Name of Project
Gamsberg zinc project.

Location
Northern Cape, South Africa.

Client
Vedanta Zinc International (VZI) is a grouping of Vedanta Limited’s zinc assets in Southern Africa and Ireland. The grouping comprises Black Mountain Mining and the Gamsberg zinc project, both in South Africa’s Northern Cape province; Skorpion Zinc, in the Karas region of southern Namibia; and Lisheen, in Ireland, which is in advanced orderly closure mode.

Project Description
Gamsberg is being developed on one of the world’s largest known, but as yet undeveloped, zinc deposits.

While Gamsberg’s grade is relatively low – between 6% and 6.5% – its current reserve and resource is 214-million tonnes, and the life-of-mine (LoM) is estimated at 30 years.

The first phase of the project will comprise an openpit mine, a concentrator and associated infrastructure that includes:

• a tailings dam, a waste-rock dump and stockpiles,

• offices and workshops,

• a power transmission line from the Aggeneys substation to Gamsberg,

• a water pipeline,

• an access road from the N14 to Gamsberg, and

• housing units for accommodation requirements.

The first phase of the project is expected to have an LoM of 13 years, replacing the production lost by the closure of the Lisheen mine and restoring volumes to more than 300 000 t/y.

There is also significant potential for further expansion at the Gamsberg North deposit.

Potential Job Creation
At the peak of construction, the project is expected to employ about 2 500 people. When operational, Gamsberg will employ 700 to 800 people.

Value
The capital cost of Phase 1, through a range of innovative adjustments made by the project team to keep Gamsberg’s development on track when the zinc price weakened, has been reduced from $600-million to $400-million.

About 90% of the costs for Phase 1 are committed.

Duration
The first blast took place in July 2015. In Phase 1, which has an LoM of 13 years, 4-million tons a year of ore will be produced from Gamsberg’s openpit and 250 000 tons a year of zinc-in-concentrate from its concentrator plant. First production is expected by mid-2018, with full ramp-up expected to be reached in 9 to 12 months thereafter.

Latest Developments
Vedanta Resources subsidiary VZI has started commissioning activities at its Gamsberg project.

Waste prestripping had been completed by the end of June and ore production has started.

About 67.2-million tonnes of waste has been prestripped, against an initial target of about 68-million tonnes.

Further, 487 000 t of ore has already been mined, against an initial target of about 500 000 t.

A consistent mining production rate of between 4-million and 4.5-million tonnes a month of overall rock mining has since been achieved and is expected to continue into the operational phase of the project.

Plant and infrastructure construction activity peaked in the first quarter of the 2018/19 financial year, with the necessary water and power infrastructure having been successfully commissioned.

Water and power are now being delivered at the required capacity.

Meanwhile, construction of the 117 ha high-density polyethylene-lined tailings storage facility is complete, and is ready to receive tailings, VZI has said.

Cold commissioning of the first section of the plant, comprising the crusher and the conveying systems, is also complete.

In addition, Gamsberg has begun feeding ore to the front end of the plant to build the required ore stockpile.

The stockpiling of crushed ore stock, in readiness for feeding to the mills and downstream flotation and dewatering sections of the plant, is scheduled for the end of this month, which is when the first ore feed to the semiautogenous and ball mills is scheduled.

First product from the concentrator plant filter is expected by early September.

Further, about 90% of Gamsberg’s permanent operational staff, expected to total 700, have already been recruited and on-boarded in readiness for the start of full operations.

In addition, the Gamsberg Smart Ore Movement digitalisation project, which was announced in November 2017, is on track to go live during August and will provide real-time stockpile and blending management solutions to derisk the ramp-up of the concentrator.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
Aveng Moolmans (bulk mining); ELB Group (concentrator and associated infrastructure); Liviero Civils (tailings dam) and Zest WEG Group, including Shaw Controls MV (upgrade of municipal supply station providing water for the mine and zinc concentration plant).

On Budget and on Time?
Gamsberg is on track for first production in mid-2018.

Contact Details for Project Information
VZI PR and corporate affairs manager Christo Witbooi, tel +27 54 983 9225 or email CWitbooi@blackmountain.co.za.