"After nearly 18 months of commercial operations, the 2014 Optimisation Study identified and unlocked significant value from the Didipio Mine to drive continued operational excellence through increased metal production, improved operating cash flows, and a significant reduction in waste mine combined with earlier access to higher-grade underground ore."
Mick Wilkes, Managing Director and CEO, OceanaGold

The detailed mine plan identified the best options for the project and brought a 25% increase in mine productivity rate, a reduction in mine waste of 70 million tonnes, improved project economics, and earlier access to high-grade underground ore.

For more than a decade, AMC has provided expert advice on the Didipio project through ongoing operational and strategic support.

THE CHALLENGE

A need to identify and rank the best combinations of open-pit and underground mining options for the mine's transition from open-pit to underground.

OUR APPROACH

The AMC team started with a strategic mine plan to identify potential options. This was followed by detailed mine planning to refine the options. Drawing upon a unique set of tools, methods, and proprietry data available to AMC, options were rapidly evaluated and presentations prepared.

Management agreed with the preferred option.

THE RESULT

The improvements implemented identified the following benefits:

• $215m cost saving in reduced waste movement.
• Access to high-grade underground ore was brought forward by two years.
• 33% mine productivity rate increase from 1.2 Mtpa to 1.6 Mtpa over a longer underground mine life.
• Reduced open-pit waste mining by nearly 70 million tonnes.
• Improved project economics including increased cash flows and a longer mine life.