Capstone Copper Chile has formally opened the Mantoverde Growth Venture (MVDP) which includes some US$870 million of funding and will prolong the helpful lifetime of Mantoverde for an additional 20 years in addition to tripling the mine’s annual copper manufacturing to 120,000 t.
It is going to even have a sustainable focus with 100% use of desalinated water and 50% renewable vitality by 2025. And it’ll generate greater than 1,000 jobs with round 70% of them being employed domestically. “This challenge represents the long run potential of the brand new medium-sized mining within the nation,” mentioned Capstone Copper ‘s CEO, John MacKenzie, on the opening ceremony, which was additionally attended by representatives of one of many initiative’s prime companions, Mitsubishi Supplies Company, and authorities such because the Minister of Mining, Aurora Williams. the Governor of Atacama, Miguel Vargas and the ambassadors of Canada, Australia and Japan. Capstone mentioned it’s the starting of a extra trendy, environment friendly and sustainable mining for the area.
The MVDP has elevated manufacturing from roughly 35,000 t/y of copper (cathodes solely) in 2022 to a run-rate of roughly 120,000 t/y of copper in H2 2024. A brand new concentrator plant is treating sulphide materials to supply copper focus whereas oxide ores proceed to be handled within the current SX-EW plant. Mining continues to be standard open pit operations utilizing truck-and-shovel know-how. The MVDP consists of processing sulphide ores in a concentrator with a capability of 12.3 Mt per 12 months. Development was accomplished in late 2023. MVDP has progressed beneath a lump-sum turn-key engineering, procurement and development (EPC) contract with Ausenco.
Mantoverde at present has 4 lively leach programs, two at capability and two receiving ore. The dynamic leach pad (DLP) is an on/off pad measuring 700 m x 900 m and able to treating 11 Mt per 12 months of crushed ore beneath the present leach situations. The South Dump II (SDII) leach pad is a run-of-mine leach system with the potential of enlargement as wanted. Ore is delivered to one of many two leaching operations primarily based on copper and carbonate grades. Usually, increased copper and decrease carbonate grade ores are despatched to the dynamic leach pad and the steadiness to South Dump II.
DLP ore is delivered from the pit to a major crusher after which conveyed to a rough ore stockpile. The ore is then fed by conveyor to a vibrating display screen, with the oversize reporting to a secondary normal cone crusher. The crusher product is then conveyed to 5 surge bins, which feed 5 tertiary screens. The display screen oversize feeds the 5 tertiary crushers. The ultimate crushed ore product is saved in two bins that feed the 2 parallel agglomeration drums. Agglomerated ore is transported by a system of overland conveyors, grasshopper and tripper conveyors to a stacker which locations the ore on the dynamic leach pads in a 7 m excessive raise. Sulphuric acid and raffinate are added on the agglomeration drum. The spent leach residue is unloaded and positioned in a devoted leached waste dump by way of bucket wheel and overland conveyor. The unloading is augmented by shovel and truck as required.
Leaching is completed by irrigating the ore with a dilute sulphuric acid resolution utilizing both intermediate leach resolution (ILS) or raffinate. Using intermediate leach options permits for the pregnant leach resolution grade to be maximized. Resolution leaving the DLP flows right into a PLS or ILS pond primarily based on the copper grade. The PLS pond feeds the SX circuit, and the ILS pond is used for irrigation.
The dynamic heap leach pad operation is complemented by a run-of-mine dump leaching course of. Materials for dump leaching is deposited straight on the pad by way of truck dumping with out crushing. Carry heights of 20 m are employed. The ore is initially uncovered to a excessive acid remedy adopted by a leach cycle consisting of intermediate leach resolution (ILS) and raffinate. Just like the DLP, the SDII makes use of an ILS resolution to maximise the PLS grade. The PLS from SDII PLS pond experiences to a typical PLS pond near the solvent extraction (SX) plant.
Run of mine materials is delivered to the first crusher (1400 x 2100 TS) by 240 t Komatsu 830E dump vehicles which discharge ore into the feed hopper (capability of 330 t). Crushed product discharges right into a 330-t capability intermediate hopper. An apron feeder is situated beneath this hopper to switch the fabric to a conveyor after which to the coarse ore stockpile. The coarse ore stockpile has a dwell capability of 16,150 t (dry) and two apron feeders, situated beneath the coarse ore stockpile, to reclaim ore. The apron feeders discharge ore to a switch conveyor which feeds a single 34’ x 20’ (nominal) 14 MW semi-autogenous-grinding mill (SAG) fitted with a variable frequency drive (VFD). The SAG product is screened by way of a trommel, and the oversize (pebbles) is recycled to the SAG mill feed belt by way of two conveyors. The undersize from the trommel discharges into the first cyclone feed field, which is linked to 2 variable velocity horizontal centrifugal pumps, one working and one stand-by. The pumps ship the slurry to a hydrocyclone cluster (with 7 working and a pair of stand-by) which classifies the mill discharge by measurement.
Hydrocyclone underflow (coarse) experiences to a single 24’ x 42’ (nominal) 14 MW ball mill with a VFD. Ball mill product is screened by way of a trommel with oversize ore and ball scats discharging to a reclaim bunker at grade. Trommel undersize experiences again to the first cyclone feed field. The hydrocyclone overflow (tremendous) flows by gravity by way of a pipe to the flotation course of. The grinding circuit focused feed measurement is a P80 of 180 μm.
