SHORT COURSES
Steps in Open Pit Mine Design
Level: Intermediate
Facilitators: Anoush Ebrahimi, Principal Consultant, SRK Canada
It is important for the team members of any mining project, particularly the decision makers, to have a clear understanding of the mine design process and the stages of mine development. This course reviews and discusses the principles of open pit mine design, using examples and practice exercises. Some of the most important aspects of mine design are introduced and explained.
The course begins by explaining the stages of mining projects and is followed by defining strategic mine planning as a crucial evaluation tool for open pit projects. It demonstrates how, by using strategic mine planning techniques, it is possible to uncover project opportunities and risks.
Open pit mine design techniques are introduced including the Lerchs-Grossmann (LG) pit optimization algorithm. Design input parameters and constraints for mine design are introduced and explained. The effect of input parameters on the economics of projects is explored. Additional concepts introduced are mill production rate determination, mining dilution, cut-off grade analysis, stockpiling, mine production scheduling, and NPV optimization. Some of the topics include case studies and examples of real-life projects. To further develop a good understanding of the concepts, example exercises will be undertaken in the workshop.
* Participants are required to bring their own laptop
Short Course Objectives:
Learn the principles of pit optimization and mine planning for those who are involved in the decision-making process for mining projects
Become familiar with the procedures, terms, conditions, limits, and critical inputs of mine design
Help readers of technical reports and investors better understand and interpret mine design reports
Discuss key mine design terms and concepts (e.g., best case, worst case, base case, cut-off and cut-over grade, strip ratio, metal equivalent, and dilution)
Review and discuss certain mine design techniques (e.g., LG algorithm and production scheduling)
Target Audience:
Engineers and geologists involved in mining projects, Managers and directors of exploration and mining companies, Bankers, financial professionals, and investors and Project managers who are not familiar with mine design.
About the instructors:
Dr. Ebrahimi is a mining engineer with over 30 years of experience in mine planning and design, from conceptual studies through to mine construction. He has designed small and large open pit mines in Canada and abroad that are in operation now. Anoush specializes in strategic mine planning, mine evaluation, open pit optimization and design, production scheduling, mine layout optimization, mine simulation, and computer modelling. Anoush is an adjunct professor at the University of British Columbia and an active member of CIM, SME and Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia.