Greenfields projects: A time of opportunities
With mineral exploration expenditure in Western Australia at its highest since 2012 at $2.1 billion in 2020-21, an increase of 20 per cent from 2020, the topic of greenfields projects is more relevant than ever.
Although mining investment is not yet at 2012 levels, the current value of mining projects committed or under construction in WA is quite strong at about $20.5 billion (with $12B in iron ore) with another $31 billion worth of projects being currently planned ($5B iron ore).
Projects recently moving into the construction phase include:
- Strandline’s Coburn mineral sands project.
- Red 5’s King of the Hills project.
- The Bellevue Gold project.
- Newcrest’s Havieron gold and copper project near Telfer.
Some of the exciting new projects currently being evaluated in WA include:
- Chalice’s Julimar project.
- De Grey Mining’s Mallina Gold project.
- Musgrave’s Minerals Cue project.
- Medallion Metals’ Ravensthorpe Gold project.
AMC’s main interest in this subject stems from our involvement in mining studies whether they be:
- Scoping studies
- Pre-feasibility studies
- Feasibility studies or
- Expansion studies
Figure: Stages of project development
AMC is currently very active in this space and across the whole project life-cycle. Requirements for study content are changing, especially in relation to ESG aspects, for example and this was discussed in the evening’s presentation and panel discussion.
In addition to AMC traditional study services focussing on geological, geotechnical and mining engineering aspects, AMC offer a unique suite of services provided by AMC’s Advisory group which is made up of a team that specialises in:
- Strategy Optimization – using AMC’s Hill of Value methodology
- Predictive Geometallurgy and
- Benchmarking
All these services are very beneficial in maximizing the value of new projects when implemented during the study phases.
Some examples of local WA projects AMC has contributed to in recent years, include:
- Gold Road and Goldfields Gruyere project – AMC contributed mining-related parts of the PFS and DFS.
- Strandline’s Coburn project – AMC contributed mining aspects of the Scoping Study, DFS, and now providing ongoing commissioning support.
- Pilbara Minerals – AMC contributed mining aspects of the Pilgangoora expansion PFS and DFS and now provides ongoing support.
- AngloGold Ashanti’s Tropicana Mine – AMC contributed Feasibility Study mining costs, mining contract tender management and then mining performance diagnostics extending into the production years of Tropicana.
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