MEI's Barry Wills: February 2025

Wednesday, 26 February 2025

February summary: Denver and thoughts on social media

It's been a quiet February in Cornwall, and a wet and cold one, with temperatures dipping below freezing, unusual for this sub-tropical county.

A week in Denver has been the highlight of my month and I leave there today after attending MINEXCHANGE 2025. My report on this will be published on Monday.

Talking to people in Denver, it was evident that there is increasing disillusionment towards mainstream social media platforms, particularly Twitter (X) which is full of many dubious and malicious political posts and spam adverts, and many think that LinkedIn may be going this way.

I have to agree with the thoughts on X. I'm not sure how many people in our industry use it these days, as there is very little interaction compared with that on LinkedIn, but the increasing number of adverts on LinkedIn is also causing concern with some people, although I fully understand that they are necessary to maintain this huge and vibrant platform.

In comparison with X and LinkedIn, the MEI blog is a very small social media platform and it is free of advertising. Its primary aim remains to provide an archival history of 21st century mineral processing, with news and opinions not solely based on mineral processing, but of areas of interest to all in the minerals industry, such as social and environmental issues, climate change, energy, critical minerals etc.

But it is people who are my primary interest, and the growing band of friends that I make during my travels around the world, with MEI conferences and other major events, such as this week's meeting in Denver. It is people that make our industry and I am always humbled to hear of the high esteem that many hold for MEI and our activities.

I particularly appreciate hearing from the hundreds of supporters of the blog, who send me comments and suggestions via my weekly email updates. My data base for supporters continues to grow, and if you would like to be included in the updates database, just let me know by messaging on LinkedIn with your email address, or contact me directly at bwills@min-eng.com. And as the blog is archival, I strongly encourage and welcome interaction directly to the blog postings via the comments section. All comments are moderated to keep them spam-free.

I made a point of not mentioning the T-word while in the USA, particularly in relation to the US President's policy on Gaza and Ukraine and his shameful comments on President Zelensky. Trump suggested that Ukraine hands critical mineral wealth worth $500 billion to the US in return for American military support, while negotiating directly with Putin to end the war.

Source: The Times, February 15th

But questions around the impact of his proposed trade tariffs have emerged in relation to natural resource extraction. Trump has made clear his priority of fossil fuel expansion, opting out of the Paris Agreement, but he has been applauded by some for elevating to the top levels of the government a focus on accelerating mining and processing of minerals, from rare earths to coal and uranium, in an order declaring a national energy emergency, In another executive order, Trump called on the heads of all agencies to identify and scrap all agency actions that impose "undue burden" on domestic mining and processing of non-fuel minerals.

I return to Falmouth today, but in four weeks' time will be back at Heathrow for the flight to Cape Town and to Comminution '25. I hope to see some of you there.

Sunday, 23 February 2025

Sunday in Denver

I arrived in Denver late afternoon yesterday and today was up and about very early due to the 7 hour time difference.

There were few people in the SME registration area when I arrived after my early and very expensive breakfast but it was good to catch up with my old friend and former Camborne School of Mines colleague, Dave Osborne, who was in the Bookstore where his new 2-volume book The Coal Handbook: Towards Cleaner Coal Utilization was residing next to the 8th edition of Mineral Processing Technology.

Dave played a big part in kick-starting my career, getting the 1st edition of Mineral Processing Technology off the ground in the mid 1970s (posting of 10 August 2015). He is an industry advisor to Canadian company Somerset International, which provides innovative technologies for sustainable tailings management and resource recovery from tailings.

Leaving the bookstore we caught up with fellow Brit Mike O'Driscoll, Director of IMFORMED Industrial Mineral Forums & Research Ltd, a regular at the SME Meetings. And then leaving the convention centre Debbie Laney and Shawn Childress, of Chevron Phillips Chemical Company, USA, stopped to say hello.

Taking advantage of the balmy unseasonable 18C I strolled to the Capitol, where remnants of the snowfalls of a few days ago remained.

