xu, J and Zhang, S, 2013. Wet grinding of ?vanadium-titanium magnetite concentrate in a ball mill, in Proceedings Iron Ore 2013 , pp 511-518 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Aug 12, 2013

By J N. Farrell

Metallurgists frequently use a small number of large samples to characterise expected mill performance, with the a priori assumption that these few samples are representative of the entire deposit. Geometallurgical sampling is becoming more prevalent as a way to use many smaller samples to indicate the expected recovery as part of the Mineral Resource or Ore Reserve estimation.The evaluation of magnetite deposits involves specialised approaches to sample preparation, sample analysis and resource estimation. The sampling protocol for magnetite deposits will typically include the use of Davis Tube analysis. The Davis Tube is a mini-pilot plant that is used for determining the mass magnetic recovery from a small amount of sample ground to a specific size. The magnetic concentrate may then be analysed and together with the mass magnetic recovery, may be used to simulate the expected mill recovery. The magnetite sampling protocol is specific to each deposit, and is typically designed around a specific metallurgical flow sheet.During resource modelling, the mass magnetic recoveries and concentrate grades may be estimated directly or assigned to a block model using regressions with other chemical constituents. For estimation, the concentrate grades are weighted to account for the different mass magnetic recoveries of each sample and the impact of these differences on the concentrate estimates.

Sep 5, 2011

By O Arafat, K M. Bartholomew

A voracious consumer of energy and grinding media, the modern ball milling circuit has a huge direct cost impact on a mineral processing operation. Through optimisation, grinding also has the potential to unlock great improvements in recovery and throughput, but how can the complex interactions between mills, classifiers, tonnage, ore-type and downstream recovery be measured, understood and managed in a systematic manner?Functional performance analysis provides the tools and insights needed to measure, understand and improve the two key process efficiencies in ball milling circuits: classification system efficiency (CSE) and mill grinding efficiency.CSE measures the composite performance of the classification system as a whole. In short, the purpose of the classification system is to ensure that grinding mill energy is used to grind coarse particles while minimising overgrinding. CSE is simple to measure in the plant and it provides immediate feedback to the plant metallurgist, mill superintendent and management about the performance of the classification system and the amount of wasted energy in the grinding plant.Mill grinding efficiency measures the capacity of the grinding mill to convert feed-sized material into product-sized material on a tonnes per kilowatt hour basis. It is normalised based upon the ore resistance to breakage, so it provides feedback about the ‘health’ of the milling process under varying operating conditions and ore types. Mill grinding efficiency is measured at the same time as CSE through circuit sampling.Functional performance analysis combines CSE and mill grinding efficiency to provide a measureable, manageable optimisation objective. It also provides a link to tonnage, ore type and recovery. As a result, systematic optimisation of a grinding circuit is a measureable and manageable process to meet business objectives.CITATION:Bartholomew, K M, McIvor, R E and Arafat, O, 2014. Functional performance of ball milling circuits – a plant metallurgist’s tool for process characterisation and optimisation, in Proceedings 12th AusIMM Mill Operators’ Conference 2014 , pp 227–232 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 1, 2014

By C B. Smith, G L. Boxer, S W. Moss, A L. Jaques, V Lorenz, M J. Rayner

The Ernest Henry Iron Oxide Copper Gold deposit is hosted in a large dilation between two moderately dipping shear zones found in the footwall and hanging wall of the deposit. These shears are controlled by a large diorite intrusion to the north-east and south-west of the deposit, formed ~1660 Ma. A shear zone dubbed the ‘Interlens’ uncovered through underground workings truncates the main orebody into two lenses, and is hypothesized to have formed in conjunction with the Hanging Wall Shear Zone and Footwall Shear Zone. All three shears dip moderately to the SSE (50–140) from open cut exposures through to the current mining horizon approximately 800 m below the surface. Routine geological work and a capital drilling campaign has identified a significant flexure in these sub parallel ore bounding shears with increasing depth. A shift in shear orientation in the Interlens over approximately 100 m vertically from ~50° to the SSE to a steep, easterly trend (~85° to the east) is observed in both drill core and exposures in the underground workings. It is hypothesized the diorite intrusive to the south-west of the deposit controls the shear zone geometries at depth. The geometry of the Interlens mirrors the surface expression of the Proterozoic package of the orebounding shears to the south-west of the deposit, suggesting the surface geometries of the shear zones are consistent with depth. Additional drilling to explore the validity of this hypothesis is planned for the near future to better understand the structural controls on the Ernest Henry mineralisation with increasing depth.

Mar 22, 2022

By P J. McCarthy

Globalisation and consolidation is resulting in the mining industry coming to be dominated by a small number of very large companies seeking to lever assets and knowledge to create wealth. As an important service provider to the mining industry, the minerals tertiary education sector needs to understand these global drivers and respond to them. However, it is under-resourced and its sustainability is under challenge in all Western countries. Through the establishment and funding of the Minerals Tertiary Education Council (MTEC), the Minerals Council of Australia (MCA) has provided a unique opportunity to build a national, world-class minerals tertiary education environment in Australia that can be sustained in the long-term. This paper reviews how the global changes occurring in the mining industry provide the model for what needs to occur in the minerals education sector and how MTEC is the logical vehicle to facilitate these changes. It concludes by suggesting that the time has come to integrate the minerals tertiary education providers into one business. Furthermore, the vision should be for a global mining education academy based around a virtual university capable of servicing the cultural diversity and continuing education needs of the global minerals industry.

Jan 1, 2001