When new mines are constructed, today’s technology means that geological surveys can often provide an accurate picture of the extent of the mineral deposit. Mine buildings and equipment can even be designed with expansion in mind, and the deposit can be exploited along a schedule lasting several decades, which might be helped or hampered by commodity prices.
However, where older mines are in operation and the full extent of a deposit is still being discovered, expansion plans may be limited by new or existing development in the area. Equipment and even entire mine buildings might need to be relocated to make expansion easier and more efficient. Working with a heavy lifting and transport partner will help ensure that such operations take place safely, on time and on budget.
Expanding old mines
The expansion of a mine that has been operating for a long period of time can have an impact beyond its direct physical premises. In many places, towns have grown up around a mining facility, and are dependent on it, thanks to the economic activity a mine can bring. Sometimes homes, businesses and cultural buildings have been built above valuable mineral deposits.
A specialist heavy lifting and transport company can offer solutions to enable mine expansion without requiring the demolition or undermining of local buildings and infrastructure. With careful planning, entire buildings and structures can be lifted in one piece, transported to a new location and set down again. This means that the community can continue to thrive alongside the mine, which is able to remain profitable.
Processing tailings
In other places, old mines and past mining activities continue to have an impact on local communities for other reasons. Tailings heaps surround many former mines and in some cases, newer and more efficient processing techniques now make it viable to recover good quality ore that remains in old mine dumps.
Operations by mining companies to remove these missed deposits not only add to their bottom line, but can help revitalize the landscape for local communities if the dumps are removed in the process. A heavy lifting and haulage specialist can help a mining operation by transporting, installing and later on removing the processing equipment for any tailings recovery operation.
With possibilities like these available, mining companies can work with local communities and government bodies to everyone’s benefit. Prosperous mining activities can continue thanks to clean-ups and mine expansions, while local people get to keep their homes, businesses and buildings of cultural importance.
