BHP’s heap leach trial gets green tick
BHP’s trial for an alternative longer, slower extraction process to mine ore from its Olympic Dam operation has been given an environmental tick from the Federal Government.
The global miner is currently conducting research trials at geology laboratory Bureau Veritas’s Adelaide site for a process called heap leaching.
The next stage for the trial is an on-site demonstration plant of pilot-scale to undertake a proof of concept assessment of technology for the leaching of copper and uranium.
The ore is “heaped” and a mix of acids and other chemicals drip through the ore.
The trial has been determined ‘not a controlled action’ under the Environment Protection Biodiversity Act 1999 (EPBC Act).
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“I welcome this decision, which will give the green light to BHP Billiton to develop and operate a heap leach demonstration plant at the Olympic Dam mine site,” said Senator Simon Birmingham, Parliamentary Secretary for the Environment.
The three-year trial is still in its experimental stage and any expansion of the mine is at least six years away.
“The Department of the Environment has looked at the proposed trial to see whether it needed to be assessed under national environment law,” the South Australian Senator said.
“It has decided that this proposal does not require further assessment, thereby avoiding regulatory delays.
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“The heap leach trial will use approximately 36,000 tonnes of ore per annum which represents less that 0.4% of the annual production of the existing Olympic Dam operation.
“This project is located within 18 hectares of predominantly cleared land within the boundaries of the operational Olympic Dam uranium mine site.”
The decision includes agreement to a range of best practice measures to provide appropriate environmental protection, including construction specifications, monitoring requirements and site decommissioning provisions.
While the announcement sparked optimism for the mine’s imminent expansion, BHP’s announcements in previous months have made it clear that the trials could take three years and any expansion of the mine is at least six years away.
The original proposal for a $30 billion open cut expansion was shelved in August 2012.
In other mining news, official figures show spending on the search for oil and gas in South Australia had broken through the $500 million barrier in 2013/14 to $531.3 million.
Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show combined minerals and petroleum exploration reached a record high of $647.6 million for South Australia, up from $616.7 million for 2012-13.
The ABS figures show spending on exploration for petroleum jumped 186.6 per cent to $265.7 million in the June quarter from $92.7 million in the March quarter.
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