Lapon Mining, a subsidiary of the British company Ironveld, has executed its first detonation at the open pit mine at the Altona located at Altona Farm, South Africa. The operation marks the formal start of mining activities at one of the deposits for the development of high-value strategic metals.
The start of open pit production by Lapon Mining
This procedure was carried out by a contractor specialized in drilling and blasting, under the direct supervision of Lapon Mining‘s technical team. Approximately 1.5 tons of ANFO type explosives were used in the intervention, achieving the establishment of the first production bench and a free face that will facilitate the following extraction phases.
As a result of this waste blasting, an estimated 3,000 tons of unweathered magnetite was exposed. This ore will be moved to the dense media separation(DMS) processing plant, located just 2 kilometers from the pit.
Over the next few days, the transfer of Gabro Norite’s tailings material to the designated tailings area will begin. This maneuver will advance the second phase of blasting the exposed ore and begin the continuous supply to the DMS plant, which is operated in conjunction with a strategic partner.
Lapon Mining plans to increase monthly production to 20,000 tons of unweathered magnetite ore. To this end, the current bench will be extended to 100 meters in length and another parallel bench of the same size will be established. Both faces have already been cleared and are ready for the new drilling and detonation stage.
We are very pleased to have completed our first blast successfully and safely.
This represents a breakthrough in the development of a consistent and scalable ore supply from the Lapon mining operation.
I congratulate the entire mining team for their professionalism and efficient execution of this milestone.
With mining already underway and sales of ore to the DMS plant about to begin, we are well positioned to increase production and meet growing demand.
Kris Andersson, CEO of Ironveld.
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Source and photo: Ironveld
