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Jan 1, 1886

By G. Davis

Mineral properties and mineral firms often trade at a market value that is significantly greater than the value indicated by discounted cash flow (DCF) techniques. A possible explanation is that DCF analysis does not consider the value derived from managerial flexibility. Presumably, then, at least some of the difference between DCF value and market value is due to managerial flexibility. This paper surveys the recent attempts to empirically quantify the value of managerial flexibility using option pricing theory. The results indicate that managerial flexibility, at least as measured by the option pricing methodology, falls well short of explaining the gap between DCF value and market value.

Jan 1, 1995

By M. E. Volin

To extend or delimit the known ore reserves of the Black Wonder manganese de-posit, the Bureau of Mines undertook an exploration project consisting of trenching, underground excavation, long-hole drilling, and sampling. The mineralization is spread over 6 square miles containing numerous small individual manganese deposits. There has been only small production from some of these deposits; however, simultaneous operations from many such small deposits could contribute considerably to the production from the district. A custom mill to treat oxide ore for battery use was built near Patterson in 1942 by the General Dry Batteries Co., Inc. It operated during World War II and was removed in 1944 when the manganese mines ceased operation. Except for some small experimental shipments, there has been no activity in the district since that time.

Jan 1, 1956

By B. W. Dunning

The Bureau of Mines investigated the concentration and distribution of precious metals in the various fractions produced from mechanical processing of obsolete military electronic scrap. Whole avionic units, printed circuit cards, and electrical connectors were processed and analyzed. Materials recovered included baghouse lights, wire bundles, mag-netics, and metal concentrates from eddy-current and high-tension sepa-ration. Higher value fractions were processed by a commercial toll refiner for recovery of gold and silver. Lower value fractions were analyzed by the Bureau. Three fractions, the lights, wire bundles, and metallics from high-tension separation, contained most of the precious metals. Depending on the type of scrap feed, these fractions represented 34 to 60 pct of the original sample weight. Collectively, they represented 68 to 97 pct and 75 to 98 pct of the contained gold and silver, respectively.

Jan 1, 1983

By A. S. Bayne

WITH the great increase in the use of power-driven machinery in industry, and consequent large-scale operations, the hazards to which , workmen are exposed have become much more numerous than at the beginning of the century. This is especially noticeable in mining. In the past thirty years or so, improvements in methods of excavation and metallurgy have made possible the exploitation of deposits which would have failed to make ore in previous years. This improvement, together with the in-creased use of machinery, has facilitated the mining of tremendously greater tonnages with a marked decrease in unit cost of production. This 'speed up' in mining creates numerous problems demanding close attention of operators and necessitates careful prep;tratory planning, as well as diligent supervision of actual operations. Underground openings increase in size so fast, and all phases of mining, mucking, and transportation proceed at such a rate, that a short period of reduced vigilance on the part of operators . results in disaster, both from the standpoint of safety and economies. Happily, the challenge of increased hazards has been successfully met by a general application of the slogan 'Safety First'. Today, we have large manufacturing concerns devoted entirely to the development and production of safety equipment for the protection of workmen in various branches of industry. Machinery manufacturers, in co-operation with their mining customers, have included the best possible in foolproof devices in the manufacture of hoists, compressors, boilers, electric motors, and equipment of all kinds. Mining companies and private individuals spend thousands of dollars and devote a great deal of time to research with the single object of preventing accidents and combating miners? diseases. Governments throughout the world have written regulations into their statures for the protection of miners and operators. Staffs are appointed to enforce these laws and investigate accidents to ascertain means of preventing them for the future benefit of the industry.

