Overview
Stage | Production |
Mine Type | Underground |
Commodities |
|
Mining Method |
- Sub-level open stoping (SLOS)
|
Processing |
- Hydrometallurgical plant / circuit
- Smelting
- Acid leach
- Flotation
- Solvent Extraction & Electrowinning
- Electrorefining
- Cyanide (reagent)
|
Mine Life | 40 years (as of Jan 1, 2021) |
Olympic Dam is one of the world’s most significant deposits of copper, gold, silver and uranium. It comprises underground and surface operations, and is a fully integrated processing facility from ore to metal. |
Latest News | Olympic Dam contract for Foraco May 31, 2022 |
Source:
p. 231
Company | Interest | Ownership | Investor's Info |
BHP Group Ltd.
|
100 %
|
Indirect
|
|
BHP Billiton Olympic Dam Corporation Pty Ltd.
(operator)
|
100 %
|
Direct
|
|
Olympic Dam is owned by the BHP Billiton Group through its wholly owned subsidiary BHP Billiton Olympic Dam Corporation Pty Ltd (ODC).
Summary:
RD1 drilled through 335m of flat-lying Proterozoic and Cambrian sediments before passing through an unconformity into haematite altered basement rocks. In theory the copper mineralisation was supposed to be in the overlying sediments but assays revealed fine-grained hypogene chalcocite in the basement. RD1 returned 38m @ 1.05%Cu, which was considered uneconomic at these depths at this time, but RD10 changed that with an intersection of 170m @ 2.12%Cu and 0.58kg/t U3O8 and is considered the “Discovery Hole”.
However, following initial underground development in 1985-1987, it became apparent that none of the mineralisation was stratabound and that it was hosted in a highly variable magmatic-hydrothermal breccia complex that displays multiple brecciation, diatreme intrusions, mafic and ultramafic dyke intrusions along with interpreted gravity collapse of high level volcanic edifice material. The deposit is considered to be a member of the Iron Oxide Copper Gold (IOCG) family of deposits and has a close temporal and spatial association with the Hiltaba Suite of granites, dated at 1590Ma and more specifically the more fractionated and oxidised Roxby Downs subsuite (1588Ma).
The main lithologies at Olympic Dam comprise a continuum of breccias starting at the periphery with granite clasts set in little haematite matrix progressing into the centre where the clasts are wholly haematite in a haematite matrix. The principal gangue minerals are haematite, sericite and quartz. Minor gangue minerals include; siderite, chlorite, fluorite and barite.
The dominant sulphide minerals are chalcopyrite, bornite, chalcocite and pyrite. Minor sulphides include; carrolite, cobaltite, galena, sphalerite and molybdenite. Other minerals of interest are; metallic copper, electrum, Ag-, Hg-, Pb-, Bi-selenides and tellurides. The uranium at Olympic Dam occurs mostly as uraninite, coffinite or brannerite with trace amounts in zircon, monazite, florencite and bastinite.
Mining Methods
- Sub-level open stoping (SLOS)
Summary:
Ore mined underground is hauled by an automated train system to crushing, storage and ore hoisting facilities or trucked directly to the surface.
The Olympic Dam ore body begins about 300 metres below the surface and continues to a depth of more than 1 kilometre. The existing mining operation employs a sub-level open stope method of underground mining. The underground operation includes crushing stations, vertical ventilation shafts and an automated rail network, used to produce and transport crushed ore to the surface, where conveyors move the ore to the processing plant.
Processing
- Hydrometallurgical plant / circuit
- Smelting
- Acid leach
- Flotation
- Solvent Extraction & Electrowinning
- Electrorefining
- Cyanide (reagent)
Source:
Summary:
Olympic Dam has a fully integrated metallurgical complex with a grinding and concentrating circuit, a hydrometallurgical plant incorporating solvent extraction circuits for copper and uranium, a copper smelter, a copper refinery, including an electro-refinery and an electrowinning-refinery, and a recovery circuit for precious metals.
2 grinding circuits. Nominal milling capacity: 10.3 Mtpa. Flash furnace produces copper anodes, then refined to produce copper cathodes. Electrowon copper cathode and uranium oxide concentrate produced by leaching and solvent extracting flotation tailings. Gold cyanide leach circuit and gold room producing gold bullion.
Recoveries & Grades:
Commodity | Parameter | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 |
Copper
|
Recovery Rate, %
| ......  | ......  | ......  | 94 | 94 | 94 | 94 |
Copper
|
Head Grade, %
| ......  | ......  | ......  | 2.19 | 2.3 | 2.01 | 1.86 |
Gold
|
Recovery Rate, %
| ......  | ......  | ......  | 70 | 69 | 70 | 71 |
Silver
|
Recovery Rate, %
| ......  | ......  | ......  | 64 | 64 | 64 | 64 |
Uranium (U3O8)
|
Recovery Rate, %
| ......  | ......  | ......  | 72 | 69 | 72 | 73 |
Uranium (U3O8)
|
Head Grade, g/t
| ......  | ......  | ......  | 640 | 620 | 610 | 570 |
Reserves at June 30, 2021:
Cut-off criteria:
Mineral Resources: OC Sulphide - Variable between 0.10%Cu and 0.30%Cu; UG Sulphide - Variable between 0.80%Cu and 1.30%Cu.
