Simplify with AI

Augetto GraigDundee Precious Metal’s specialty smelter in Tsumeb provides a secure processing outlet for concentrate from their Chelopech operation in Bulgaria, according to the company’s website. “Since acquiring the operation in 2010, we have been focused on transforming the smelter’s performance through operational stability, efficiencies and cost reduction,” the company said.The facility consists of a primary smelting furnace, the Ausmelt furnace, two Peirce Smith Converters, bag houses and cooling towers, a slag milling plant, two high voltage distribution sub-stations, a materials-handling facility, two oxygen plants, a fume extraction system and a sulphuric acid plant. The smelter employs approximately 800 people.In their most recent public statement issued in July, Dundee said complex concentrate smelted at Tsumeb in the second quarter of 2021 of 59 627 tonnes was comparable to the corresponding period in 2020. Meanwhile, Complex concentrate smelted at Tsumeb in the first six months of 2021 of 82 636 tonnes was 33% lower than the corresponding period in 2020 due primarily to the planned Ausmelt furnace maintenance shutdown, which was completed during the first quarter of 2021.The smelter is one of only a few in the world that can treat complex copper concentrates. Blister copper and sulphuric acid are smelter products. The blister copper is delivered to refineries in Europe and Asia for final processing to copper metal. Sulphuric acid is a critical component in the mining industry, particularly for uranium and copper production businesses. Processing at the Tsumeb smelter is a combination of continuous and batch processing, with no buffer capacity. The Ausmelt furnace and the Converter furnaces operate unstably due to required adaptations to each other. To achieve stability, the Ausmelt process is usually in continuous operation at a rate well below its nameplate capacity. With the help of digital technology, Dundee’s Tsumeb team aims to maximise the utilisation of the Ausmelt furnace capacity while still maintaining stable operations. In 2020, they established a solution for allowing the development and integration of various artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to link with the process, with further improvements planned in 2021. “We have developed thermodynamic models of our Ausmelt and Converter processes, linked to the process control system. A successful demonstration project was implemented in 2019, and execution of a further roadmap started in 2020. We plan to commission an Ausmelt Advisor module and a Converter Advisor module in 2021, as well as plan to start a hot metals digital twin with various functionality. We plan to utilise machine learning technology for optimisation of the advisor modules with the goal of maximising throughput while maintaining low SO2 emissions,” the organisation said.In terms of future outlook, Dundee said it will continue to develop the ‘DPM Way’ of operating by focusing on innovation, thorough integration of digital technologies and the Internet-of-Things (IoT). “Our goal is to not only leverage potential cost optimisation opportunities, but also to improve the resiliency of our operations, unlock new projects, and attract additional talent to our organisation,” they said.“Focused on the energy efficiency of our operation, we have implemented all recommended measures since our last audit in 2019.” At Tsumeb, the operation has reduced direct energy use by 7.6% and total energy intensity per tonne of concentrate smelted by 5.1% in 2020, compared to 2019. “We will continue the implementation of energy efficiency and modernisation projects toward reduction of our direct and indirect emissions. The greatest potential for improvements is in our Tsumeb facility, both in terms of transition to carbon-free electricity, and energy efficiency improvements,” the company maintained. “We have completed a feasibility study for shifting Tsumeb’s electrical supply to a purpose-built solar power plant, but this is currently hampered by existing issues in Namibia’s energy sector, including regulatory uncertainty around feed-in tariffs.”

Simplify with AI

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Republikein 2025-08-04

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