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By Steven Richardson, E A. Cameron, Reza "Ray" Jambakhsh

This paper outlines the design and implementation of a method to use Long hole Carbide drilling to blast an "Upper Blind Slot Raise" in the range of 12m (40 ft).

Jan 1, 1992

By Robert T. DeGavre

INTRODUCTION The $645 million financing for Inco Ltd's Soroako nickel project in Indonesia not only represents a significant human achievement but also there are certain important lessons that can be derived from Inco's experience in financing the project. The paper will not present a technical assessment of the project since Inco Ltd. submitted a series of papers on this subject at the international Laterite Symposium as part of the 108th Annual Meeting of the AIME in February 1979. BRIEF HISTORY OF THE SOROAKO PROJECT Table 1 summarizes the milestones achieved in the Soroako project and its financing. Exploration Phase A contract of Work was signed on July 27, 1968 by the Republic of Indonesia and F.T. International Nickel Indonesia (P.T. Inco) covering an extensive area of over 25,000 square miles on the two southeastern arms of the island of Sulawesi. The Contract provides that P.T. Inco has the sole responsibility for financing the project and determining the terms on which the financing should be obtained, that P.T. Inco has the right to receive and hold outside of Indonesia foreign exchange revenues and to freely dispose of such revenues, and that Indonesians have the right to purchase up to 20% of the equity of P.T. Inco over a period following start of production. P.T. Inco began field investigations in the Contract Area in August 1968. Preliminary reconnaissance sampling with portable drills broadly outlined areas of favorable laterite terrain which were then systematically sampled on surveyed grids. By early 1971 sufficient exploration work had been completed to indicate that the laterite deposits near Soroako could sustain a major nickel-producing plant (figure 1). Pilot plant studies in 1970 and 1971 at Inco's research station in Port Colborne, Ontario, using two bulk samples of Soroako ore material, also confirmed that the ore could be upgraded and treated for the recovery of its metal values. Feasibility Phase Encouraged by the results of its exploration program and pilot-plant work, Inco Ltd. commissioned Toyo Engineering Company of Japan in August 1971 to prepare a capital cost estimate for a relatively small nickel project called "Stage I". Stage I was to be a single-line pyrometallurqical process plant with an annual capacity of approximately 15,000 metric tons of nickel contained in 75% nickel sulphide matte (see Figure 2). Electric power was to be supplied by a thermal power station. It is important to recognize that Inco's strategy was to develop the Soroako ore deposits in several stages: first, construct a small project to gain experience and to reduce the initial capital outlay and then later expand in one or more steps to a much larger project to achieve maximum economies. The strategy reflected both Inco's financial position in 1971 as its sales and earning dropped sharply and the difficulties previously experienced by Inco in trying to launch in the late 1960's very large "greenfield" nickel projects in New Caledonia and Guatemala. Toyo's Project Development Study was completed. in January 1972. Based upon Toyo's cost estimate for physical facilities, Inco estimated the total capital cost of Stage I to be $115 million. For the next several months, Inco ran numerous in-house financial feasibility studies, using as inputs Toyo's cost estimate and the results of its exploration and pilot plant programs. In September 1972, Inco completed a project feasibility study which was based upon a capital cost estimate of $135 million. The feasibility study was immediately made available to potential partners and lenders. Partner Negotiations The Japanese nickel market had from the outset been central to Inco's planning for the Soroako project. That market had been growing dramatically at rates in excess of 20% per annum during the 1950's and 1960's. Japan had established, for rational security and other reasons, a domestic

Jan 1, 1985

By Robert T. DeGavre

I have been asked by the Society of Mining Engineers to present a paper on Inco Limited's Indonesian nickel project as a case study in the financing of large overseas mining projects. I welcome this opportunity It is a story worth telling not only because the project itself represents a significant human achievement but also because there are certain important lessons that can be derived from our experience in financing the project. The paper will be divided into four sections: (i) a brief history of the project, (ii) a critical appraisal of the project's financing plan in terms of the goals that we sought to achieve, (iii) some comments on certain factors underlying the relative success of the financing plan, and (iv) the contributions that the engineering staffs must make to a successful financing plan. The paper will not present a technical assessment of the project since Inco Limited has been asked to submit a series of papers on this subject at the International Laterite Symposium as part of the 108th Annual Meeting of the AIME in February 1979.

