Ok Tedi Kiunga
Operations Control and Instrument Upgrade
- Papua New Guinea
- ABB 800xA DCS
- Mining
Project Overview
The Ok Tedi Mine is the longest running open-pit copper, gold and silver mine in Papua New Guinea. Located near the headwaters of the Ok Tedi River, at Mt. Fubilan in the Western Province, it is 100% PNG owned and contributes 7.4% to the nation’s economy.
About 60 thousand tonnes of ore is mined at Ok Tedi each day, from a pit covering 2.6 square kilometres, before it is delivered to the mill for processing. Once processed, copper-gold concentrate is transported along a pipeline to the port of Kiunga, where there is a filtration plant, concentrate stockpile, and barge loading facilities. From Kiunga, the concentrate is shipped to Port Moresby and then exported.
This project profile showcases Mipac’s work at Kiunga, Ok Tedi’s concentrate handling, storage and ship loading facility. This work forms part of the bigger Ok Tedi Processing Asset Renewal (PAR) Project, an ongoing collaboration between Mipac and Ok Tedi Mining Limited (OTML).
Background
In 2019, Ok Tedi (OTML) identified that due to the ageing of its plant and equipment, some of the mine’s facilities needed a massive upgrade or overhaul. It was identified that the Kiunga Port facility was collapsing into the Ok Tedi River as the riverbed had sedimented over the years. Also, the plant’s electrical facilities were in a critical state, there was minimal automation and a lot of the instrumentation was not working properly. Mipac was engaged to help OTML upgrade its Kiunga Port facility.
Project Scope
The original scope of this project was to upgrade the old control system (GE Fanuc PLC and Citect SCADA) at Kiunga to a new control system (ABB 800xA DCS). This included:
- Designing, configuring, testing and commissioning the ABB 800xA control system
- Supplying control panels
Throughout the project, the team identified additional areas of project work which could provide value add for OTML, including:
- Integration with the mill DCS
- Creating a robust, resilient and redundant high availability control system network
- As-build of functional description and P&IDs along with complete set of control system drawings
- Supply of instrumentation and automated valves
- Creation of a full simulator for operator training
- Creation of online eLearning modules for operators and maintenance technicians
Project Challenges
The project team has encountered a number of challenges over the course of the project. These include:
- Outdated/ Lack of existing documentation for site instrumentation and control system. This made it quite difficult to understand what was working and fit for purpose and what needed replacement. This increased the risk to a smooth cutover from the old to the new system.
- Connecting the DCS nodes at Kiunga to the main mill node, approximately 150kms away, while maintaining the reliability and performance of the DCS system. This posed a major system licencing and data constraint as OTML wanted the system to be operating as one enterprise. This was overcome by designing and implementing a robust, resilient and redundant high availability control system network
- The project started when COVID restrictions were still in place. This meant that Mipac team members could not go to site to as-build the site instrumentation and control documentation. So, this had to be done remotely via photos, Teams video, etc.
- Commissioning and cutovers had to be planned and executed remotely from Brisbane due to COVID travel restrictions.
Results
The project team went above and beyond the original scope of the project, adding in a number of additional pieces of work to enhance the Kiunga facility. This included:
- Replacing old instrumentation and valves
- Providing design inputs to enable the automation of motor control centres
- Providing a complete set of associated drawings/documentation including creating functional descriptions and P&IDs
- Working with site to help them transition and make them operational ready by providing multiple ways of training and upskilling including providing online eLearning modules and creating a simulator
Overall, the project was completed successfully, on time and within budget. Major outcomes included:
- An upgraded OT network at Kiunga that is now connected to the mill
- Increased visibility of the Kiunga facility from the mill control room, which enables better reporting for management and historisation of the data
- Better diagnostics for the entire control system, providing easier troubleshooting, less downtime and more facility uptime
- Better spare part management, thanks to improved documentation
Thanks to the successful completion of this project, the site has been able to continue with the rest of the PAR Project.
Unique aspects of this project
Several features of this project were unique, including:
- The commissioning was completed entirely remotely from Brisbane
- The cutover was planned and executed without interruption to regular operations, utilising the site’s existing shutdowns
- This project was integrated to OTML’s Sustainable Transition Program (STP)
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