Abstract
An average mining company’s return on investment is expected to increase by 5% to 10% annually, as such, mining companies spend a considerable amount of money on expanding the business in order to increase productivity. For the purpose of confidentiality the mining company adopted for this research is named “XYZ”. XYZ, diamond mine targets Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 20%, which is attributed to both rising commodity prices and output expansion. Over the past three financial cycles XYZ’s anticipated growth is in decline. A diamond mine is capital intensive which demands proper implementation of modern operational strategies to manage high production volume at a low cost for competitiveness. One of the production lines that constitute a great resource input is handling of ore from the blast to crusher. The purpose of this study is to investigate the ore transportation processes of the mining operations of the XYZ Company, and the impact on productivity and efficiency, through analytical assessment of a modular mine data report on energy consumption. A quantitative analysis research method is used; to identify operational variables affecting diesel consumption of trucks used for haulage, to determine the diesel consumption pattern of idle and working trucks within the travelled area and to recommend diesel consumption reduction actions for sustainable mine operations. Payload, distance travelled and fuel consumed by the 52 trucks investigated are the main parameters analyzed in the research. The results indicates elements of waste in the transportation of diamond ore. 41 trucks are identified to be idle, with no load, no distance travelled whilst time consuming fuel continuously. Poor haulage road and ramp design is another factor identified contributing to inefficiency, the hauls truck covered 70% travel time engaging a high gear, the average percentage of fuel used is 10-11 % compared to the predicted value, 3%, being used as a benchmark. Several cases of truck damage has been linked to poor road design, and continuous truck damage is a big limitation to smooth mine operation, which will in turn impact the overall mine management and profitability. This is linked with leadership lapses due to poor monitoring and management of the processes.
M.Ing. (Engineering Management)