Above: METS modelling to determine suitability of second hand plant equipment
Left page: Use of second hand equipment at Troy Resource’s Casposo plant in Argentina
Servicing the mining &
exploration induStrieS
for more than 30 yearS
comprehensive sample preparation
and analysis services for the mining
and exploration industry.
Specialty services include analysis of gold and PGE by
fire assay, aqua regia extraction and cyanide leach;
multi-element analysis by ICPAES and ICPMS, fused
disc XRF for a variety of mineral typese including iron
ore, bauxite, nickel laterite, uranium ores and mineral
sands as well as Davis Tube Recovery (DTR) test for
the economic evaluation of magnetite rich ores.
started pouring gold in late 2010. This low-cost processing
plant developed by METS has been a key factor in the success
of the Casposo mine which continues to be success story for
the company.
There are many cases where this type of cost cutting or an
inability to develop a truly effective cost saving solution can have
damaging effects on a project’s success.
METS are currently reviewing the process and plant design
of a multi-billion dollar iron ore project. It had been suggested
by another party that surge capacity should be cut in order
to reduce project costs. While this option initially appeared
attractive, what METS established is that the project’s operability
would greatly suffer, if this kind of cost cutting were to occur,
and would potentially cost the company millions of dollars in
re-engineering costs. A smarter option in cases like this would
be to opt for second hand equipment, or explore other low
cost options rather than cutting out equipment that may affect
throughput targets.
Instead of opting for aggressive cost cutting measures, it is
beneficial to attempt some out-of-the-box solutions that may
make all the difference in running an efficient operation. Making
resource projects a reality may mean taking a road less travelled.