Ore Reserves: UG Sulphide - Variable between 1.10%Cu and 1.70%Cu; Low-grade - 0.60%Cu
Category | OreType | Tonnage | Commodity | Grade |
Proven
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
239 Mt
|
Copper
|
2.09 %
|
Proven
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
239 Mt
|
Gold
|
0.73 g/t
|
Proven
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
239 Mt
|
Silver
|
5 g/t
|
Proven
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
239 Mt
|
Uranium (U3O8)
|
610 g/t
|
Probable
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
174 Mt
|
Copper
|
1.97 %
|
Probable
|
Low-grade sulphide
|
31 Mt
|
Copper
|
0.83 %
|
Probable
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
174 Mt
|
Gold
|
0.66 g/t
|
Probable
|
Low-grade sulphide
|
31 Mt
|
Gold
|
0.34 g/t
|
Probable
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
174 Mt
|
Silver
|
4 g/t
|
Probable
|
Low-grade sulphide
|
31 Mt
|
Silver
|
2 g/t
|
Probable
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
174 Mt
|
Uranium (U3O8)
|
600 g/t
|
Probable
|
Low-grade sulphide
|
31 Mt
|
Uranium (U3O8)
|
270 g/t
|
Proven & Probable
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
413 Mt
|
Copper
|
2.04 %
|
Proven & Probable
|
Low-grade sulphide
|
31 Mt
|
Copper
|
0.83 %
|
Proven & Probable
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
413 Mt
|
Gold
|
0.7 g/t
|
Proven & Probable
|
Low-grade sulphide
|
31 Mt
|
Gold
|
0.34 g/t
|
Proven & Probable
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
413 Mt
|
Silver
|
5 g/t
|
Proven & Probable
|
Low-grade sulphide
|
31 Mt
|
Silver
|
2 g/t
|
Proven & Probable
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
413 Mt
|
Uranium (U3O8)
|
610 g/t
|
Proven & Probable
|
Low-grade sulphide
|
31 Mt
|
Uranium (U3O8)
|
270 g/t
|
Measured
|
In-Situ (OP)
|
3,600 Mt
|
Copper
|
0.66 %
|
Measured
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
510 Mt
|
Copper
|
1.73 %
|
Measured
|
In-Situ (OP)
|
3,600 Mt
|
Gold
|
0.34 g/t
|
Measured
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
510 Mt
|
Gold
|
0.68 g/t
|
Measured
|
In-Situ (OP)
|
3,600 Mt
|
Silver
|
1 g/t
|
Measured
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
510 Mt
|
Silver
|
4 g/t
|
Measured
|
In-Situ (OP)
|
3,600 Mt
|
Uranium (U3O8)
|
210 g/t
|
Measured
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
510 Mt
|
Uranium (U3O8)
|
500 g/t
|
Indicated
|
In-Situ (OP)
|
3,330 Mt
|
Copper
|
0.6 %
|
Indicated
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
480 Mt
|
Copper
|
1.62 %
|
Indicated
|
In-Situ (OP)
|
3,330 Mt
|
Gold
|
0.25 g/t
|
Indicated
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
480 Mt
|
Gold
|
0.59 g/t
|
Indicated
|
In-Situ (OP)
|
3,330 Mt
|
Silver
|
1 g/t
|
Indicated
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
480 Mt
|
Silver
|
3 g/t
|
Indicated
|
In-Situ (OP)
|
3,330 Mt
|
Uranium (U3O8)
|
200 g/t
|
Indicated
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
480 Mt
|
Uranium (U3O8)
|
480 g/t
|
Inferred
|
In-Situ (OP)
|
3,170 Mt
|
Copper
|
0.6 %
|
Inferred
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
80 Mt
|
Copper
|
1.58 %
|
Inferred
|
In-Situ (OP)
|
3,170 Mt
|
Gold
|
0.24 g/t
|
Inferred
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
80 Mt
|
Gold
|
0.65 g/t
|
Inferred
|
In-Situ (OP)
|
3,170 Mt
|
Silver
|
1 g/t
|
Inferred
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
80 Mt
|
Silver
|
3 g/t
|
Inferred
|
In-Situ (OP)
|
3,170 Mt
|
Uranium (U3O8)
|
200 g/t
|
Inferred
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
80 Mt
|
Uranium (U3O8)
|
430 g/t
|
Total Resource
|
In-Situ (OP)
|
10,100 Mt
|
Copper
|
0.62 %
|
Total Resource
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
1,070 Mt
|
Copper
|
1.67 %
|
Total Resource
|
In-Situ (OP)
|
10,100 Mt
|
Gold
|
0.28 g/t
|
Total Resource
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
1,070 Mt
|
Gold
|
0.64 g/t
|
Total Resource
|
In-Situ (OP)
|
10,100 Mt
|
Silver
|
1 g/t
|
Total Resource
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
1,070 Mt
|
Silver
|
3 g/t
|
Total Resource
|
In-Situ (OP)
|
10,100 Mt
|
Uranium (U3O8)
|
210 g/t
|
Total Resource
|
In-Situ (UG)
|
1,070 Mt
|
Uranium (U3O8)
|
490 g/t
|
Corporate Filings & Presentations:
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News:
News | Date |
Olympic Dam contract for Foraco
|
May 31, 2022
|
BHP going green at Olympic Dam
|
October 14, 2021
|
BHP backs local business at Olympic Dam
|
September 1, 2021
|
Monadelphous banks BHP, Rio Tinto contracts
|
June 24, 2021
|
BHP hands Olympic Dam contract to Boom
|
May 6, 2021
|
BHP hires CRC ORE for Olympic Dam bulk ore sorting
|
November 2, 2020
|
BHP sets foundation for Olympic Dam expansion
|
October 20, 2020
|
Monadelphous wins BHP contracts across Australia
|
September 14, 2020
|
Swick wins BHP, St Barbara contracts
|
August 17, 2020
|
BHP a step closer to boosting Olympic Dam copper output
|
May 25, 2020
|
BHP seeks 75% copper growth project at Olympic Dam
|
February 15, 2019
|
Aerial view:
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