MINERAL PROCESSING: Inmet awards Cobre Panama contract to SNC-Lavalin

PANAMA – Inmet Mining of Toronto has selected Joint Venture Panama Inc. to do the detailed engineering, procurement and construction of the mineral processing plant at its Cobre Panama copper project. The joint venture is led by SNC-Lavalin and includes GyM SA and Techint International Construction.

The mill is designed to treat 160,000 t/d using two grinding lines of 80,000 t/d each. Total ore feed rates are expected to reach 240,000 t/d after year nine of operations to compensate for falling head grades.

The mill flowsheet will include primary crushing with coarse ore conveyed to a mill feed stockpile. There will be two parallel semi-autogenous (SAG) mill lines with two ball mills per line. Ground ore will pass through bulk rougher flotation, followed by a cleaners. Copper concentrate and molybdenum will be recovered in separate circuits.

The work of the joint venture will be carried out in two phases. In the first phase is detailed engineering, and assuming that is satisfactory by the end of 2013, the second phase will be construction.

Cobre Panama is to begin production in 2016 for at least 30 years. Details are available at InmetMining.com.