Jan 1, 1978

By T. H. Peters

The historical development of this program, dating from the construction of Nickel Park at Copper Cliff in 1917 to the various current projects carried out in the Ontario Division's program, is reviewed. Practices used to grow vegetation on stressed areas, the beneficial aspect of the improved aesthetic appearance of company properties from the point of view of public relations and the improved approach to the workplace by the employee are discussed. The revegetation of the tailings area and its gradual transformation into a Wildlife Management Area is reviewed.

Jan 1, 1978

By C. Díaz

Roast-reduction smelting (RRS) of nickel concentrate, combined with flash smelting of copper concentrate, was one of the process options that Inco considered as a means of meeting its 1994 sulfur dioxide abatement target at its Copper Cliff operations. RRS involves deep roasting the nickel concentrate in fluid bed roasters. The roaster off-gas is heated in a sulfuric acid plant, and the low sulfur calcine is reduction smelted with coke in an electric furnace to yield a sulfur-deficient matte. The latter material is converted to Bessemer matte in Peirce-Smith converters, with minimal evolution of sulfur dioxide, and the converter slag is reverted to the electric furnace. Excellent nickel and cobalt recoveries are obtained. This paper discusses the development of RRS, including extensive commercial scale testing at Inco's Thompson Smelter, and its key operating parameters.

Jan 1, 1993

By C. Díaz, A. D. Dalvi, C. E. O'Neill

"Roast-reduction smelting (RRS) of nickel concentrate, combined with flash smelting of copper concentrate, was one of the process options that Inco considered as a means of meeting its 1994 sulphur dioxide abatement target at its Copper Cliff operations. RRS involves deep roasting the nickel concentrate in fluid bed roasters. The roaster off-gas is treated in a sulphuric acid plant, and the low sulphur calcine is reduction smelted with coke in an electric furnace to yield a sulphur-deficient matte. The latter material is converted to Bessemer matte in Peirce-Smith converters, with minimal evolution of sulphur dioxide, and the converter slag is reverted to the electric furnace. Excellent nickel and cobalt recoveries (Ire obtained. This paper discusses the development of RRS, including extensive commercial scale testing at Inco's Thompson Smelter, and its key operating parameters. IntroductionReduction of sulphur dioxide emissions has been a long-standing endeavour at Inco. At the company's Ontario Division, as shown in Figure 1, sulphur dioxide emissions were reduced from about 2 million to 685 000 tonnes per year over the period 1970-1985. Most of this impressive improvement was the result of a sustained research effort which led to increased rejection of pyrrhotite from the ore during milling while maintaining an acceptable nickel recovery. Between 1970 and 1985, the combined grade of the separate nickel and copper concentrates feeding the Copper Cliff Smelter increased from about 10070 to about 'lIJ0J0 Cu +Ni and the combined S/(CU +Ni) ratio decreased from about 2.8 to 1.65."

Jan 1, 1994

By C. Díaz, A. D. Dalvi, C. E. O'Neill

Roast-reduction smelting (RRS) of nickel concentrate, combined with flash smelting of copper concentrate, was one of the process options that Inco considered as a means of meeting its 1994 sulphur dioxide abatement target at its Copper Cliff operations. RRS involves deep roasting the nickel concentrate in fluid bed roasters. The roaster off-gas is treated in a sulphuric acid plant, and the low sulphur calcine is reduction smelted with coke in an electric furnace to yield a sulphur- deficient matte. The latter material is converted to Bessemer matte in Peirce-Smith converters, with minimal evolution of sulphur dioxide, and the converter slag is reverted to the electric furnace. Excellent nickel and cobalt recoveries (Ire obtained. This paper discusses the development of RRS, including extensive commercial scale testing at Inco's Thompson Smelter, and its key operating parameters.

Jan 1, 1994

By R. Vergunst, E. A. Devuyst, G. Robbins

By the middle of 1989 Inco will have applied its patented cyanide removal technology to seventeen commercial operations. Removal of cyanide from CIL slurry tailings is applied at Equity Silver and Inco's new 1.200 mtpd mill at Inco/Golden Knight. Detoxification of CIP tailings is carried out by Colosseum California (3.600 mtpd), Canamax's Ketza River (360 mtpd) and Westmin's Silbak Premier (2000 tpd) operations. Repulped tailings from Merrill-Crowe flowsheets are treated at Total Erikson's Mount Skukum (300 mtpd) and Skyline's Johnny Mountain (200 mtpd) mills and barren bleed at Inco/Queenston's McBean mill (500 mtpd). Lynngold's MacLellan mill (1800 mtpd) and ERG (40.000 mtpd) treat pond supernatant water. Plating shop cyanide effluents are decyanized at Kuntz Electroplating and two other plating shops in Ontario. Details regarding some of the above operations are given. Operating and capital cost estimates for various treatment options are discussed.