Over the years I have always wandered down Denver's 16th Street Mall, once a vibrant downtown pedestrian promenade, and always bumped into a few familiar faces. This year I caught up only with Rob McIvor and his wife Susan. Rob is Chief Metallurgist, Grinding Systems at Metcom Technologies, Inc., USA and the photos below capture the demise of the once resplendent 16th Street Mall, which has undergone significant renovations since spring 2022.

The Mall was bad two years ago but is now a desolate building site and while the renovations aim to revitalise the area, some businesses have reported challenges due to construction-related disruptions, and many of the bars and restaurants have had to close. Only a month ago the Mall experienced a tragic incident when a series of stabbings occurred resulting in two fatalities and two injuries. Populated by homeless and drug addicts Downtown Denver is no longer the safe place it used to be and in all my years at SME Meetings I have never seen a warning like the one below put out to delegates in such a strong fashion.

So, after a shorter walk than usual, I returned to my hotel to prepare for the opening of the exhibition and the start of MINEXCHANGE 2025. My personal report on the meeting will be published on Monday March 3rd.

Friday, 21 February 2025

February Cornish Mining Sundowner, with good news from South Crofty

There were quite a few local service providers at last night's mining sundowner at Falmouth's Chain Locker, some being involved with the development of the new processing plant at the old South Crofty tin mine, currently being brought back into production by Cornish Metals Inc.

It was particularly good to see Owen Mihalop, Chief Operating Officer at Cornish Metals and to congratulate him on the news that nearly £30m is to be invested in the reopening of South Crofty mine in a scheme expected to create more than 300 jobs. The National Wealth Fund (NWF) announced a £28.6m direct equity investment into Cornish Metals Inc a few weeks ago. The NWF's funding is part of a £56m fundraising bid by Cornish Metals to "further de-risk" the South Crofty tin project and support initial work.

South Crofty is a fully permitted underground tin mine with more than 400 years of recorded production prior to its closure in 1998. It hosts one of the highest grade tin resources in the world. Cornish Metals hopes to get the mine back into production by the end of 2027.

With Owen Mihalop

The next Cornish Mining Sundowner is at the Chain Locker on Thursday March 20th from 5.30pm.

Monday, 17 February 2025

The Future of Comminution

Comminution '25 is now only 6 weeks away, and apart from a packed 4-day programme, there are two high-profile workshops taking place on Sunday March 30th at the Vineyard Hotel, immediately prior to the conference welcoming reception.

For those interested in ultrafine grinding, conference sponsor Glencore Technology is offering a 2-hour workshop on "Expanding the capability and application of the IsaMill" where the Glencore Technology team will lead interactive sessions to help delegates make the right choices for their unique processing needs.

On the same day, the industry advocate for Comminution '25, CEEC International: Coalition for Minerals Efficiency, is hosting a full day workshop on "The Future of Comminution." This interactive session will bring together industry experts, researchers, and technology innovators to discuss the latest advancements in comminution and energy efficiency.

Facilitated by Janine Herzig and Grant Ballantyne, one of the conference keynote speakers, the workshop will feature keynote presentations from Malcolm Powell and Bern Klein, also a keynote speaker at Comminution '25. They will provide insights into emerging and existing comminution technologies. The event will focus on ranking technologies based on their potential impact on energy efficiency, water conservation, and tailings management, forming a roadmap for the future of mineral processing.

With conference sponsor Metso as the main sponsor of the workshop, there will also be discussions on real-world applications of the CEEC Energy Curves tool, as well as interactive sessions aimed at mapping technologies across three key horizons: Now (proven technologies), New (in testing phases), and Next (under active research).

Attendance is free, and participants will have the opportunity to contribute to shaping industry priorities.

