New hoist for one of the world’s largest zinc reserves
ABB recently won a 24 million $ order to supply a com-
plete ore hoisting solution for Xstrata Zinc’s George Fisher Mine (GFM) located near Mount Isa in north-west Queensland/Australia. The ground-mounted friction hoist will carry ore from a depth of 1,135 meters and help increase GFM’s production by 30 % per year by 2013. The order was booked during the third quarter of 2011. Xstrata Zinc’s resources in and near Mount Isa, including GFM, comprise the world’s largest zinc resource base, with an estimated 600 million metric tons of ore and 36 million metric tons of contained zinc metal.
ABB will design, supply and commission all the electrical and mechanical equipment for a new ground-mounted mine ore hoist system. At speeds of 16 meters per second, the hoist will raise 600 metric tons of ore per hour from a depth of 1135 meters. ABB’s state-of-the-art ACS 6000 medium voltage drive system, which controls torque and speed to enable energy-efficient ore haulage, will power a 9000 kilowatt (kW) synchronous motor to run the hoist. The hoist design will minimize impact on the surrounding power network.
ABB will also design and supply the bottom dump ore skips with inspection platforms, the rope deflection sheaves and a skip dumping system. ABB’s System 800xA AC800M industrial controller will manage and control the entire mine hoisting system, from the loading conveyors to the surface ore dump station. Reliable performance of the hoist is critical to the safety and financial success of the mine operation. ABB’s proven maintenance, lifecycle support services and expertise in delivering more than 600 new mine hoist systems worldwide, were important factors in securing this contract. Delivery is scheduled to be completed in the second half of 2013.