Jan 1, 1989

By J. H. Dewey, J. McCreedy

Ontario Division of The International Nickel Company of Canada, Limited, operates five under- ground mines and one open pit on the rim of the Sudbury basin. In 1962, the total underground ore production was over 10 million tons which was mined mainly by blasthole and caving methods with the remainder by cut-and-fill, square set and undercut-and-fill techniques. Because of the large expenditures required annually for explosives, a great deal of study has been devoted toward cost reduction in this field. The large saving effected by ammonium nitrate-fuel oil combination at the open pits, along with reports of its success in underground mining in Sweden, generated much interest in the possibility of its use as a replacement for high explosives in the underground operations at Inco. In June, 1960, a research engineer was assigned to this project, and preliminary investigations soon indicated substantial savings and important safety advantages. The final results of the program were successful beyond any expectations and ANFO is now used exclusively in all Inco mining operations in Ontario except shaft sinking.

Jan 11, 1964

ITSL Technology group employs around 100 people at Mississauga in Canada. Its long and proud history as a driving force for the worldÆs nickel industry continues, progressively adapting to meet IncoÆs ongoing development needs. The nickel industry, unlike many others in the minerals processing world, has not evolved into one or two narrow technology paradigms. Rather, each process requires a degree of optimisation to meet the characteristics of the ore. Without a competent team to address this complexity, the uncertainties that arise can greatly increase the risk (and costs) associated with the nickel industry developments. The development work carried out at ITSL Technology ranges from milling and metallurgical processing of ores through to development of value added products for the battery and electronics industries. It covers routine evaluation of ores for exploration (mine planning and greenfield), and provides on the ground support to bring specialist technical perspectives to site-based projects. In recent years, ITSL Technology has had as its particular focus the process development and commissioning support for IncoÆs major projects. Over the next several years, Inco will commission its Goro laterite operation, design and construct the further processing facility for VoiseyÆs Bay, undertake major upgrades at Sudbury, Thompson and PT Inco, and bring forward some additional resources currently in the exploration stage. The appropriate mix of both internal and external resources to effectively manage this project portfolio will prove critical to success. The key to ITSL Technology meeting these development challenges has been in working closely with its internal customers to ensure alignment of the value proposition, to identify the critical issues to be managed, and to understand the deliverables required. This paper discusses examples to reinforce these principles in the definition and development for two different projects; processing of VoiseyÆs Bay ores and concentrates and resource optimisation at Thompson.

Jan 1, 2006

By L. G. Wiseman

The raw materials processed, highlights of technology used, and products produced at INCO's Copper Cliff Nickel Refinery in Ontario, Canada, are described in this paper. INCO's Bessemer matte separation process yields various nickel and copper products and intermediates. The latter presents the main supply of raw materials for the Refinery. Key features in the Refinery are Top Blown Rotary Converters and the INCO Pressure Carbonyl (IPC) process. Process improvements made since the commissioning of the Refinery in 1973 are also discussed. The Refinery produces a variety of nickel products, including nickel powders. Residue after carbonylation presents an important intermediate enriched in precious metals and cobalt that serves as feed to downstream operations for recovery of the residue's metal values. Also discussed are detection, measurement and control procedures which ensure safe operation.

Jan 1, 1988

By J. S. Stachulak

"The main ventilation design features adopted at Inco to safeguard personnel against the effects of fires are described in this paper. Measures taken to prevent and detect fires due to spontaneous combustion, and fires involving conveyor belts, are described in detail.IntroductionConsidering the over-all picture of present-day mining operations, the expenditure required to provide a proper system of mine ventilation and fife control should be regarded as a sound investment that will pay back in increased mining efficiency, improved safety, health, and morale of the miners.Mine ventilation control and mine fife detection and fighting are inseparable, because a ventilation system can spread deadly products of combustion just as efficiently as it does life-sustaining oxygen. Therefore, the possibility of a mine fife occurring is of particular concern.The first objective is to prevent a fife.The second objective is to design the ventilation system so that a positive fresh air supply can be ensured on each main level regardless of the location of the fife.The third objective is to be able to detect the fife at an early stage and to extinguish it before it can develop into a major fife. Accordingly, at Inco, very extensive measures are taken to prevent fires and to locate, isolate and extinguish them rapidly. To obtain an early warning, it is not sufficient to know that a fife has started, but it is also necessary to know where the fife is burning."

