Metso has signed an agreement to supply Altay Polimetally LLP’s open-pit copper mine in Kazakhstan with two Vertimill grinding mills, along with basic engineering, supervision, commissioning and transportation. This follows contracts for installation and delivery of crushing plants. The value of the deal, the fourth between the two companies, will not be disclosed.
Metso’s solution fit with Altay’s efficiency and cost requirements, according to Jon Allen, stirred milling global product manager, mining and construction at Metso. “Recovery is essential to profitable operations,” he said. “The high capacity of our machine minimizes capital cost and reduces time to start up.”
Less space and smaller foundations are required with Vertimill. “These conditions were a perfect fit with customer demands to drive down costs and speed up performance,” said Allen.
The 4,500-hp Vertimill mill is used at primary grinding stages in closed circuit with fine screens at a feed size of 90% passing 3 mm grinding to a product of 80% passing 75 microns, according to Metso. The two chosen VTM-4500-Cs are the biggest in the range of energy efficiency.
The order is included in Q2 2013 orders received with Q2 2014 delivery pending. Previous Metso agreements with Altay Polimetally include the world’s No. 1 Lokotrack mobile crushing plant followed by secondary, tertiary and quaternary installation of crushing and screening plants.
Altay Polimetally LLP will extract gold-bearing copper ore at the new mine. Planned ore extraction will be 3 million metric tons per year and, including host rock, 10 million mt. The project is located in Almaty, the capital of the former Soviet Republic in Central Asia.
