German shaft hoisting technology company Siemag Tecberg has started work on a hoisting and conveying system at an iron ore mine operated by China's Benxi Longxin Mining.
Siemag Tecberg in 2017 signed a supply agreement with the company to deliver three sets of hoisting and conveying systems, to be divided between two shafts in the Sishanling iron ore mine, near the city of Benxi in the province of Liaoning.
The Sishanling iron ore mine is one of the largest iron ore mines currently being opened up in China, noted the statement. The mine has 2.5 billion tonnes of proven iron ore reserves with an average iron content of about 31%.
Because of the concentrated ore body and its even distribution these reserves are suitable for extraction on a large scale. They are the largest proven and registered iron ore deposits in China, having a long-term planned extraction capacity of 30 million tonnes a year. Initially 15 million tonnes will be achieved a year in the next five years.
Benxi Longxin Mining initially planned a total of three production shafts to be able to extract a total of 15 million tonnes a year at the first stage, after intense consultation with SIEMAG TECBERG the concept was optimised to two shafts each yielding 7.5 million tonnes a year.
A service shaft equipped with a total of two service winders for the transport of personnel and machinery will also be sunk.
The overall concept thus initially provides for a total of three hoisting systems: a double-skip production
system in the production shaft in the form of a 6.75 m 6-rope machine and a cage counterweight system for personnel and machine transport in the form of a 6 m 6-rope machine and a smaller cage counterweight system for emergencies in the form of a 4 m 4-rope machine in the service shaft.
The current agreement requires SIEMAG TECBERG to undertake the engineering, production, delivery and supervision of the installation and initial start-up of the following equipment:
Shaft hoisting systems for raw material extraction (production shaft)
• System 1. Double-skip hoisting system. Tower-based 6-rope Koepe hoisting machine, dia. 6.75 m, for skip hoisting (55 t payload per hoisting skip) at a depth of 1,500 m with an overall drive output of 16 MW (2 x 8 MW), which is designed for a hoisting performance of 7.5 mill. tonnes p.a.
Shaft hoisting systems for personnel and equipment (service shaft)
• System 2. Large-cage hoisting system. Ground-based 6-rope Koepe hoisting machine, dia. 6 m, for large-cage hoisting with a drive output of 3 MW (2 x 8 MW). Rolling bearings, 2 sets 6-rope rope sheaves for rope deflection, an ST3-F (closed loop technology) hydraulic braking system with 14 pairs of BE125 brake elements, 2 sets SM150 indirect converters (IGBT), automation equipment including machine control system, energy distribution system and a shaft signalling and loading and unloading control system complete this hoisting system package.
Finally, there is the Cage hoisting system. Ground-based 4-rope Koepe hoisting machine, dia. 4.5 m, for cage hoisting with a drive output of 1 MW. 2 sets 4-rope rope sheaves for rope deflection, an ST3-F (closed loop technology) hydraulic braking system with 6 pairs of BE125 brake elements, 1 set SM150 indirect converters (IGBT) and automation equipment including machine control system complete this hoisting system package.
The special feature of the three hoisting systems is the central control system. The control room is located in the hall of the hoisting machine of the service shaft. In normal operation the hoisting systems in the production and service shaft are all in automatic lifting operation. Furthermore, the two systems in the service shaft are fitted with wireless communication devices that enable the hoisting equipment to be controlled from the cage direct. This enables personnel to reach different levels direct.
The operator has also begun with preparations to expand production shaft no. 2 in order to achieve the expansion level of 2 x 7.5 million tonnes a year in the medium term. Siemag said it is also consulting on this.
