3796 XXXI International Mineral Processing Congress 2024 Proceedings/Washington, DC/Sep 29–Oct 3
a nameplate capacity of 37,200 tpd and is expected to pro-
duce on average 365,000 ounces of gold per year for the
life of mine.
To help de-risk the use of an HPGR, Côté Gold
entered into a service agreement with Weir to have Weir
millwrights and maintenance workers embedded in the
maintenance team to assist with HPGR maintenance and
troubleshooting. In addition, several members of the mill
team visited operating mines utilizing Enduron ® HPGR’s
to see the equipment in operation and share learnings with
current operators. A spare roll for the HPGR is kept in a
Weir warehouse in Sudbury, a 2-hour drive from the mine
site. Installation of the HPGR took place in 2023 with
commissioning following in the beginning of 2024.
Material Handling, Tramp Rejection and
Maintainability
The HPGR lay-out and material handling design will have
a profound impact on both productivity performance as
well as CAPEX. Having adequate residence time in the
intermediate bin followed by a belt feeder providing a con-
trolled feed to the HPGR feed hopper will balance any fluc-
tuations upstream. It will also ensure a static pressure of
feed material above roll to help enable a stable and effective
operating gap as material is flowing steadily to the counter-
rotating rolls of the HPGR.
To protect the roller surface from foreign and unde-
sirable tramp (both metallic and non-metallic) entry a
combined suspended magnetic belt and rejection system is
installed at site. As demonstrated below, it is preferred to
allow tramp rejection via a diverter gate to exit the system
completely instead of discharging the undesirable material
on the product belt for future recirculation (Figure 6).
When the rolls need to be replaced at end of life, a new
set of roller assemblies will replace the installed ones and
tyre change out will be facilitated at Weir Sudbury service
facility. A fast and safe exchange can be facilitated as the
rolls can be extracted sideways without the need to remove
the hopper or other existing civils. When extracted, the
rolls can be lifted on a carrier (truck) for transportation by
the overhead crane (Figure 7).
Operational Results to Date
The Côté Gold operations and maintenance team worked
alongside a Weir commissioning engineer for a period of
approximately 3 weeks to commission the HPGR and
train operators. Given that the ball mill downstream of the
HPGR was still undergoing pre-operational verifications
and was not completed ahead of the HPGR, this allowed
the Côté Gold team to familiarize themselves with the
HPGR without impacting mill production. Initially, opera-
tion of the HPGR was limited due to the capacity of a fine
Figure 6. HPGR tramp rejection system
a nameplate capacity of 37,200 tpd and is expected to pro-
duce on average 365,000 ounces of gold per year for the
life of mine.
To help de-risk the use of an HPGR, Côté Gold
entered into a service agreement with Weir to have Weir
millwrights and maintenance workers embedded in the
maintenance team to assist with HPGR maintenance and
troubleshooting. In addition, several members of the mill
team visited operating mines utilizing Enduron ® HPGR’s
to see the equipment in operation and share learnings with
current operators. A spare roll for the HPGR is kept in a
Weir warehouse in Sudbury, a 2-hour drive from the mine
site. Installation of the HPGR took place in 2023 with
commissioning following in the beginning of 2024.
Material Handling, Tramp Rejection and
Maintainability
The HPGR lay-out and material handling design will have
a profound impact on both productivity performance as
well as CAPEX. Having adequate residence time in the
intermediate bin followed by a belt feeder providing a con-
trolled feed to the HPGR feed hopper will balance any fluc-
tuations upstream. It will also ensure a static pressure of
feed material above roll to help enable a stable and effective
operating gap as material is flowing steadily to the counter-
rotating rolls of the HPGR.
To protect the roller surface from foreign and unde-
sirable tramp (both metallic and non-metallic) entry a
combined suspended magnetic belt and rejection system is
installed at site. As demonstrated below, it is preferred to
allow tramp rejection via a diverter gate to exit the system
completely instead of discharging the undesirable material
on the product belt for future recirculation (Figure 6).
When the rolls need to be replaced at end of life, a new
set of roller assemblies will replace the installed ones and
tyre change out will be facilitated at Weir Sudbury service
facility. A fast and safe exchange can be facilitated as the
rolls can be extracted sideways without the need to remove
the hopper or other existing civils. When extracted, the
rolls can be lifted on a carrier (truck) for transportation by
the overhead crane (Figure 7).
Operational Results to Date
The Côté Gold operations and maintenance team worked
alongside a Weir commissioning engineer for a period of
approximately 3 weeks to commission the HPGR and
train operators. Given that the ball mill downstream of the
HPGR was still undergoing pre-operational verifications
and was not completed ahead of the HPGR, this allowed
the Côté Gold team to familiarize themselves with the
HPGR without impacting mill production. Initially, opera-
tion of the HPGR was limited due to the capacity of a fine
Figure 6. HPGR tramp rejection system