South African miner Gold Fields continues to make progress on its
international growth projects.
The company’s objective is to grow production ounces from its
international operations by an additional 1,5-million ounces a year
in the next five years.
These operations currently produce about a third, or roughly 322
000 oz, of the company’s quarterly production of more than a
million ounces.
The aim is to step up international production to half of Gold
Fields’ tozenith cone crusher parts in australiatal output by 2010.
The company’s operations outside of South Africa comprise
Tarkwa and Damang, in Ghana, and St Ives and Agnew, in Australia.
Expansion projects have been completed or are bentonite crushing and mining equipment pricecurrently under way
at these gold-mines to ramp up production. Besides boosting
gold-mining, the company is also setting its sights on developing a
platinum project in Finland. Gold Fields owns the vertical roller mill cost pdfArctic Pla-tinum
project (APP), which has the potential to produce 450 000 oz/y of
platinum and palladium, as well as economic quantities of gold,
nickel and copper. Gold Fields head of international operations
John Munro says that AAP is adolde tyme nut mill cleaning instructionsvancing steadily towards the
completion of a definitive feasibility study for the two large
openpittable deposits at Suhanko – Konttijarvi and
Ahmavaara.
The permitting process is moving ahead andused track mounted stone crusher negotiations continue
with the owners of the freehold in the mining lease area.
The project area is part of the pris- tine wilderness of Lapland
and an agreement was concluded with the reindeer herders’
association concerning compensation for land-use loss, as well as
procedures for management of rein-deer on the future mine
site.
Infill direction drilling at both Suhanko deposits is progressing,
and the mid-feasibility review, which deals with the scope, scale
and timing of the project is under way. It is expected that the
mid-feasibility review will be completed by March.
Munro says that a decision on APP should be made in the current
quarter. Besides the completion of engin-eering and other
feasibility study aspects, securing suitable downstream treatment
terms for the ore concentrate from one of a number of smelters
remains a challenge to proving the project.
Gold Fields is in discussion with a number of smelters around the
world regarding toll and custom treatment of the concentrates.