Modern modular mine built from bigger blocks

The State of Western Australia is one of the world’s key producers of iron ore – a critical raw material in steelmaking. But such resources are in remote locations, even by Australia’s vast standards. BHP’s US$3.6 billion South Flank project, located in the Pilbara region, uses digital connectivity and autonomous-ready fleets, and is one of the most advanced of its kind in Australia.

To build this facility, over 1,000 components needed to be transported to site safely, on schedule and in the right sequence. These items - with a cumulative weight in excess of 29,500t - needed to be transported 340km across the state’s barren interior. This had to be done within a demanding timeframe to keep the construction schedule on track.

The cargo would be taken from the ship’s hook at Port Hedland and across a route largely consisting of public highways. Transporting these modules in the largest possible pieces would reduce the time spent integrating them on site - but the maximum transport size is always limited by the width and condition of the route.

The possibilities for what could be transported on this stretch of tarmac were pushed to new limits as Mammoet delivered a 349t module comprising the train load out bin gate and HPU module. This was the heaviest load ever carried along this stretch of Western Australia’s Great Northern Highway.

For more information: https://www.mammoet.com