Jan 1, 1994

By J. S. Stacbulak

"The main ventilation design features adopted at Inco to safeguard personnel against the effects of fires are described in this paper. Measures taken to prevent and detect fires due to spontaneous combustion, and fires involving conveyor belts, are described in detail.IntroductionConsidering the over-all picture of present-day mining operations, the expenditure required to provide a proper system of mine ventilation and fife control should be regarded as a sound investment that will pay back in increased mining efficiency, improved safety, health, and morale of the miners.Mine ventilation control and mine fife detection and fighting are inseparable, because a ventilation system can spread deadly products of combustion just as efficiently as it does life-sustaining oxygen. Therefore, the possibility of a mine fife occurring is of particular concern.The flirt objective is to prevent a fife. The second objective is to design the ventilation system so that a positive fresh air supply can be ensured on each main level regardless of the location of the fife. The third objective is to be able to detect the fife at an early stage and to extinguish it before it can develop into a major fife.Accordingly, at Inco, very extensive measures are taken to prevent fires and to locate, isolate and extinguish them rapidly. To obtain an early warning, it is not sufficient to know that a fife has started, but it is also necessary to know where the fife is burning."

Jan 1, 1994

By B. Bichel

For the last 70 years, molten blister copper has been transferred by rail in hot metal cars from the Copper Cliff Smelter to the Copper Cliff Copper Refinery (ex Ontario Refining Company) where it was processed in two (2) reverberatory anode furnaces by poling with logs, cast on four (4) wheels, and then electrorefined. This practice was modernized in 2001 with the installation of two (2) rotary anode furnaces at the. Copper Cliff Smelter which employ steam and. natural gas for reducing and which provide a significant reduction in emissions. A new casting shop with a single anode casting wheel is used to cast regular and stripper constant weight anodes which are transported by truck to the Copper Cliff Copper Refinery for anode preparation and electrorefining. This paper provides an overview of the copper circuit at the Copper Cliff Smelter and a description of the CDN$31 million capital project.

Jan 1, 2002

By R. Vergunst, E. A. Devuyst, G. Robbins

"INTRODUCTIONThe Inca process for continuous cyanide removal from industrial wastewaters was patented in 1984 by G.J. Borbely, et.al. (1). The process requires SO2, air, lime and a copper catalyst. Both free and complexed cyanide are oxidized to cyanate in the pH range 8 to 10. Cyanide bound to iron is removed by precipitation as a ferrocyanide insoluble salt and other base metals are removed as hydroxides.The process was piloted in 1982 on barren bleed solution at Campbell Red Lake Mines Ltd., Ontario (2). Since 1982, the Inca SO2-air cyanide removal technology has been applied in twelve commercial installations. The process has significant advantages over other commercial processes in the completeness of cyanide removal and lower reagent requirements and costs.COMMERCIAL INSTALLATIONSBy the end of 1988 Inca will have applied its patented cyanide removal technology to twelve commercial operations. Three of these, namely Scottie Gold Mines, Dupont of Canada Expl. Baker mill and Carolin, all in British Columbia, Canada, have ceased cyanidation operations but SO2-air cyanide destruction results were good for all mills, particularly so for over two years for the Scottie mill.Removal of cyanide from CIL slurry tailings is applied at Equity Silver (9,500 tpd) and Inca's new 1,200 tpd mill at Inca/Golden Knight. Detoxification of CIP tailings is carried out by Colosseum California (3,600 tpd) and Canamax's Ketza River operation (360 tpd). Repulped tailings from Merril-Crowe flowsheets are treated at Total Erickson's Mount Skukum mill (300 tpd) and Skyline's Johnny Mountain mill (200 tpd) and barren bleed at Inco/Queenston's McBean mill (500 tpd). Lynngold's MacLellan mill (1,800 tpd) treats pond supernatant water. Plating shop cyanide effluents are decyanized at Kuntz Electroplating in Kitchener, Ontario. Many of the above commercial operations were described in some detail in previous publications (3,4). Typical installations are described in this paper. A summary of operating results is given in Table 1."

Jan 1, 1989

By Robert T. DeGavre

The $650 million financing for Into Ltd.'s Soroako nickel project is a story worth telling-not only because the project itself represents a significant achievement but also because there are certain important lessons that can be derived from our experience in financing the project. A critical appraisal of the methods and successes in the financing plan is presented in this article, in light of goals which Inco sought to achieve. A technical assessment of the project is not included, since Inco Ltd. has submitted a series of papers on this subject at the International Laterite Symposium as part of the 108th Annual Meeting of AIME in February 1979. Progress in developing and financing the project is encapsulated in the accompanying project factsheet.

