Ore will be hauled from stopes to a series of ore passes that will connect to a main
haulage level leading to a primary rock crusher near Shaft 2, from where it will be hoisted to the surface for processing.
This intersection, at an elevation some 100m below the Main
Haulage level in the ore body, almost doubles the known strike extent of the North Vein and remains open further to the North and at depth confirming the high potential for further epithermal gold/silver mineralisation on this structure.
The investment, the single largest in the company's history, covers the construction of a new main
haulage level, which will mean that LKAB's iron ore mining and processing operations in Kiruna are ensured until 2030.
The excitement began in the summer of 1980 when miners Bill Penninger and Bob Stafford began to find pyromorphite off the main
haulage level, in one of the back stopes of the Jersey vein.
Ore will be hauled from the stopes to a series of ore passes that will connect to the main
haulage level to Shaft 2.
These all feed to ore bins on the train
haulage level, where Brookville and Goodman locos haul 13.6 t ore cars.
The adit itself is the dedicated conveyor drive for muck haulage from the mine to surface and will connect with the East Boulder mine's dedicated rail
haulage level along strike on 6400 level.
The first phase of drilling was completed from two underground stations on the 1,900-ft production
haulage level. Several holes had significant intervals of more than 2.5% copper, including one intercept of 32.1 m grading 2.55% copper.
Schalke said that not only are the 130-mt locos in constant operation at the mine, pulling 2,400-mt trains, but the older units are also still in service, working in the
haulage level at the Esmeralda mine.
Phase 1 of the 1-D development is concerned with ore above the 1,100 m main
haulage level that connects T-1, the main shaft at Thompson, with the 1-D orebody.
They are currently looking at fully automated trucks with no drivers on the
haulage level. An LHD would load the truck and it would haul the load and dump it at the ore pass and then return to the loading point.
63-71) at LKAB's Kiruna iron ore mine in Arctic Sweden brings in a new main
haulage level at 1,045 m below surface, replacing the 775 m level which will be exhausted next year.
