Development drilling at Perilya (above)
A break after the trip underground (below) (R Mitra)

The underground group was kitted out with the required safety equipment and given a briefing on the underground operations being visited. This included the various production levels where drilling and ore extraction was being undertaken, supplies store, mechanical workshop and the underground materials haulage level.

Students were taken to the surface after the visit and provided with a very welcome lunch and information pack.

Following the mine visit, students were given the opportunity to talk to Rob Scargill, General Manager, and senior staff from Perilya over a nourishing dinner.

Newly commissioned dredge at the Ginkgo Operation (hq)

Wednesday saw students’ traveling to the Ginkgo Mine, Bemax Resources Ltd operation, 160 km south of Broken Hill. This is a newly established heavy mineral sands operation, extracting minerals laid down millions of years ago along the old coastal shoreline.

Here we were shown the dredging operations conducted along with the ongoing process of overburden removal and site rehabilitation.

We were provided with an insight into the issues faced in the commissioning of a new operation.

Following lunch, and a short visit of the camp, we set off back to Broken Hill to view the heavy minerals processing plant. Here we were welcomed by Simon Finnis, General Manager, who discussed the de sing of the overall mining system.

Processing the heavy minerals surprisingly used zero chemicals in separation, relying instead on differences in the magnetic and electric and density properties of the minerals for separation.

Students view the extent of Ginkgo Operations (above)
Albert Vandenberg, Site Project Manager, being thanked for the visit (below) (hq)

Luke Pickering, DMR, discusses rehabilitation projects

Thursday saw us arrive at CBH Resources, where we were first given a briefing by Luke Pickering on rehabilitation projects in and around Broken Hill. This was followed by Bob Johnson who spoke on the history of Broken Hill. Both are from the local office of the NSW Department of Primary Industries.

CBH Resources were kind enough to show us their extensive diamond core drilling store along with the rest of their site, including the location for the underground portal for the proposed Rasp Mine.

Rob Ogden being thanked for the tour of the site at CBH Resources Ltd (hq)

Lunch was kindly provided and followed by a tour of the Broken Hill township, providing us with a view of the extensive number of operations that provided much wealth at Broken Hill.

The tour ended at the Miner’s Memorial, the landmark on the Hill overlooking the city.

Here we read of the tragic deaths of miners in the early years of mining at Broken Hill.

Miner's memorial (R. Mitra)

After an informative week, students made their way to the outlying hamlet of Silverton and its famous pub to taste an ale before watching the sun set.

As the the sun set over the Mundi Mundi Plains, we realised the next time we saw it we would be on the long road home back to Sydney.

All the students would like to thank the staff at

• Perilya Ltd - Broken Hill Operations
• Bemax Resources Ltd - Gingko Mine
• CBH Resources Ltd and
• UNSW
  for hosting such a great tour.

A big thank you also goes to our sponsors for our trip

• Sydney Branch of the AusIMM
• Jennmar Australia
• Weir Minerals
• Xstrata Coal, and
• DSI.

Without this support trips like these would not occur.

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John Lindsay & Kent Bambrook
October 2006

Photos by P Hagan except where otherwise acknowledged

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