Jan 1, 1938

By G. A. Young

THE Geological Survey was created in 1842 to aid the development of Canada's mineral resources. Although the institution has been in existence for nearly 100 years and has accomplished an immense amount of work, the need for its services remains as great as ever and, indeed, it is difficult to imagine a time when the country will no longer require a Geological Survey. This is so because of the tremendous effort required to make an adequate geological examination of so large an area as is embraced by Canada and partly because what today may seem an adequate geological examination proves, later on, to be inadequate. The ultimate objective of the Geological Survey is to complete the study of all phases of the geology of Canada, that is, to determine how and when the physical features originated, how and when the soils and other unconsolidated deposits were formed, and how and when the solid rocks and associated deposits were produced and assumed their present conditions. When the study has been completed, any only then, will it be possible to make a reliable estimate of the country's mineral resources. This appraisal embraces more than determining the value of already discovered deposits: it also involves attempting to establish what kinds of undiscovered deposits may be present and where they may occur. The estimating of the potential mineral wealth can be clone only after the geology of the country is known. Not until then will it be possible to forecast what types of valued deposits may occur in a district and what types will almost certainly be lacking. A thorough knowledge of the geology of the country is desirable not only to permit estimating the potential mineral resources but also as an aid in locating and developing mineral deposits whether these are of the nature of a bed of limestone, a seam of coal, a reservoir of petroleum, a vein, an irregular body of sulphides, or any other type of deposit.

Jan 1, 1940

By R Jacobs, J Yeates

"The Stockman base metals project is situated in State Forest in the alpine area of East Gippsland, Victoria, adjacent to a National Park and within the headwaters of a major Ramsar-listed wetland catchment and the Murray-Darling River system. Site topography is steep, and elevated (650 m – 1200 m above sea level), and subject to circa 1 m annual rainfall, with occasional winter snowfall. The project consists of two volcanogenic massive sulfide (VMS) deposits to be mined by underground methods and treated in a 1.0 Mt/a central concentrator to produce copper and zinc concentrates for export over a ten year operational life. New resource projects are rare in Victoria. Recognising the sensitive setting, planning for the Stockman Project, which is now in the advanced permitting stage, has focused on balancing economic, environmental and social outcomes to ensure social licence to operate is secured and can be maintained. This has involved close attention to triple bottom line (TBL) risks and outcomes. Stockman has successfully gained State and Federal approvals via the Environmental Effects Statement process. The process of obtaining these approvals has required close attention to effective stakeholder involvement, and management of a lengthy and difficult approvals process, which is still to be finally concluded. This paper is a case study of the process of that permitting and the issues encountered to date. Key learnings from the experience have included: successful approvals require close attention to much more than just the project and its technical aspects and physical setting – effective stakeholder involvement and endorsement is critical the differing consultation requirements for local, regional and government stakeholders, to design and plan implementation of a project to meet TBL objectives, and to gain social licence to operate within the Victorian approvals process, the need for an effective lead government agency with policy authority dealing with material policy change requiring post-closure financial sureties estimating realistic permitting time and cost during the project evaluation phase. CITATION: Jacobs, R and Yeates, J, 2016. Stockman base metals project – sustainability, social licence to operate and permitting lessons learnt, in Proceedings Project Evaluation 2016, pp 98–110 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne)."

Mar 8, 2016

By E. Gybbon Spilsbury

(Pittsburg meeting, March, 1910.) THE recovery of gold and silver from their ores by means of the cyanide process has been so successful in the last few years that any radical improvement would seem impossible; yet the appliance to which I wish to call attention in this paper is really a radical departure from the methods now in general use. The most modern and approved of these, known as the all-sliming method, depends for its success on the grinding of the. ore so fine that practically 90 per cent. of it will pass through a 200-mesh screen. The slimes thus produced are then agitated and aerated in tanks of various types. The main object of this treatment is to insure such a thorough admixture of the pulp and solution that every particle of the ore is surrounded by a volume of solution sufficient to insure the dissolving of the whole of the gold- and silver-content. In addition, in order to expedite the action of the cyanide, and to oxidize such elements as would, if left in their active state, become cyanicides, air is blown in under pressure. In the Pachuca tank, this air is the active and sole means of agitation. The chief objections to all the methods off agitation used heretofore are the expense of operating and maintaining the mechanical devices for keeping the pulp in suspension, and the length of time required to obtain a fairly complete extraction. of the values. These objections are inherent to any method of agitation effecting a circulation of the pulp and the solution together, by giving the whole mass a circular movement, as in the low-tank system, or a vertical circulation, as in the Pachuca-tank system. In both methods, the particles of ore are kept traveling in the same direction as the solution, and with very little difference of speed; so that, while the whole mass is in

May 1, 1910

By AIME AIME

WHEN "Chief" Buehler in mid-September set out on his official 10,000 mile swing-around-the-circle visiting Local Sections he decided not to tell his audiences how to organize and operate a state geological survey. As the director for 28 years, of the Missouri Bureau of Geology and Mines (which, he concedes, is the best in existence) lie could have done this to good advantage; but he preferred to discuss affairs of the Institute. In 25 speeches made to member and student groups, he dwelt on sonic or all of the following phases of activities. He stressed the vital importance of the Local Sections in providing the opportunity for members to associate under pleasant auspices with others in their profession. The benefits of Institute membership he classified as tangible and intangible. Of the two lie felt that the latter were more important. A man's progress in his profession depends in large measure upon a broad acquaintance and friendship with others. The Institute is incomparably the best medium for meeting fellow engineers. The primary, function of the new enlarged Membership Committee is to obtain a comprehensive list of engineers eligible to be members, always hearing in mind that the standards of membership must not be lowered in any degree. These men are to be invited by individual letter to apply for membership. Whether they become members or not is of less importance; but it is vital that no qualified man should be outside the fold for the reason that membership had never been suggested to him. Dr. Buehler emphasized repeatedly his feeling that the younger man that had never had Institute membership brought specifically to his attention had been cheated:

Jan 1, 1935

By Eugene McAuliffe

THE last obtainable figures of the value of the coal mining investment are those contained in the U. S. Census Reports, from data gathered in 1919. The values shown therein and set forth below cover lands and equipment and do not include distribution and marketing facilities. The working capital necessary to meet pay rolls to purchase material and supplies and workmen's compensation insurance are likewise excluded.

Jan 1, 1926

By Albert J. Phillips

SEVERAL important changes have been' made during 1933 in the compilation and distribution of technical literature to those interested in nonferrous physical metallurgy. The Institute of Metals, of Great Britain, announced that preprints of all its papers would be distributed monthly to all members in combination with their bulletin of abstracts. The A.I.M.E. has announced that it will distribute to all members of the Institute of Metals and Iron and Steel Divisions a monthly bulletin entitled Metals, which will carry preprints of all publications of interest to the members of these two divisions. The American Society for Steel Treating has declared its intention to change its name to the American Society for Metals in order to indicate the broader scope of its activities. The abstract service of Metals and Alloys has been improved and expanded, covering practically the entire field of metallurgical literature. These changes and innovations now provide unparalleled reference service entirely in the English language.

Jan 1, 1934

By AIME AIME

THE American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers will hold its annual meeting in New York City, Feb. 9-12. The technical sessions, excepting the Sunday afternoon and evening sessions of the Mineral Industry Education Division (see the M.I.E.D. program) will be held in the Engineering Societies Building. The "All-Institute" luncheon on Monday will be at the Commodore Hotel; the Annual Banquet and President's Reception, the Smoker, and the Informal Dance will be at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel. The dinners of the Petroleum Division and the Institute of Metals Division will be at the Roosevelt Hotel.

Jan 1, 1942

By W. D. B. Motter

DURING the early development of blasting with liquid oxygen explosives the trend of experimentation was towards increasing the effectiveness of the explosive. Its characteristic of becoming inert after evaporation of the oxygen content made a strong appeal from the standpoint of safety, especially with missed holes. It later became apparent, however, with practical use of this explosive, that LOX lacked certain other safety characteristics. As its effectiveness was increased, it became more subject to detonation by impact. The object of this paper is to show the steps taken by one operating company to achieve greater safety in the large-scale handling of liquid oxygen explosives.

Jan 1, 1933

By J. Petersen, T. Moyo, D. Maharaj

This study investigates the effect of ammonium thiosulfate on the leaching of gold from the contacts of unpopulated cut electronic printed circuit boards (PCBs). Studies in the literature show ammonium thiosulfate to be a viable option in comparison to the commonly used but hazardous cyanide leaching route. However, the simultaneous dissolution of Cu interferes with the Au leaching reaction, often limiting the extraction to moderate levels. To optimize the system, an ammoniumthiosulfate system containing 0.5M ammonia, 0.5M ammonium thiosulfate, and Cu(II) sulfate at varying concentrations was studied as an alternative hydrometallurgical option for the recovery of gold from PCB. Tests were done with unpopulated standardized model PCBs (cut to 15 x 30mm pieces). Gold extraction of 47.3% was achieved after a 24-hour leaching experiment with a 0.02M copper background concentration. Further experiments focused using different initial background Cu concentrations (0M – 0.1M) to determine its effect on both gold and copper extractions. An initial Cu concentration of 0.045M resulted in the highest gold extraction, with 93.7% extraction after 6 hours of leaching. Further analysis of the data shows that the kinetic rate of gold leaching is correlated in a first-order dependence with the actual copper concentration in the solution, which increases with the concomitant dissolution of copper and gold from the PCBs. A lower threshold of 0.017M and an upper threshold of 0.15M copper in solution were determined, in between which gold extraction shows this first-order rate increase. The upper threshold is potentially linked to the onset of copper precipitation, which blinds the metal surfaces, slowing further leaching. The findings of this study suggest that in an industrial recovery operation of gold from waste PCB using the thiosulfate method, copper concentrations need to be carefully monitored, and the process should preferably operate with uncut or coarsely cut untreated boards to minimize exposure to copper circuits.

