Vanguard Wins International Contract

Heavy lifting and rigging specialist Vanguard, has completed a contract to install four grinding mills for the Varvarinskoye gold and copper mining project in Kazakhstan. The mine is owned by UK based European Minerals Corporation (TSX EPM &. AIM EUM). The gold / copper mine and process plant, rated at 4.2 million tons per year, is situated in the north-west of Kazakhstan near the Russian border. Vanguard was contracted by Senet CC, a locally based company that is the EPCM contractor for the project.

According to James Robinson, Vanguard project engineer, the project was completed in a month. “We were approached in March 2006, largely due to the success of a project we completed in Mali where we installed two ball mills at a gold mine using a structural gantry and our innovative strand jacking technology. This method is ideal for installing mills due to its versatility and accurateness.

“The key determining factor for this latest job was the fact that strand jacking is a compact technology that can be used in areas where there is limited access and space available. Typically jacking can occur off of temporary or existing structures. In this instance craning was not considered due to the space issue and the client was looking for a simple and effective method of getting two ball mills and two sag mills into position,” says Robinson.

Vanguard redeveloped the method employed in Mali to suit the job, taking into consideration the environmental conditions, space limitations and the nature of the work to be done.

“We refined the process and used a steel gantry system with strand jacks for lifting and motorised crawlers for propulsion. The equipment was shipped to Kazakhstan in four 20 foot containers,” says Robinson.

Vanguard sent a small highly skilled team to the region to complete the job that began in May this year. Local labour was contracted to assist the team.

Bryan Hodgkinson, Vanguard managing director, says facing the challenge of overcoming the limitations of performing complex heavy lifts in remote and isolated regions is becoming a Vanguard trademark. “Our success stems from our versatility and capabilities in this arena. With mining companies pushing further afield and going into desolate areas, we are finding a growing demand for our services which we are proud of.”