Name of the Project
Cadia East rehabilitation and upgrade project.

Location
New South Wales, Australia.

Client
Newcrest Mining.

Project Description
Cadia East was placed under a prohibition notice on April 14, prohibiting the miner from extracting ore from its Panel Cave (PC) 1 and 2.

Damage to the mine infrastructure was minimal; however, Newcrest plans to undertake a project to increase the dynamic ground support capacity around known fault structures and rehabilitate ground support in areas impacted on by the seismic event.

Work to restore PC2 to production has been prioritised, while the remainder of the ground support upgrades are completed at PC1 and other areas of the mine.

Jobs to Be Created
Not stated.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
Not stated.

Value
A$25-million.

Duration
Subject to the lifting of the prohibition notice, PC1 and 2 will restart operations in the first quarter of 2018.

Latest Developments
Newcrest Mining has restarted production at PC2 at its Cadia East mine after completing a test and response phase.

The miner started the testing phase at PC2 in June, after operations were suspended in April owing to a seismic event.

The test and response phase involved drawing about 480 000 t of ore while monitoring ongoing seismic response levels to ensure that they remained within expected range and limits. The ore drawn during this phase was transported by the underground conveyor system to surface, where it was processed.

Meanwhile, remediation and upgrade work on ground support continues at PC1, with mining on track to start in the September quarter.

The PC1 crusher remains the subject of a prohibition notice, pending the completion of the work outlined in the restart plan as part of the start-up of PC2.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.

On Budget and on Time?
Too early to state.

Contact Details for Project Information
Newcrest Mining, tel +61 3 9522 5333, fax +61 3 9525 2996 or email corporateaffairs@newcrest.com.au.