Zitrón installs two of the largest underground axial ventilation fans to date in Australia at Prominent Hill

Zitrón says it has recently successfully delivered the primary ventilation system for OZ Minerals’ Malu underground copper-gold mine at the Prominent Hill operation in northern South Australia. The project involved the Zitrón Australia team designing, constructing and commissioning a tailor-made system powered by two of the biggest underground axial fans ever installed in Australia.

Each of the high-pressure axial fans had a 3,800 mm diameter impeller and total installed motor power of 1,500 kW. The fan blades were fully machined using the latest technology and were subjected to a special surface treatment that will deliver an increased fan life despite the harsh operating conditions usually found in Australia's underground mines.

In its report for the three months ending June 30, OZ Minerals said the Prominent Hill underground operations delivered 954,000 t of ore at 1.5% copper. Underground ore movement achieved an annualised run rate of 3.8 Mt/y for the quarter and remains on track for full year guidance of 3.7–4.0 Mt. A strong recovery was made following the impacts of the significant rainfall event and the equipment availability issues experienced in the prior quarter.

The benefits were seen in Q2 from the transition into the eastern lenses of the Malu underground deposit, which has opened additional mining fronts, reduced mining interactions and allowed continuous one-way haulage through the mine. In early July, a new five-year agreement was signed with specialist underground mining contractor, Byrnecut Australia, ensuring the seamless continuity of operations. The Malu Paste Plant has been commissioned with the full ramp-up progressing through July, facilitating sustained higher underground mining rates due to greater fill volume capacity. Installation of the Malu East electrical network was completed during the quarter with the Zitrón primary ventilation fans installed and commissioned.