JSE-listed drilling solutions provider Master Drilling will not only exhibit but also launch a new technological advancement – a mechanised blind shaft boring system – at this year’s Investing in African Mining Indaba, following a successful experience at the 2015 Cape Town-based event.

Master Drilling executive director Koos Jordaan tells Mining Weekly that the new system, on show during the event from February 8 to 11 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, will create access for man, material and ventilation shafts of up to 14 m in diameter and up to 2 000 m deep in hard-rock applications.

The system will be suitable for any greenfield or brownfield underground mining application at copper, zinc, gold, iron-ore and platinum mines, among others.

While current mechanised raiseboring services require bottom, or underground, access, Jordaan says this new system could be applied in areas where there is no such access or in greenfield projects, where shaft boring is required from the surface.

“There is significant value in this system, as it provides faster access to underground orebodies,” he adds.

Jordaan highlights the potential impact of such a boring system on the feasibility of a project, thereby reducing the time and cost of capital construction programmes and creating quicker returns on certain orebodies.

Having developed the system over the past year, Master Drilling is finalising the conceptual design and will research manufacturing. The system will be released onto market at the end of 2017 or the beginning of 2018.

Additional key advantages of the system include providing easier access for construction-related tunnel infrastructure, while the size of the shaft will accommodate larger equipment.

Jordaan believes that the Mining Indaba will serve as a favourable platform to showcase the new technology. The launch of the new system will be complemented by a presentation on new drilling services, with particular focus on how these services add value by solving old problems in an “innovative” manner.

Project Roll-Out
Jordaan believes that Master Drilling’s offering as a diverse drilling service provider is underscored by recent key shaft boring projects. These include work on the development of refined-copper producer Palabora Copper’s R9.3-billion Lift II project, in Limpopo.

Master Drilling’s project scope entailed the construction of two ventilation shafts, each 6.1 m in diameter and 1.2 km deep – constructed in the second quarter of 2015. It has also completed the civil preparations and presinking by implementing piling of up to 50 m for both shafts. The company completed the pilot hole breakthrough of the first shaft at the end of November.

“The breakthrough of the pilot hole in the shaft was within 0.5 m from the theoretical centre line of the shaft, which provides an indication of the accuracy and straightness of the drilling,” Jordaan says, citing this as a project milestone.

The first shaft is expected to be completed in early 2017. Thereafter, excavation work on the second shaft will start.

Jordaan told Mining Weekly in June 2015 that “once completed, the project will qualify as the largest scope of raiseboring work per cubic metre ever embarked on worldwide”.

Other notable projects undertaken by Master Drilling include standard shaft raiseboring and construction of five 4.1-m-diameter shafts ranging from 460 m for a platinum mine, in the North West, which Master Drilling started at the end of November.

The company is also working on the Kibal project for gold producer Randgold Resources, in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Jordaan notes that the work at Kibali, which forms part of a five-year raiseboring and cover drilling programme, is progressing well and remains on schedule. The programme is expected to be completed by the end of 2018, with the latest milestone being the completion of the ventilation shaft in mid-2015.

Diversification Strategy
Mining Weekly reported in October that Master Drilling’s order book for 2016 remained strong, “at almost $200-million, with the copper and gold sectors representing the largest portion of work”. The company is geared towards achieving exposure to the commodities market in the future of 60%, with the remaining 40% aimed towards servicing the energy and construction industries.

Following the company’s reporting that about 50% of its group income is generated from African operations for the half-year ended 2015, Jordaan notes that Master Drilling remains bullish and focused on furthering its geographical diversification across the continent, particularly in West Africa.

However, the company’s focus is not only limited to Africa. It has acquired a 40% stake in Scandinavia-based major raisebore drilling operator Bergteamet Raiseboring Europe. The deal, estimated at €5-million, is effective from this year and forms part of the company’s long-term growth strategy; it is also an effective entry into the Scandinavian region and European market.

Bergteamet owns a fleet of 18 raisebore drilling rigs and the company is ranked in the top five drilling companies globally.

Master Drilling CEO Danie Pretorius believes that the partnership with Bergteamet will strengthen the company’s position and entry into new markets, complementing its continued growth strategy.

Jordaan agrees, adding that, “as a specialised drilling service provider and in diversifying its operations, Master Drilling can offer a range of services for different value propositions”.