The rougher flotation circuit includes seven standard tank cells (300 m3 every). Rougher focus is pumped to the regrind stage which has a vertical mill, 14.9’ x 45’ with a 932-kW motor, in closed circuit with a hydrocyclone cluster. The overflow from the regrind hydrocyclone cluster, goal P80 of 38 μm, discharges by gravity to the feed field of the primary cleansing stage.
The primary stage of cleansing consists of two standard tank cells (130 m3 every). Tailings from the primary cleaner stage feeds on to the scavenger circuit, consisting of three standard cells (130 m3 every). Focus from the scavengers joins the rougher focus within the regrind circuit. The rougher and scavenger tailings are despatched to the tailings thickener. Focus produced within the first cleansing stage is discharged to a switch hopper and pumped to the second cleansing stage (two 4.75 m diameter flotation column cells).
Focus from the second cleaners flows by gravity to a switch hopper and is pumped to the third and remaining cleansing stage (one 4.75 m diameter column flotation cell). The tailings from the third cleansing stage discharges by gravity to the second cleansing stage feed hopper. The tailings from the second cleansing stage discharges to a switch field and is pumped again to the primary cleansing stage.
The copper focus from the ultimate cleaner flows by gravity to a 20 m diameter excessive fee focus thickener. From the thickener, two peristaltic pumps, one working and one stand-by, switch the thickened focus to an agitated tank. This tank has one centrifugal pump with variable velocity and feeds the 108 m2 filter press. Dewatered filter cake (goal 9% moisture) discharges to grade and is loaded by a front-end loader into vehicles which transports the focus from the plant to a port for cargo. The filtrate from the filter discharges right into a switch field, from the place it’s pumped again to the focus thickener. Course of water recovered from the focus thickener overflow is shipped to a devoted course of water tank and distributed again to the plant by three pumps, two working in parallel and one stand-by.
The mixed remaining tailings, fashioned by the rougher tailings and the scavenger tailings, flows by gravity to a switch field which feeds a 55 m diameter high-rate tailings thickener. Water recovered from the tailing thickener is shipped to the method water tank. Thickened tailings (underflow) are pumped 3.3 km to a Sand Plant consisting of a hydrocyclone cluster and a slimes thickener. The hydrocyclone classifies the tailings to supply a rough sand (underflow) which is pumped to the tailings storage facility (TSF) and used to construct the dam wall. The hydrocyclone fines (overflow) is shipped to the 55 m diameter high-rate slimes thickener for water restoration. The thickened underflow is pumped and deposited within the TSF and the thickener overflow water recovered returned to the primary course of water tank for distribution to the sulphide concentrator.
Capstone is at present analysing the subsequent enlargement of the sulphide concentrator. The corporate has recognized that the desalination plant capability and main parts of the comminution and flotation circuits of the Mantoverde Growth Venture are able to sustaining common annual throughput of as much as 45,000 t per day with no main capital tools upgrades. Capstone continues labored with Ausenco’s engineering group to develop the Optimized Mantoverde Growth Venture (MVDP Optimized or MV-O), together with evaluating the prices and timelines of debottlenecking the minor parts of the plant to fulfill the potential throughput goal.
Capstone introduced the outcomes of the feasibility research for MV-O in October 2024 and plans to start development of MV-O following acceptance of its environmental DIA allow utility and topic to Board approvals. The DIA allow utility was submitted in H1 2024 and approval is anticipated in H1 2025.
The MVDP has seen the mine transition from a hydraulic shovel operation to the utilization of electrical rope shovels to extend the mine capability, and this technique is maintained for the MV-O plan. The MV-O mine plan was developed by Capstone employees in 2024. The plan focuses on two important areas, Celso–Mantoruso, and Mantoverde. The MV-O flotation throughput considers enlargement of the MVDP plant capability, leading to a mean throughput of 16.4 Mt/y of flotation ore (45,000 t/d) from Q1 2026 to 2049, with a ramp-up interval that assumes a manufacturing fee of 4.8 Mt in 2024 and 12.3 Mt in 2025.
The mine plan considers the continuity of the leach mineral processing as a part of sulphides pits till 2037. Ore therapy within the heap course of considers a mean annual therapy of 10.9 Mt between 2025 and 2030, whereas the dump course of will course of as much as 15.0 Mt/y. The mining schedule requires a mean mine extraction of 155 Mt moved per 12 months from 2025 to 2037. This consists of heap leach feed requiring rehandle. The mine motion decreases after 2037 till the mining operations are accomplished in 2043. The method plant continues to function by way of to 2049, treating low-grade stockpile materials.
The loading fleet consists of Cat 994K 22 m3 front-end loaders, Komatsu 4100XPC 44 m3 electrical cable shovels, and Komatsu PC5500 26 m3 hydraulic shovels. The hauling fleet consists primarily of Komatsu 830E vehicles, and a fleet of Cat 785s to re-handle oxide materials. A peak of 65 vehicles will likely be required between 2032 and 2037 for MV-O. Oxide phases use Atlas Copco (Epiroc) DM50 and Cat MD6310 drills. The sulphide-dominant phases use taller benches and bigger drills are required.
