Name of the Project
Letlhakane mine tailings resource treatment project (LMTRTP).

Location
Francistown, Botswana.

Client
Debswana, a 50:50 joint venture between the Botswana government and De Beers.

Project Description
The diamond pits at the Letlhakane mine have reached depths that limit conventional openpit mining; however, the LMTRTP, which will retreat tailings, is expected to extend the mine’s life by an additional 20 years and safeguard jobs at the mine.

The LMTRTP scope comprises construction of the modular tailings treatment plant at the Letlhakane mine, the upgrade of facilities at the contractor’s village in Orapa, as well as new mining offices, including an operators’ mess, training offices, change rooms and ablution blocks.
To ensure reliable power supply to the plant, the project will also deliver a 40 MVA 220/33 kV transformer and construct a 66 kV overhead power line and its associated works, covering 45 km from Orapa to the mine. The construction of switchyards at Orapa and the mine is also part of the project scope.

The LMTRTP is expected to achieve production of 800 000 ct/y of diamonds and will provide specifically designed mining and treatment solutions to ensure optimal economic recovery of the coarse tailings mineral resource, thereby extending the life-of-mine by 25 years.

Jobs to be Created
To date, the LMTRTP has engaged more than 25 different contractors and has a current peak of 884 personnel on site.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
Not stated.

Value
P2.2-billion.

Duration
The project was approved in 2014, with construction of the plant having started in the first quarter of 2015. The handover of the project is expected by September 2017.

Latest Developments
Construction of the LMTRTP is currently 80% complete, with final project completion expected by 2017.

“The plant will undergo C5 commissioning and attain full production from the third quarter of 2017,” Debswana corporate affairs manager Naledi Dikgomo-Goulden has told Mining Weekly.

With Debswana following the industry CI to C5 commissioning process, various project components are undergoing different levels of commissioning.

C4 commissioning, which involves the introduction of feed to the modular tailings treatment plant, is planned for the second quarter of 2017.

Completed parts of the project include the upgrade of the contractors’ camp and associated services – with all the facilities functional and occupied – civil works, the tailings starter ramp, the procurement of main plant components, the relocation of services and bulk earthworks. The retaining wall and haul road have also been built at the tailings resource and were built using rock-filled gabions at the tip area.

Construction of the two slimes dams, with four cells each measuring 300 m × 300 m, has also been completed.

The structural, mechanical, platework and piping work is progressing well, while ongoing work includes mechanical installation at the dense-media separation, scrubbing, screening and crushing area, Dikgomo-Goulden has said.

She highlights that electrical and instrumentation work for the plant has started, with ongoing work that includes the installation of cable racks and the pulling of electrical cables.

The 66 kV overhead power line construction is also nearing completion. Ongoing work includes termination at the Damtshaa and Francistown road crossing. Dikgomo-Goulden has noted that the project is due for completion in the fourth quarter of 2016.

Other project successes to date include the achievement of more than two-million lost-time injury-free working hours.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
Rockwell Automation (low- and medium-voltage equipment and automation solutions).

On Budget and on Time?
The project is on budget.

Contact Details for Project Information
Debswana – Letlhakane mine, tel +267 297 0201 or fax +267 297 0243.
Cubic Ice on behalf of Rockwell Automation, Rema Hattingh, tel +27 11 705 2545 or email remah@cubicice.com.