New Century Resources
Winning Year(s): 2019
Industry: Agriculture, Mining & Utilities
2019 Innovation Name: Economic Rehabilitation of Mine Sites
Awards: 7th Most Innovative Agriculture, Mining & Utilities Company
Employees: 30-99
With the final processing of open pit ore from the Century Mine in 2015, the focus of the mine’s previous owner turned to the progressive rehabilitation and ultimate closure of the mine site. The previous owner’s strategy for progressive rehabilitation involved a traditional approach, with expenditure over many years. New Century Resources acquired the Century Mine from the previous owners in 2017 with a view to undertaking economic rehabilitation. This process allows for much of the scheduled rehabilitation to be achieved through new cash-flow generating activities.
This approach focuses on the use of the existing infrastructure, maximising the value of the sunk capital invested (estimated ~$2Bn). The reprocessing of the tailings waste-stream and encapsulation within the open pit also provides a significant reduction in the overall footprint of disturbance of the historical Century mining operations. The commencement of economic rehabilitation at the Century Mine also eliminates the need for infrastructure dismantling and final closure activities until well after 2050.