Thursday, 13 February 2025

MINEXCHANGE 2025 is only 10 days away

Next week I will be leaving for Denver, to report on one of the mining industry's biggest events, the Annual Meeting of the Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration (MINEXCHANGE 2025). This year the meeting will include two symposia, World Gold 2025 and a symposium to honour Prof. Komar Kawatra.

This will be my 22nd SME Annual Meeting, and my 11th in Denver. As MEI is a media partner, I report annually on these events for the blog, featuring mineral processing people and innovations. As always I would very much like you to say hello and share your news if you see me wandering around the huge exhibition.

If you have an exhibition booth, please contact me prior to the event and I will arrange to meet at your booth for a photo and to hear your latest news.

I look forward to seeing you in Denver.

Monday, 10 February 2025

Is high voltage pulse power the next great innovation in comminution?

There have been great innovations in comminution technology over the past few decades, notably stirred milling and high-pressure grinding rolls. Is the next great innovation pulsed power technology?

High Voltage Pulse (HVP) technology presents a promising approach for enhancing ore pre-weakening, pre-concentration and mineral liberation. By applying electrical discharges to selectively target mineralised particles, HVP unlocks the potential to process complex, low-grade deposits more efficiently.

At Comminution '25, Flávio André, of Australia's JKMRC will present a study, co-authored by the late Frank Shi, detailing the development and optimisation of a laboratory-scale HVP electrode-grizzly system. Findings highlight HVP’s capacity to separate valuable minerals from gangue before energy-intensive grinding stages, offering a more sustainable mineral processing alternative.

Following Flávio's presentation, Nathan Flaman, the CEO of French company I-ROX, will share how the company is collaborating with BHP to scale up its own application of the pulsed power technology. I-ROX aims to reduce the cost of comminution by slashing the energy and consumables required and increasing flotation recoveries as a result of improved mineral liberation. The effects on mineral liberation were shown in a paper presented at Process Mineralogy '24.

With teams in Toulouse, France and Albuquerque, New Mexico, I-ROX is now focused on scaling the technology and are in the process of building the first demonstration unit capable of operating at 1 tonne/hour. By the end of 2025 they expect to have achieved throughput of 10 tonnes/hour, with the plan to deploy the first pilot plant at a BHP mine in 2026.

I-ROX was established in 2022 by I-Pulse, which has been been successfully commercialising various applications of pulsed power for nearly 20 years. The co-founder, chairman and CEO of I-Pulse is renowned mining entrepreneur Robert Friedland. Robert also leads Ivanhoe Capital which has specialised in the provision of venture capital and project financing for a roster of international business enterprises since its founding in 1987, including Ivanhoe Electric, Pure Lithium, VRB Energy and Ivanhoe Mines.

#Comminution25

Thursday, 6 February 2025

Comminution '25 update: check out the delegate list

Comminution '25 is now only 7 weeks away, and already over 130 delegates from 24 countries have registered. The delegate list is now on the conference website and this will be updated regularly. As you will see, there is a fine mix of academia, operators and service providers.

The conference programme is now finalised, but we are still considering abstract submissions for poster presentation. Posters will be displayed in the main exhibition area, where coffee and lunch breaks take place. There will be 23 booths in this area and another 7 small booths outside the conference room. All exhibition space is now sold out.

Poster displays at Comminution '23

Although we have a packed timetable over the four days, there will be plenty of time for networking during the long coffee and lunch breaks, the evening sundowners and the conference dinner at Groot Constantia Wine Estate.

Conference sponsor Glencore Technology will run a workshop, "Expanding the capability and application of the Isamill", on the afternoon of Sunday 30th March, immediately before the conference welcoming reception.

The Coalition for Minerals Efficiency (CEEC) will also be running a full day workshop on Sunday 30th March, on "The future of comminution".

So join us in beautiful Cape Town next month- a conference not to be missed for anyone with an interest in comminution. And Cape Town itself is an added bonus. The UK-based consumer organisation Which? asked more than 1500 of its members to rank their experiences of cities outside Europe. Of the 35 cities surveyed Cape Town came on top.