Kemerton silica sand

The Kemerton Silica Sand project is located in the Bunbury region of Western Australia approximately 10 kilometres north east of Australind, north of the Kemerton Industrial Park at Wellesley.

Kemerton Silica Sand is a Joint Venture Operation Between two Japanese Companies

Kemerton Silica Sand is a Joint Venture sand mining company equally owned by two Japanese companies; Tochu Company Limited and Itochu Corporation. It operates a feldspathic silica sand mining project that began production in1996. Most of the sand mined is used in the manufacturing of sheet glass and container glass in the Asian region, particularly Japan, because of its high alumina content.

Drilling Determines the Best Areas to Mine at the Kemerton Silica Sand Project

Before any mining takes place at the Kemerton Silica Sand mine, a substantial drilling program is carried out to ensure the resource is suitable and up to standard. The next step is to remove and replace topsoil over any reshaped areas and sections that have previously undergone mining. This approach ensures the rehabilitation of the mined out area is of a high standard ,while at the same time makes certain the natural vegetation of the area remains constant.

Overburden at the Kemerton Silica Sand Project Averages Around 3.5 Metres

The overburden at the Kemerton Silica Sand mine, that averages around 3.5 metres, is removed by the dredge when it is located below the water table. If on dry land it is treated as a dry mining operation and removed by trucks and loaders and taken to previously mined out areas of the mine site.

The topsoil is often used as feedstock for any low level aluminium oxide product processing. The rest of the ore is then mined in two different intervals to facilitate the management of the differing aluminium oxide and the iron oxide concentrations contained in the silica sand being mined at any particular time.

The Kemerton Silica Sand ore is mined by the dredging method of sand mining, a method that has proven over time to be the most environmentally friendly, as well as being the most economical method of mining sand. The sand ore body is pumped from the dredge to the mine ROM storage facility where it is sampled and stockpiled, in readiness for blending in the company's own sand processing plant.

Kemerton Silica Sand is Shipped out of the Bunbury Port for Export to Japan and Asia

Front end loaders are used to blend the ore at the Kemerton Silica Sand Processing Plant before it is washed and subjected to a screening process to rid the ore of any heavy mineral contamination. It is then put through a number of quality tests. When the ore is pumped from the dredge large impurities, clay and rocks are removed by means of a scalping screen system of filtration. The ore is then de-watered with cyclones before being graded and stockpiled. Quality control at the Kemerton Silica Sand mine concentrates heavily on managing the alumina content of the product as it is imperative alumina content levels remain consistent to satisfy customer needs. After processing the final product is stacked and allowed to drain until the moisture level is less than five percent. It is then trucked to the Bunbury Port for export.

The final product can be loaded directly onto ships at the Bunbury Port by the trucks discharging their loads into a road hopper at the warehouse. All ships that carry Kemerton Silica Sand are surveyed and inspected when berthed to guarantee they are clean before any sand is loaded into them. The ship loading facilities, that include conveyors and hoppers, are also inspected and washed before any loading is allowed to commence.