April 11, 2013 - ABB has been selected by BHP Billiton to supply mine hoisting systems for the Jansen Potash Project, located 130 kilometers east of Saskatoon, in the Province of Saskatchewan, Canada. The contract includes the overall design, manufacturing, supply and installation of four complete mine hoist systems to be delivered over a period between 2015 and 2018. This includes mechanical components as well as the electrical systems including ACS6000 AC drive systems and the high-power, low-speed synchronous motors. Globally, ABB is the only supplier of complete integrated mine hoisting systems including all mechanical and electrical systems.
The massive six meters diameter friction hoists to be supplied for the production shaft will be the largest mine hoists ever designed and manufactured, each with a total connected motor power of close to 14000kW. Equally impressive are the service shaft hoists which are electrically identical to the production hoists but will carry smaller payloads. The complexity and ultrahigh performance requirements of the brake systems on these massive hoisting systems requires the development of new mine hoist brake system technology. “We are pleased to have been selected by BHP Billiton for the Jansen Potash Project hoist contract.
We believe our leading global position in the design, supply and installation of high-performance mine hoisting systems in high-production mines, as well as our impressive job site safety record will play an important role on the project. BHP Billiton and ABB agreed to jointly develop a project safety plan that meets the high safety standards required by both companies,” says Gabe Azeroual, Vice President at ABB Process Automation in Canada. Once the four hoisting systems at the BHP Billiton Jansen mine are installed, ABB will have an impressive installed base of eleven complete friction hoisting systems, in the Province of Saskatchewan.
In the area of underground mining the company has supplied over 700 mine hoist and automation projects and over 100 stand-alone hoist brake system projects, in more than 30 countries worldwide. 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 145,000 people.