May 25, 2011 - ABB commissioned a gearless mill drive (GMD) system that powers a 38-foot semiautogenous (SAG) mill at the Canadian Malartic gold mine, which is owned by Osisko Mining Corporation. Engineering, delivery and commissioning of the complete 19 megawatt GMD system are worth more than $20 million. The gold deposit is located in the heart of Quebec’s prolific Abitibi Gold Belt, immediately south of the town of Malartic. ABB’s delivery will help the mine increase its overall production capacity, provide maximum control over the ore grinding process, as well as improve overall equipment reliability and energy efficiency.
The contract for the system, consisting of ring motor, transformers and E-house including the new powerful ABB cycloconverter controller AC 800PEC, was awarded in June 2007. AC 800PEC is a high-performance and high-speed control system that is fully integrated into ABB s 800xA system and provides extensive communication options with other control devices. Also included in the scope was a power factor correction (PFC) and harmonic filter (HF) system to improve the overall plant power factor and reduce harmonic distortions. Acceptance tests and following start-up were successfully completed in Q1, commercial production started in Q2 of 2011.
Ronald Bougie, General Construction Manager at Osisko Mining Corporation said: “We are very satisfied with ABB s performance throughout the whole project. The equipment that was recently commissioned brings us on the level of the latest technology available on the market. It fulfills our requirements for flexibility and adjustability of the process, enabling maximum control over the grinding process.” Osisko Mining Corporation holds a 100 percent interest in the Canadian Malartic gold deposit in Quebec. Canadian Malartic is one of the world's largest undeveloped resources wholly owned by a junior explorer, and is located in a mining district near extensive existing infrastructure.
The mine s life is estimated at 16 years, based on a 55,000 tons per day (tpd) milling rate that will increase to 60,000 tpd in mid 2012. The mine s daily production rate, including waste, is being estimated at an average of 194,000 tpd, an increase of 24,000 tpd. Total gold production over life-of-mine is currently estimated at 9.18 million ounces gold, at an average production rate of 574,000 ounces per year.
The first full five years of production would account for 3.13 million ounces of production at an average rate of 625,100 ounces per year. ABB is a leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve their performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in around 100 countries and employs about 124,000 people.
