Metso has signed a fourth agreement with the Altay Polimetally LLP open-pit copper mine in Almaty, Kazakhstan, for delivery of two Vertimill grinding mills, basic engineering, supervision, commissioning and transportation. This order follows previous contracts for the installation and delivery of crushing and screening plants. The value of the order was not disclosed.
Metso said its proposal for an integrated solution complied with Altay’s requirements for operating efficiency and total cost solutions.
“Meeting recovery and throughput targets at the lowest total cost is essential to profitable operations. The high capacity of our largest machine, the VTM-4500-C, minimizes the project capital cost and reduces the time to start up, while the inherently energy efficient grinding process of the Vertimill to the desired fine product size contributes to the lowest possible total cost of ownership. Altay can also expect a quick return and further improved profitability with the systems’ solution,” said Jon Allen, global product manager–stirred milling at Metso Mining and Construction.
“Our experience in site management solutions, installation design and the possibility to propose a complete grinding system swayed Altay’s decision to continue with Metso. In addition to the process advantages of the Vertimill mills, we also took into account the installation time. Less floor space and smaller foundations are required with our Vertimill proposal slating two weeks for installation. These conditions were a perfect fit with the customer’s demands to drive down costs and speed up performance,” he said.
The 4,500-hp Vertimill grinding mill used at the primary grinding stage produces in a closed circuit with fine screens an approximate feed size of 90% passing 3 mm grinding to a product of 80% passing 75 microns. The two VTM-4500-Cs chosen for this application are the biggest in the range. They are scheduled for delivery in the second quarter of 2014.
Previous Metso agreements with Altay Polimetally LLP include what Metso described as the world’s biggest Lokotrack mobile crushing plant, along with delivery and installation of secondary, tertiary and quaternary crushing and screening plants.
Altay Polimetally LLP will extract an estimated 3 million tons per year of gold-bearing copper ore at the new mine, contained in roughly 10 million tons of excavated host rock.
