Super Pit gold mine
Encyclopedia
The Fimiston Open Pit, colloquially known as the Super Pit, is Australia's largest open cut
gold mine. The Super Pit is located off the Goldfields Highway on the south-east edge of Kalgoorlie-Boulder, Western Australia. The pit is oblong in shape and is approximately 3.5 kilometres long, 1.5 kilometres wide and 360 metres deep. At these dimensions, it is large enough to be seen from space.
The Super Pit is owned by Kalgoorlie Consolidated Gold Mines Pty Ltd, a company owned 50/50 by Barrick Gold
Corporation and Newmont Mining Corporation. The mine produces 850,000 ounces (28 tonnes) per year of gold, and employs around 550 employees directly on site.
, consolidation into a single open pit mine was attempted by Alan Bond
, but he was unable to complete the takeover. The Super Pit was eventually created in 1989 by Kalgoorlie Consolidated Gold Mines Pty Ltd.
Barrick Gold acquired its share of the mine in December 2001, when it took over Homestake Mining Company
. Newmont became part-owner of the mine three month later, when it acquired Normandy Mining
in February 2002.
Gold within the Golden Mile lode system is unusual in that it is present as telluride
minerals within pyrite
. In order to recover the gold, the ore must be crushed, passed through a gravity circuit to recover the free gold present in some of the higher-grade lodes, and then subjected to flotation to produce an auriferous pyrite concentrate. This is then roasted at a small smelter outside Kalgoorlie-Boulder to liberate the gold from the tellurides, with doré bar
s poured.
first made his famous discovery, more than 50 million ounces (1,550 t) of gold have been mined from the Golden Mile.
The Super Pit is open for viewing at the public lookout daily between 7 am and 9 pm. Blasts occur regularly and can often be viewed from this lookout located off the Goldfields Highway in Boulder.
Free tours of the Super Pit run once a month on Boulder Market Days. The tours give a behind the scenes look at the mining operations and equipment. A highlight of the tour is the opportunity to view the pit from the OBR (Oroya Bypass Road) internal lookout.
Daily tours (not free) are run, picking up passengers in Kalgoorlie's St Barbara Square. The trips, by minibus, run for about 2.5 hours, and are very popular, pre-booking usually being required.
Superpit tours
Open-pit mining
Open-pit mining or opencast mining refers to a method of extracting rock or minerals from the earth by their removal from an open pit or borrow....
gold mine. The Super Pit is located off the Goldfields Highway on the south-east edge of Kalgoorlie-Boulder, Western Australia. The pit is oblong in shape and is approximately 3.5 kilometres long, 1.5 kilometres wide and 360 metres deep. At these dimensions, it is large enough to be seen from space.
The Super Pit is owned by Kalgoorlie Consolidated Gold Mines Pty Ltd, a company owned 50/50 by Barrick Gold
Barrick Gold
Barrick Gold Corporation is the largest pure gold mining company in the world, with its headquarters in Toronto, Ontario, Canada; and four regional business units located in Australia, Africa, North America and South America...
Corporation and Newmont Mining Corporation. The mine produces 850,000 ounces (28 tonnes) per year of gold, and employs around 550 employees directly on site.
Earlier stages
Originally consisting of a number of small underground minesSub-surface mining
Underground mining refers to a group of underground mining techniques used to extract coal, oil shale and other minerals or geological materials from sedimentary rocks...
, consolidation into a single open pit mine was attempted by Alan Bond
Alan Bond (businessman)
Alan Bond is an Australian businessman noted for his criminal convictions and high-profile business dealings, including what was at the time the biggest corporate collapse in Australian history. Bond was born in the Hammersmith district of London, England, and emigrated to Australia with his...
, but he was unable to complete the takeover. The Super Pit was eventually created in 1989 by Kalgoorlie Consolidated Gold Mines Pty Ltd.
Barrick Gold acquired its share of the mine in December 2001, when it took over Homestake Mining Company
Homestake Mining Company
The Homestake Mining Company was one of the largest gold mining businesses in the United States from the 19th century through the beginning of the 21st...
. Newmont became part-owner of the mine three month later, when it acquired Normandy Mining
Normandy Mining
Normandy Mining was an Australian mining company which predominantly mined gold. Normandy was, during much of the late 20th century, Australia's largest gold miner....
in February 2002.
Geology
Most of the good gold mined in the Super Pit occurs within ore lodes formed by ancient shears in a rock unit called the Golden Mile Dolerite. As the result, the area is known as the Golden Mile even though the lodes occur in an area over 2 km in width and 1 km in depth.Production
Mining is via conventional drill and blast mining via face shovels and dump trucks. Around 15 million tonnes of rock is moved in any given year, consisting primarily of waste rock.Gold within the Golden Mile lode system is unusual in that it is present as telluride
Telluride (chemistry)
The telluride ion is Te2−. It is the final stable member of the series of dianions O2−, S2−, and Se2− ....
minerals within pyrite
Pyrite
The mineral pyrite, or iron pyrite, is an iron sulfide with the formula FeS2. This mineral's metallic luster and pale-to-normal, brass-yellow hue have earned it the nickname fool's gold because of its resemblance to gold...
. In order to recover the gold, the ore must be crushed, passed through a gravity circuit to recover the free gold present in some of the higher-grade lodes, and then subjected to flotation to produce an auriferous pyrite concentrate. This is then roasted at a small smelter outside Kalgoorlie-Boulder to liberate the gold from the tellurides, with doré bar
Dore bar
A doré bar is a semi-pure alloy of gold and silver, usually created at the site of a mine. It is then transported to a refinery for further purification.The proportions of silver and gold can vary widely...
s poured.
Figures
Past production figures were:| Year | Production | Grade | Cost per ounce |
| 1998-99 | 718,554 ounces | 2.37 g/t | US$236 |
| 2000 | 715,164 ounces | 2.27 g/t | A$ Australian dollar The Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu... 325 |
| 2001 | 616,344 ounces | 2.14 g/t | A$ 397 |
| 2002 | 720,050 ounces | 1.73 g/t | A$ 222 |
| 2003 | |||
| 2004 | |||
| 2005 | |||
| 2006 | |||
| 2007 | 628,000 ounces | 1.53 g/t | |
| 2008 | 612,000 ounces | 1.56 g/t | |
| 2009 | 690,000 ounces | US$ 609 | |
| 2010 |
Viewing and tourism
This renowned Kalgoorlie-Boulder landmark is currently 3.5 km long, 1.5 km wide and 360 m deep, and will eventually stretch 3.9 km long, 1.6 km wide and reach a depth exceeding 500 m. Since 1893, when Irishman Paddy HannanPaddy Hannan
Patrick "Paddy" Hannan was a gold prospector whose discovery on 17 June 1893 near Kalgoorlie, Western Australia set off a gold rush in the area....
first made his famous discovery, more than 50 million ounces (1,550 t) of gold have been mined from the Golden Mile.
The Super Pit is open for viewing at the public lookout daily between 7 am and 9 pm. Blasts occur regularly and can often be viewed from this lookout located off the Goldfields Highway in Boulder.
Free tours of the Super Pit run once a month on Boulder Market Days. The tours give a behind the scenes look at the mining operations and equipment. A highlight of the tour is the opportunity to view the pit from the OBR (Oroya Bypass Road) internal lookout.
Daily tours (not free) are run, picking up passengers in Kalgoorlie's St Barbara Square. The trips, by minibus, run for about 2.5 hours, and are very popular, pre-booking usually being required.
Superpit tours