Dec 11, 2024

By E. Kuipa, J. N. Lekunze

The selection of an underground mining method stems from a multivariate analysis that considers geomechanical, geological, economic, and operational parameters. Even after identifying the most compatible method, there is no assurance that the mining company will achieve the best performance. The geological complexity of some deposits requires adaptations of methods described in the literature to obtain more selectivity and reduce mining waste. There are some studies on geometry of underground structures, but a methodology that describes an adaptation of a room-and-pillar mining method for ore bodies with down-dip varying from 20° to 25° is novel. The present work aimed to reduce dilution by adapting the traditional room-and-pillar mining method (TRP) to inclined ore boLittle attention has been paid to the rehabilitation of derelict and ownerless mines in South Africa after their lifespan. This paper aims to explore management gaps in legislation that have resulted in the non-rehabilitation of derelict and ownerless mines in South Africa. There is growing evidence that supports the distressing effects of mining on people living around these mines in the North West Province. This paper was motivated by the current socio-economic status quo of old mining towns, the influx of illegal miners (Zama Zamas), severe environmental damages, and the violence associated with derelict mines. Underpinning this research was an ecosystem approach and integrated resources management principles, which formed the foundation for the decision-making process.The researcher used a mixed-method approach and employed convergent techniques. A semi-structured instrument was used to collect data from 200 respondents. The results indicated that there is a dire need for community-based consultative processes, and an absence of clear guidelines for derelict and ownerless mines to pressure mine management to adhere to rehabilitation standards. Moreover, the mining charter is ambiguous regarding policy implementation, budgetary allocation, and duration of the rehabilitation of these mines. The paper concluded that management challenges associated with derelict mines can be reduced if all stakeholders follow the guidelines as outlined in the environmental legislative framework (NEMA) of South Africa while being open to innovations in line with international best practices. It also contributes towards the development of guidelines for the management and implementation of legislation related to derelict and ownerless mines in South Africa from a philosophical, theoretical, and policy perspectivedies. This new method is entitled short-hole room-and-pillar (SHRP). The equations that measure the dilution are defined according to the geometry of stopes and openings. The results comprise comparative analyses of the operational and planned dilutions to measure the performance of the SHRP method. The average operating dilution of the SHRP method was more than five times lower than the planned dilution according to the TRP method. Low operational dilution indicates high selectivity of the method and its potential to reduce underground mining tailings.

Oct 9, 2024

By Oliver W. Marsden, John O. Marsden

This paper presents the results of a hypothetical case study that evaluates the potential transition of a large copper mining and extraction operation to 90% renewable energy. The case study considers three phases to accomplish such a transition; phase I considers installation of renewable power generation at the site to meet a portion of the current electric power needs, phase II considers conversion of diesel combustion mining equipment to electric equipment, and phase III considers implementation of renewable energy generation coupled with energy storage systems to provide approximately 90% of the total mine site energy requirements. The paper evaluates the results in the context of a range of purchased electric power unit costs ($0.065, $0.100, and $0.135/kWh) as well as various carbon tax scenarios ($0, $5.00, and $37.30/t CO2). While the case study is hypothetical and considers a range of assumptions, it clearly identifies a pathway to potentially economically viable transitions to a renewable energy platform for mining companies. This represents an approach that mining companies can use to help to meet emissions targets, as well as social responsibility and reporting requirements.

