Mining trends

Trends in underground mining

Boom time in
mining
The mining boom c ontinue s
unabated. After a difficult ending
to the 20th century, with metal
p r i c e s t r e n d i n g d ow nwa r d s
for almost 30 years, the global
mining industry recovered in
the early 2000s. Some observers
claim that the industry will see a
long period of increasing metal
prices and, although develop-
ments will continue to be cyclical,
there are predictions of a “super
cycle”. Already it is obvious that
the present boom is something
extraordinary in that it has lasted
longer than previous booms in
the late 1970s and the early 1950s.
An almost insatiable demand for
metals has been created by the
unprecedented economic growth
in several emerging economies
led by China, with India and
Russia trailing not far behind. The
distribution of the value of metal
production at the mine stage is
shown in figure 2 on page 4 page.
China and Australia are competing
for first place with roughly 10 per-
cent each. Some economic theo-
retitians, active during the late
1980s, who claimed that econo-
mic growth could take place with-
out metals have been proved ut-
terly wrong. Dynamic growth in China.

Stable growth
Figure 1: Mining projects under construction. (Raw Materials Data 2007)
Investments into new mines have in-
creased dramatically and all indicators
point to a continued high level of proj- M USD

ect activities during the next couple of 30 000

years, see figure 1.
Whatever the investment activities 25 000
or metal prices, the amount of metal
produced every year in global mining 20 000 n ds
Tre
is fairly stable and increasing slowly but
steadily. Total volumes of rock and ore 15 000
handled in the global mining industry Trends

amount to approximately 30,000 Mt/y. 10 000

This figure includes ore and barren rock

and covers metals, industrial minerals 5 000

and coal. Roughly 50% are metals, coal

about 45%, and industrial minerals
account for the remainder.
2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006

underground mining methods 3

 karta sid 2.pdf 9/18/07 9:05:34 PM
Mining trends
Metal shares of total value
Value of metal production at mines. (Raw Materials Data 2007)
Metal ore
Global metal ore production is around
5,000 Mt/y. Open pit mining accounts
for some 83% of this, with underground
methods producing the remaining 17%.
Barren rock production from under-
ground operations is small, not exceed-
ing 10% of total ore production, but the
barren rock production from open pit
operations is significant.
Open pits typically have a strip ratio,
the amount of overburden that has to be
removed for every tonne of ore, of 2.5.
Based on this assumption, the amount
Metal ore production from open pits (green), underground (red). (Raw Materials Data 2005)
898/77 Mt
1319/117 Mt
open pit underground
4 underground mining methods
gold copper iron ore nickel lead zinc
of barren rock produced can be calcu-
lated as some 10,000 Mt/y. In total, the
amount of rock moved in the metals mi-
ning business globally is hence around
15,000 Mt/y. The dominance of open pit
operations stems in terms of the amounts
of rock handled, to a large extent, from
the necessary removal of overburden,
which is often drilled and blasted.
By necessity, the open pit operations
are larger than the underground ones.
The map below shows the distribution
of metal ore production around the
world, and also the split between open
pit and underground tonnages.
Total 5 000 Mt
Europe + Russia
401/188 Mt
750/185 Mt
244/175 Mt
455/85 Mt
PGMs diamonds other
Open pit vs underground
There was a slow trend in the late 20th
century towards open pit production.
Two of the most important reasons for
this were as follows:
Lower ore grades
Due to depletion of the richer ore
bodies, the higher-cost underground
extraction methods are not economic.
See the figure below.
New technologies
The more efficient exploitation of lower-
grade deposits using new equipment and
new processes, such as the hydrometal-
lurgical SX-EW methods for copper
extraction, has enabled companies to
work with lower ore grades than with
traditional methods.
Future
Development of new mining technolo-
gies is driven by a range of underlying
factors, which affect all stakeholders.
Mines are getting deeper and hotter, and
are now more often located in harsh en-
vironments.
Legislation, particularly concerning
emissions, and increased demands on
 Mining trends

Rock production (2005)

Ore Waste Total

%
(Mt) (Mt) (Mt)

Metals
Underground 850 85 935 3
Open pit 4 130 10 325 14 500 47
Total 4 980 10 410 15 400 50
Industrial minerals
Underground 65 5 70 0
Open pit 535 965 1 500 5
Total 600 970 1 570 5
Sub total 5 600 11 400 17 000 55
Coal
Underground 2 950 575 3 500 12
Open pit 2 900 7 250 10 000 33
Total 5 850 7 825 13 500 45
Overall total 11 450 19 225 30 700 100

Assumptions: 10% waste in underground metal and industrial mineral operations. Strip ratio (overburden/ore) in open
pit metal operations is 2.5. The strip ratio in industrial minerals is 1.8. For coal, underground barren rock is set at 20%, and the strip
ratio in open-pit mines is 2.5. Industrial minerals includes limestone, kaolin, etc. but excludes crushed rock and other construction
materials. Salt, dimensional stones, precious stones are not included. Diamonds are included in metals.

noise and vibration, affect the miners
and equipment operators. Safety de-
mands have already completely changed
some unit operations, such as rock bolt-
ing and scaling. Similar developments
will continue.
Customers demand higher productiv-
ity, and there is an increasing focus on
machine availability and simpler service
procedures in order to reduce down-
time. Reduction of internal development
and production costs by the equipment
manufacturer promotes new technolo-
gies, as does competition from other
suppliers. In the early years of the 21st
century, new efficient underground me-
thods and equipment have made it
possible to turn open pit mines that had
become uneconomical because of their
depth into profitable underground ope-
rations. The orebody in these mines is
usually steep dipping, and can be mined
with the most efficient block caving meth-
ods. The competition for land in some
densely populated countries has further
meant that underground mining is the
only viable alternative. Such developments
have halted the growth of open pit mi-
ning and it is projected that the pre-
sent ratio 1:6 underground to open pit
mining will continue in the medium
term.
Magnus Ericsson
Raw Materials Group

2500 2
1.8
2000 1.6
Copper/ore metal
production (mt)

Ore grade (%)

1.4
1500 1.2
1
1000 0.8
0.6
500 0.4
0.2
0 0
1930 1945 1960 1975 1988 1991 1994 1997 2000

Copper production Ore production Copper ore grade

underground mining methods 5

 Mining trends

Bingham Canyon copper mine near Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.

6 underground mining methods