Practical long-term planning in narrow vein mines — a case study

Authors: Khani, MM Download Paper

DOI https://doi.org/10.36487/ACG_rep/1511_31_khani

Cite As:
Khani, MM 2015, 'Practical long-term planning in narrow vein mines — a case study', in Y Potvin (ed.), Design Methods 2015: Proceedings of the International Seminar on Design Methods in Underground Mining, Australian Centre for Geomechanics, Perth, pp. 505-512, https://doi.org/10.36487/ACG_rep/1511_31_khani



Abstract:
A reliable long-term plan is essential in achieving economic success in a narrow vein mining operation. The plan must include significant items such as an appropriate and safe design concept, geology and geotechnical considerations, adequate ground support systems, development and production resources’ capacity and their limitations, required infrastructure and all associated costs. In this paper, a practical longterm plan and schedule for an underground mine located at Costerfield in Victoria is presented, discussing all main areas of concern regarding narrow vein mining. Enhanced production scheduler (EPS) software is the current tool that is used for longterm planning and production scheduling at this mine. A comparison between EPS and Excel (the past tool for scheduling) is presented. Also, a comparison between forecast and actual production is presented illustrating good alignment between the two.

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