Jun 4, 2021

By CASSANDRA L. HOEBBEL, Emily J. Haas, MARGARET E. RYAN

In recent years, there has been increasing interest in the role that individual factors play in health and safety (H&S) outcomes in the mining industry. Two surveys, one measuring self-reported routine safety performance and one measuring individual perceived competence in the non-routine knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) critical to emergency response, were administered to two samples of mineworkers in separate research studies over a 2-year period (N=2,020 and 696, respectively). Eight demographic items were common to both surveys and their associations with each performance outcome were tested in response to a series of exploratory research questions.

Jan 9, 2022

By C Dick

Over the past three decades, mining operations have seen a significant increase in the use of contractors for mining, camp management and catering, recruitment, maintenance, power management, and commissioning. More recently contractors have been engaged for stores and logistics, OH&S, environmental, exploration, training etc. In some countries, such as South Africa, the trend is towards total outsourcing of all aspects of a mining operation which is coordinated by the owners’ management team.During the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) more Australian companies considered and/or took on this approach to recruiting for both projects and operations as mining companies were forced to rethink their corporate strategies as commodity prices plummeted to low levels, pushing operations and projects into potentially financially unviable territory.This paper discusses the labour recruitment, commissioning and operating strategy of Western Areas NL (WSA), with the assistance of Independent Metallurgical Operations Pty Ltd (IMO), as it progressed construction, commissioning and operation of the Cosmic Boy nickel concentrator at the Forrestania Nickel Project during and post GFC. The use of IMO contractors allowed Western Areas to mitigate labour cost risk during the uncertainty caused by the GFC and let their management team focus on the task of bringing a new operation into viable and profitable production.

Aug 8, 2011

By White A. H, Gillies A. D S

In recent years the Australian gold industry has gone through a major expansion phase. The need for finance has led to adoption of different approaches such as the well known gold loan, forward selling, equity participation by suppliers and equipment leasing. During early periods of the expansion, significant new equity was raised chiefly for high risk exploration ventures. The major form of new equity finance was ordinary shares, often in 'No Liability' companies. The increasing capital requirement of the huge new development projects of the 1980s also spurred the use of debt finance. This trend was accelerated as high inflation and the taxation advantages of debt finance made borrowing attractive. This paper reviews major financing techniques used by the Australian gold industry with particular emphasis on the innovative financing techniques initiated recently. An analysis has been undertaken of the effects on the industry of issues such gold loans, forward selling, equity participation by suppliers, fly-in fly-out operations, contractor mining and equipment leasing. In order to achieve a better understanding of the innovative financing techniques, a survey of already published financial data from well known Australian gold mines was carried out. Data was collected from various published financial reports of gold mining companies. In addition, a questionnaire survey was sent to gold mining companies to assist the collection of further information. The results of this study show that there are a significant number of gold mines variously using gold loans, forward sales, contractor mining and fly-in and fly-out arrangements to finance their projects. Only four operations have vendor suppliers investing capital funds in their projects. Based on the findings of this study, conclusions and recommendations are drawn that these approaches are likely to be with Australian gold industry for some time in the future and will continue to be intensively applied to finance gold projects.

Jan 1, 1994

By S. J. Cook

Copper, a world commodity, and the first metal used by man, played a great part in the beginnings of modern civilization, which rests so dependently on the utilization of metals. Then, long after the close of the so-called 'bronze age,' when iron and steel had attained great prominence as the world's most important metals, the practical application of electricity to industry and commerce, for the improvement of every phase of man's multitudinous activities, gave a new impetus to the production of copper. Improved metallurgical practice made it possible to work low-grade properties at a profit. Research disclosed many new uses for copper. The metal, now produced from the mines of the world in the proportion of about one pound to every 50 tons of pig iron, has attained an importance which rivals that of iron and steel in the commerce and daily life of every nation. New fields of copper-bearing ore have been discovered in Canada in recent years. Established mines in the United States and Chile are producing on a great scale. Africa looms up as one of the great question marks in the future of copper. Whereas, a few years ago, the end of the world?s resources was predicted as being in sight, the evidence now available seems to show that the copper production of the world is likely not only to continue, but to increase for a long time yet to come. Canada's future in copper is a great subject; in the present paper only a few of the most outstanding factors affecting Canada's destiny in this large field may be noted, but if consideration of the points raised herein serves to focus attention on the magnificent possibilities of Canada as a producer of copper, the preparation of the paper will be more than justified.

Jan 1, 1928