Outotec presents the world’s largest SAG mill

Outotec has recently been awarded a contract to deliver one of the largest grinding mills in the world. The contract includes the design and manufacture of a Ø 40’ x 29’ SAG mill. The mill will be driven by a Gearless Motor Drive (GMD) which at 28.0 MW is equal to the largest grinding mill power ever used in the mining industry. The SAG mill design is based on Outotec’s proprietary grinding mill technology, developed over decades for maximum reliability and performance. The mill will be operated as a single stage SAG mill (primary and secondary duty combined) with very high throughput made possible by the use of Outotec’s patented Turbo Pulp Lifter (TPL™) Technology.

With the development of this SAG mill, Outotec responds to the need by offering increased efficiency, effective grinding conditions and improved mill capacity up to 15 % with reduced energy consumption. The grinding mill is planned to be installed during 2014 at First Quantum’s Kansanshi Copper Mine in Zambia. The plant has been in operation since 2004 and Outotec has delivered all the critical processing equipment for the Kansanshi concentrator, including four grinding mills, multiple flotation cells and thickeners.