Jansen mine shafts 70% complete, BHP reports
Giles Hellyer is optimistic about the multibillion dollar Jansen potash mine project. The BHP president, Potash Canada, presented an update Wednesday during a Regina & District Chamber of Commerce luncheon.
Located about 140 kilometres east of Saskatoon, the massive Jansen project has experienced significant delays, but Hellyer stressed during the luncheon that plans and work on the mine are progressing.
Last month, BHP CEO Andrew Mackenzie told a conference in Barcelona that the mine’s first phase could go to the Melbournebased company’s board of directors for approval next summer and be operational in 2023.
Hellyer said work is continuing smoothly on the first stage, with plans still in place for it to be presented next summer. Work is advancing on site, with the sinking of the two mine shafts being 70 per cent complete.
The shaft excavation isn’t expected to be complete for another two to three years.
BHP is currently wanting to leverage ideas from across its mining portfolio for the potash mine.
“We place a lot of value on studying and doing a lot of work embracing engineering and technology to create what could be in operation for many decades to come,” Hellyer said.
The company operates remote facilities in some of its other ventures, and is interested in using this technology with the Jansen mine. BHP wants to operate a remote base out of Saskatoon to run technological aspects of the mine.
“(Having a remote base) allows us to potentially increase the appeal of working for our company with some of the more technically faceted aspects of the operation being managed out of Saskatoon
itself,” Hellyer said
If BHP does operate a remote location, it would be a first for the potash industry. Hellyer said it won’t affect hiring locally around the mine site.
“We obviously tend to have many of our people ... working close to local communities. But we do see that we can use technology to build a stronger base in Saskatoon for operational aspects.”
For equipment in the mine, BHP is drawing inspiration from its oil operations in Texas for new technology to use.
“We can leverage some of their technology in petrophysics for example, which helps give us a better understanding of the resource that we’re dealing with under the ground,” Hellyer said.
BHP wants to use new technology in most aspects of the mine, including shipping potash. The company is currently looking into using more productive railcar technology which allows for continuous loading and unloading of cars. As well, BHP is looking at using larger trains to reduce unit costs.