Jan 3, 1979

By R. A. Roberti

Most copper refineries use conventional wheel systems to cast anodes. over a period of time the copper moulds that are used become warped and cracks develop. To control mould warpage, the mould's are either rejected after a certain warpage is reached, or the shape is restored by mechanical means. The cracks, unless they are very severe, are repaired by a peening process. Even with regular maintenance to control warpage and cracks, the moulds have a limited useful life. If warpage and cracks are not controlled, anode quality deteriorates and tankhouse operations are seriously affected. -An intensive study was initiated to develop means of controlling mould warpage which culminated in the d?evelopment of technology to control mould warpage to within ±1. 5 mm, and at the same time effectively contr0l: cracking and significantly increase the mould life-. The warpage control has been achieved by using a unique mould design. Mould cavities are present on both sides of the mould and periodic inverting controls the wa-rpage in the cavities. The mould casting procedure has been developed and all production wheels have been converted to the new mould design. The performance characteristics of these moulds will be detailed. 21

Jan 1, 1987

By Henry B. Fernald

THE Federal income tax treatment of expenditures for exploration and development for mines and other natural deposits (other than oil and gas) was materially changed by special provisions of the 1951 Act that are continued in the present 1954 Code." These present provisions for mines in stance they are the same as the 1951 amendments to the 1939 Code, Secs. 23 (cc) and (ff), respectively, except that for exploration the allowable annual deduction is increased to $100,000 (from $75,000) and minor changes in case of property transfers are made with respect to the four-year limitation. Before 1951 the statutes made no specific pro- visions regarding development and exploration for mines, but the rules were prescribed by Treasury regulations: 1) Before the mine entered the production stage, all development and exploration expenditures for mines, less net receipts, were to be capitalized recoverable through depletion or written off as losses when determined worthless. 2) After a mine entered the production stage, development expenditures were deductible as expenses-currently if ordinary expenses, but on a deferred basis if extraordinary in scope. This recognized the two separate periods, one before and the other after beginning of the production stage. There was no distinction between an exploration and a development period, but exploration was included as part of development.

Jan 1, 1958

By Robert B. Parsons

"Once all the hullabaloo about Finance Minister Wilson's April 27 budget died down (or was it an April 26 budget?), the pain of the budget papers began to sink in. Individuals and corporations will have to dig deeper and pay more taxes - and government will continue to dig deeper and spend more. The irony of the situation is that higher tax rates actually make flow-through shares more attractive as a tax-deferral investment - a bittersweet ""bravo"" for the mining industry.INTRODUCTIONFor the first time in Canadian history, a major budget address has taken two days to deliver. Of course, it's not a case of long-windedness, but rather a case of a hastily called press announcement on April 26 in response to a budget leak, followed by a formal budget speech on April 27.The general reaction of the business community to the budget was to the effect that the tax hikes are acceptable, but the government's failure to curb spending is less than acceptable. Mr. Wilson's reported response indicated that the government had never promised to cut spending, and that increased government spending would actually benefit the country. That age-old debate will doubtlessly continue for generations.In any event, three noteworthy components of the budget papers are:• Personal income tax rates increase effective July I, 1989;• A ""large corporations tax"" (in effect 'a corporate ""minimum tax"") is effective July I, 1989; and• Federal sales tax increases are effective from June 30, 1989, to be replaced by a national sales tax in 1991.A brief overview of these and other budget proposals follows."

Jan 1, 1989

By J. H. Zietsman, M. W. Erwee, Q. G. Reynolds

Pyrometallurgical furnaces, essential for metal extraction, operate at temperatures exceeding 1600°C and represent complex multiphase systems that challenge direct industrial research. Multiphysics models play a key role in shedding light on their intricate behaviours, supporting the refinement of design and operational strategies. Integral to the operation are the tap-holes, which facilitate the removal of molten products and are routinely opened by lancing, a process comparable to the use of a cutting torch, where high temperatures result from oxygen reacting with an iron lance. When the lance pierces the clay, oxygen gas enters the furnace, which could influence the behaviour of the molten material inside. In this work, a multiphase fluid flow model was used to investigate bulk flow dynamics, with a focus on the effects of the lancing process on the inside of the furnace, immediately behind the tap-hole. Incompressible and compressible multiphase fluid solvers were used and compared with respect their performance – the intention was to assess whether using a compressible solver would yield a different solution to the incompressible one. It was concluded that there are negligible disparities in bulk fluid flow behaviour between the solvers for the case studies examined, indicating that solver selection might be less consequential for certain aspects of oxygen lancing.

Apr 16, 2024