Pre-Feasibility
The QR processing facility is located approximately 150 kilometres south-east of Quesnel, BC. The QR Mill has processed gold bearing ore from a number of mine operations; most recently, the Barkerville Cariboo Gold Project located in Wells, BC. The mine/mill operation, operated by North Spirit Discovery Group, is now at an advanced project stage following acquisition by Osisko Royalties.
Allnorth was retained by Barkerville Gold Mines Ltd. (BGM) to provide engineering services and record drawings for the process plant. Allnorth’s scope of work included:
- Site field verifications
- Process Plant 3D scanning
- Updated Process Flow Diagrams (PFD’s)
- Process Plant technical reviews, including Pre-leach thickening; Grinding and classification; Leach/CIP and Carbon Elution-Regeneration areas; Updated Piping & Instrumentation Diagrams (P&ID’s) including process control review and recommendations.
The updated record drawings allowed BGM to adequately plan for the plant’s next stage of development. BGM issued a Letter of Recommendation for the work carried out by the Allnorth team.
Responsibilities
- Process Flow Diagram (PFD) updates
- Process Plant technical reviews
- Piping & Instrumentation Diagram (P&ID) updates
- Process Plant 3D scanning
- Civil/structural engineering
- Mechanical engineering
- Electrical engineering
- Cost estimating
Feasibility (Early Works Facilities)
Allnorth was contracted to provide engineering and technical expertise for the work camp and underground infrastructure studies at the mining complex, process de-bottleneck and equipment upgrade projects at the processing mill, upgrading the access road, as well as detailed engineering to update the control system and HVAC at the legacy mineral processing facilities. Allnorth’s scope of work included:
Camp Design to Feasibility Study Level
Allnorth was responsible for the work camps at the QR Mill and the Wells mining complex, including vendor coordination, plus civil, structural, mechanical/piping, and electrical/communications design for all camp site preparation, facilities, and utilities. Also included was aerial drone scanning for development of a topographical survey of the potential camp locations.
Underground Mining and Ore Processing
Allnorth provided electrical engineering design services as a subcontractor to Mining Plus Consulting Canada Ltd. on the feasibility study. Allnorth was also responsible for designing the underground electrical reticulation and distribution, with electrical equipment lists and drawings, including specification of electrical equipment and switchgear.
Haul Road
Allnorth provided engineering services to review the existing Forest Service Road (FSR) used to haul concentrate to the mill. The existing condition was examined, and upgrades were proposed to improve the safety and operability on the road, and to reduce congestion that impacts cycle-time for haul trucks. Detailed design for the road improvements were proposed, and the scope of the project was rationalized within the client’s budget, including sourcing of road-building materials and coordination with contractors.
Mill Ventilation Upgrade
Allnorth completed a project to study and upgrade the heating and ventilation of the mill building and offices, to meet the requirements imposed following an inspection by the BC Ministry of Energy, Mines, and Petroleum Resources. The study identified the seasonal heating requirements, as well as the ventilation improvements required for dust suppression and evacuation of potentially hazardous gases and vapours. The project was completed within a very tight timeline to meet the regulatory requirements.
Process De-bottleneck Study
The study was performed to identify equipment upgrades required to achieve the desired processing tonnage with the expected mill feed materials; run-of-mine ore for current operations and crushed concentrate for the future including:
- Physical survey and laser scanning of the entire facility for preparation of as-built record drawings for process flow diagrams, piping and instrumentation diagrams, and process control system;
- Engineering review and recommendations for groundwater run-off management at the camp, processing mill, and ore stockpile areas;
- Assessment of process control instrumentation and automation, and development of recommendations for upgraded controls.
LOCATION
Wells, BC
