Full project details
At the Yandi Mine in Western Australia’s rugged Pilbara region, Laing O’Rourke designed, procured, constructed and commissioned two full modular primary and secondary crushing facilities. Laing O’Rourke also performed the multidisciplinary works, which involved civil, structural, mechanical and electrical engineering activities.
The new crushing facilities for the mine, located around 170 kilometres northwest of Newman, are each fitted with an overland conveyor. Each conveyor is more than one kilometre long, and transports the crushed ore to feed a common stockpile. The facilities also include a run-of-mine bin, an apron feeder and crushing stations. A unique feature of the design is that the entire system can be broken down into modular segments for future relocation and recommissioning.
Laing O'Rourke led the fabrication of the steelworks through a custom-designed facility in Thailand. As a result, the modular design removed 50,000 hours of high-risk work from the Yandi site. All steelwork was procured from the Thai fabricator with great success from both a technical and commercial perspective.
Following construction, the commissioning team brought the plant to the completion of no-load testing before handing over to the client’s commissioning team for load testing. The Yandi facility has delivered above-specification performance to the Yandi operation.
Together with the connecting Rapid Growth Project 5 (RGP5) rail expansion, the Yandi Mine works are part of Laing O’Rourke’s strong working relationship with BHP Billiton Iron Ore in Western Australia.