Mining technical advice to company Management teams

We provide experienced project development and operational advice.  We have helped fill the gap which some of our clients have had in thier senior management team. We can also help to provide auditing functions of lower levels of management.

Technical Due Diligence investigations on projects

Due diligence investigations on deposits, projects or operations are done for various reasons. We can help to target what is important to understand whether you are purchasing, valuing or looking to simply improve. Quite often massive volumes of reports, data and analysis exist and is provided for upper management to assess. The following are some of the questions we have helped answer:

• What really are the key risks?
• Is this as good as it gets?
• Are these numbers sustainable?

Project improvement reviews and implementations

We audit existing operations, identify the key economic drivers for the operation and in conjunction with client personnel develop improvement initiatives. Most of these are getting back to basics. In recent investigations this has taken the form of:

• Development of a suite of cut-off grades to maximise resource extraction and ensuring that ore extracted can add value.
• Introduce full circle metal reconciliations, so that the key resource degradation areas can be monitored and acted upon
• Introducing high grade pillar recovery techniques;
• Ore pre-concentration prior to treatment in high cost beneficiation circuits.
• Improving mine planning to create more independent working places to enhance trackless fleet usage to reduce $/t performance

Chartered professional and Competent person reports and for JORC compliant reserves on major mining equity markets (AIM, TSX, AS

Compliant reports for reserves declaration according to the JORC code to satisfy the listing rules of AIM, TSX and ASX equity market rules.

Competent person sign-off requirements under the new JORC 2012 code update are more prescriptive than previous requirements.

Mining project studies at varying confidence levels (Concept, Scoping, Pre-feasibility and Feasibility)

We have experience in all levels of project studies. These studies often lead to the declaration of reserves and are used for project funding for development. We will stay with you through the project construction and into operations. We put together feasibilities that stand up to scrutiny.

Detailed life of mine designs, schedules and costs

Our Key people were bred before the boom times and have experience in designing workable and cost effective mining operations. Our knowledge of costs are not from text books but from the mines our people have managed and those we work with.

Project risk assessments

The most important part of any study, improvement planning or Life of mine planning. We believe in forewarned is forearmed or in the words of Baden Powell “Be Prepared”. We help develop project risk matrices with teams to prioritise areas for investigation and expenditure. The development of mitigations or controls put in place form a solid framework for keeping the ship steady.

Contract document preparation and tender evaluation

Do you want a schedule of rates or a cost plus contract? We help clients understand the pluses and minuses of each. We can develop the tendering documents, run the process for you and help you adjudicate. Award should never be on price alone. As a contract miner once explained to a young mining engineer starting out. “The client has the orebody to mine, the contractor has the client”. We help clients develop a contract that is fair.

Mine Ventilation, design of new, troubleshooting of existing systems

We love ventilation. Along with pumping and electrical as close to pure science as one gets in most mining operations. When we design mines, the ventilation circuit is always a high priority to get right. Apart from the safety and legal requirements for a ventilation system is the absolute fact that good ventilation leads directly to better workforce productivity.

For sites with high power costs putting in larger airways is generally the smarter economic choice, though this depends on your mine life to recover the upfront costs. We will spec up your fans and assist in procurement. Trouble-shooting problems in old mining ventilation networks is a niched role we particularly enjoy.