A theoretical analysis of the implications of comminution practices on open pit mine planning

Abstract

The implications of comminution practices on the planning of a typical open pit mine was investigated in this study by means of computer simulation. The objective was to assess the effects of mining costs as well as processing costs on the production plan of a typical open pit mine. For the purpose of the research, MineLib, an open library of ore body models was consulted. This led to the selection of a copper-gold ore body named “Newman1” for use in the strategic mine optimisation. Various scenarios were considered in order to highlight the contribution of comminution costs to the mine plan. In all the simulated scenarios, the objective function was to maximise the Net Present Value (NPV). And in terms of simulation setup, the comminution costs and cut-off grades were systematically varied from 70 % to 140 %. It was hence possible to investigate their effects on the NPV of the Newman1 ore body using SimSched, a freeware for mine optimisation and planning. Results showed that there is a great opportunity to increase the NPV of the Newman1 block model by adjusting the contribution of processing costs in general and comminution costs in particular. This can be achieved for instance by controlling the policy of cut-off grades, lowering production costs, and increasing throughput.