Glencore’s purchase of FLSmidth’s new 23 foot grinding mill for the Katanga Mining operation in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) speaks well of the reputation of this technology. Having been used at other mining operations in the region, the FLSmidth grinding mill has proved a successful choice for many customers. Katanga Mining Limited operates a large scale copper/cobalt project with substantial high grade mineral reserves and integrated metallurgical operations. The new grinding mill will be delivered ex-works together with associated equipment. It is likely to be commissioned in the third quarter of 2014 at the mine’s copper KCC concentrator plant.

The new equipment will be commissioned into an existing milling plant at the Katanga concentrator, in which multiple AG and ball mills already operate. Terence Osborn, minerals capital sales and marketing manager at FLSmidth, says the new grinding mill will boost plant reliability and enable production throughput predictability. “It has been well proven to be high quality and reliable equipment, and we have a growing relationship with this client,” Osborn says. In addition, Katanga Mining will implement FLSmidth’s proprietary Process Expert System (PXP) advanced process control mill optimisation package. This high level process control solution is a proven method to simultaneously reduce cost and improve product quality.

“The mill is running in closed circuit with hydrocyclones and we’ve developed software that takes the milling plant operation into account holistically,” Osborn says. “Having expert knowledge of mill circuits, we’re in an ideal position to ensure that the whole system runs in a well-balanced and optimal manner harnessing PXP to achieve a consistent throughput. “Achieving consistency is particularly important at this operation, since test work data indicates that the ore from this project will be variable from a hardness perspective and this always makes mill circuit control more challenging. The best way to maximise plant productivity is to maximise stability. By running the plant as consistently as possible, the mine will achieve a better quality downstream product.” FLSmidth will provide expert supervision during installation and commissioning and is currently discussing the appropriate spares requirement.