Weir Advances Mine Backfill Solutions with Pumping Technology

Weir is highlighting the growing role of mine backfilling as a response to increasing tailings volumes and above-ground storage constraints. Backfilling not only addresses environmental and regulatory challenges but can also enhance recovery by stabilising stopes and enabling access to additional ore. Rising demand for higher capacity pumps is being linked to larger production rates and lower ore grades, which generate greater volumes of tailings requiring effective management.

To support these shifts, Weir is developing integrated solutions for mine backfill applications through its GEHO® pump portfolio and wider system expertise. The company offers both hydraulic piston and piston diaphragm pumps, giving it flexibility to match technology to material and operating conditions. Collaboration with Schwing Stetter GmbH in Germany is further enhancing hydraulic piston pump performance, while partnerships on upstream systems allow customers to adopt more holistic, site-specific approaches.

The mining sector’s move towards combining surface storage with underground backfilling underscores how tailings management is evolving. Operators are now considering backfilling mines previously thought unsuitable, sometimes even abandoned sites, as a way to reduce above-ground burdens and extend operational efficiency over the life of mine.

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