ABB, the leading power and automation technology group, announced that it recently won an order from Minera Chinalco Peru SA for the delivery and installation of three complete gearless mill drive (GMD) systems for the Toromocho copper project.
The Toromocho mine is located in central Peru, approximately 140km east of Lima in the historical Morococha mining district, and is a porphyry copper open pit mineral deposit.
ABB’s GMDs at the Toromocho mine will be the largest such systems worldwide, to be installed at the highest altitude where gearless mill drive systems ever have been installed. The region has a steep topography with elevations over the deposit ranging from 4,700m to over 4,900m above sea level. Location of the copper concentrator, where the GMD systems will be installed, is at 4,600m above sea level.
ABB’s scope of supply consists of three complete GMD systems including transformers, ringmotors and containerised E-houses. One system will be installed on a 40 feet semiautogenous (SAG) mill with a power of 28MW. The SAG mill will be equipped with the new ABB 18-pulse cycloconverter, The additional two GMD systems will be installed on 28 feet ball mills rated with a power of 22MW.
The mine will go into operation in 2012 and will have an annual production of approximately 210,000t per year.