JSE-listed gold major Gold Fields’ 50-year-life mechanised South Deep mine is on course to produce 300 000 during the current financial year, to the end of June 2010, reports Gold Fields vice-president and head of South African operations Vishnu Pillay.

The design and production schedule is in place for the next 30 years. 
Pillay says that the mine design and schedule provide the company with a good indication of the kind of planning and infrastructure that have to be in place to manage the mine’s build-up into the 
future.

Gold Fields will spend R8,5-billion to 2014, when South Deep will be producing gold at 750 000 oz/y to 800 000 oz/y.

“We have been managing the build-up tightly over the past five quarters, and I am pleased to report that production for the previous quarter [exceeded on] plan, given that, quarter-on-quarter, the mine has experienced a 26% improvement,” says Pillay.

Pillay says that the company now has a fully mechanised and modernised operation, with a new fleet and skilled operators.

Capital expenditure of the mine for the 2010 financial year is estimated at R1,7-billion, and this is being used to establish infrastructure to underpin future production and gold output.

In addition, the number of drill rigs on the mine has been doubled, from 8 to 16, over the last eight months.

He says that significant progress has been made with respect to the mine’s longhole stoping. 
“Our initial designs have proved to be correct and we are experiencing success in terms of the achievement that we can gain from longhole stoping.“

Currently, most of the mine’s efforts comprise drift and fill.
 “We are slowly gravitating towards longhole stoping. Our plan calls for a migration from drift and fill into longhole stoping to achieve about 60% production from the longhole stoping method.”

Procurement of the low-profile trackless equipment is complete.

“We also have to ensure that the mine’s tailings storage facility is completed. 
“That contract has recently been awarded and the project is on track for completion in 2011. 
“Further, additional hoisting capacity and an extension of the plant is in progress.

Pillay says that these aspects are all well managed and expected to follow schedule tightly and be delivered on time.

Modernised Mining

“The South African mining industry has become accustomed to labour-intensive conventional operation, but South Deep is different,” comments Pillay.

South Deep employs 4 500 people, where similar-sized conventional labour-intensive deep-level South African gold mines would be employing in the region of 10 000 people.

The mine is the world’s first mechanised deep-level gold mine with the world’s deepest hoisting shaft to 3 000 m.

Pillay says that the mine is now aiming at achieving additional productivity from its equipment. 
“With this being mechanised-mined, I have to acknowledge that there is a learning curve that we are following here.

“Our current equipment is delivering in the range of 60 m to 65 m for each rig every month. We would like to get that up to a 100 m, given that, on some of our international operations, these rigs deliver just on 250 m a month.

“However, taking into account that we are a deep-level mine and that there are differences in shift arrangements and working times, we would be happy to achieve 100 m.

“In all aspects, South Deep is going to be the leader of mining in this country going forward, and it is expected that the South Deep mine will set new standards for bulk mining at depth, irrespective of the challenges that we face. South Deep will set the benchmarks for a global scale,” says Pillay.

He concludes that the South Deep mine is the crown in the Gold Fields stable and that it is an acquisition that the company is extremely proud of. 
“Gold Fields believes that it will deliver considerable value to the South African region and to the organisation as a whole.”