3805 Determining the impact of haulage optimisation on open pit mining economic and environmental challenges: A case study
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17159/2411-9717/3805/2026Abstract
This study proposes a new approach to reduce the environmental impact during surface mining by improving environmental factors through the incorporation of carbon footprint into strategic mine planning. Two key variables were analysed by contrasting and comparing the baseline and optimised models generated. These variables include Net Present Value (NPV), which helps determine the financial feasibility of the mining models and their carbon emissions. The variables were analysed by using linear regression, Spearman’s correlation, a P-value hypothesis and an exponential decay tests.
Results show that at Mine A’s projected NPV was 62% higher than when running a baseline model. Furthermore, the NPV from the baseline model portrayed a high rate of decay at 0.667 versus 0.118 from the optimised model. This indicates the baseline model’s sensitivity to long-term project timelines and fluctuating markets. The optimised method presents an opportunity to manage emissions during the high operational cost phases. It is represented by a 31% improvement in carbon emissions during the periods of high operational costs, whilst maintaining a positive NPV when compared with the baseline model. The optimised model presents a better chance of achieving financial feasibility and balancing environmental impact, thereby ensuring that Mine A can align with the environmental aspect of ESG through lowering the carbon footprint resulting from its hauling operations.
Keywords: Strategic mine planning; NPV; Carbon foot print; Environment; Haulage optimisation; ESG
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