Key Data:
Producer of
Copper, uranium and gold
Location
580km inland from Adelaide, South Australia
Ownership
WMC Resources (100%)
Geology Type
Hydrothermal breccia orebody
Mineral Type
Copper sulphides, pitchblende
Reserve Base
761Mt proven and probable, grading 1.5% copper, 0.5g/t gold and 0.6kg/t U3O8 (2004)
Annual Production
169,000t of copper cathode, 4,144t of uranium and 80,517oz of gold (2007-08)
Mining Method
Underground sub-level open stoping with backfill
Processing Method
Copper concentrator, hydrometallurgical plant for uranium recovery, copper smelter, sulphuric acid plant, copper refinery and precious metals refinery, gold plant
Key Equipment:
Underground
Atlas Copco and Sandvik (Tamrock) drill rigs
Caterpillar LHDs and mine trucks
Concentrator
Svedala autogenous mill, Warman International pumps and cyclones