The deepening of platinum producer Northam Platinum’s Booysendal North upper group two (UG2) mine is expected to add 30 000 oz/y of saleable 4E (platinum, palladium, rhodium and gold) product to the Booysendal mine when completed in 2018.

The project, which started shortly after approval in November 2015, is an expansion of the Booysendal North mine, which came on stream in 2013 and reached steady-state production of 160 000 oz/y at the end of 2015. The project is expected to increase the North mine’s yearly production to 190 000 oz.

The UG2 Booysendal North mine has been developed as a mechanised room-and-pillar operation.
The main underground infrastructure comprises a reverse decline system consisting of two barrels, excluding the Merensky reef access barrel. The main barrel contains the conveyor belt and chairlift to transfer rock and personnel. The other barrel is for the movement of mechanised equipment into and out of the mine, according to Northam’s website.

Further, the company says the design of the footwall decline is unique to Booysendal and is placed about 24 m below the reef horizon. This decline is connected to the reverse decline and contains the conveyor and chairlift for the conveyance of rock and personnel respectively.

Northam describes the deepening project, which involves the addition of two extra mining levels and four new production sections, as a logical, capital-efficient extension of the original Booysendal footprint.

The conveyor-decline cluster for this R270-million three-year project was already on reef and would, thus, offer an immediate payback element, Northam told Mining Weekly in October.

A key component to the extension is the construction of a 5 000 t surge capacity underground silo that will connect the deeper, new section to the existing mine.

However, the silo will also decouple these two parts to ensure continuous mining during unexpected stoppages.

Northam is also undertaking the Merensky Phase 1 project at Booysendal North. Thus far, R75-million has been spent on the R300-million two-year project, which is expected to produce about 25 000 oz/y.

The project is scheduled to be completed in 2018, with infrastructure having already been established for initial mining. This is to be followed by the development of a decline system to allow for additional mining sections to be established if needed and to provide swing production.