Cost & Benefit Case Studies

Haul road quality drives production directly — it sets truck cycle times and cuts cost per ton hauled. Here’s what EBS Surface Seal saved on three real mine sites.

“Investing in building good haul roads guarantees mining equipment will reach the required speed in a safer manner.”

Mining Mirror Magazine, “In for the Long Haul,” Vol. 25, No. 10 — April 2013

“Any savings generated from improved road design and management will benefit the mining company directly as a reduced cost per ton material hauled.”

R. J. Thompson & A. T. Visser, “Integrated Asset Management Strategies for Unpaved Mine Haul Roads,” University of Pretoria
18.75 L/hr Per the Caterpillar Performance Handbook, a medium reduction in rolling resistance on a CAT 777D alone cuts fuel consumption by 18.75 litres per hour, per vehicle — a direct result of an improved road surface.

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Haul road conditions directly impact productivity and unit costs. Source: Caterpillar Forward Mining, Efficient Haul Roads, A Design & Maintenance Guide.

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A 5% increase in rolling resistance can cut production up to 10% and raise production costs up to 35%. Source: Caterpillar Forward Mining, Efficient Haul Roads, A Design & Maintenance Guide.
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 1. Syama Mali Mine Access Road Project

RESOLUTE-MINING-SYAMA-MINE-AIRSTRIP-PROJECT   8,000 m2 / 9,561 yd 2 of  Road 

   1 km x 8 m / 1094 yd x 8,74 yd  

    Investment of:  US $11,200 

    EBS Surface Seal – Applied April 2016

AFTER 5 MONTHS…

  Savings  = US$ 72,000

 mine-haul-rd-savings-graph Total Net Savings: US$ 60,800

  Return on Investment =  542%  

 3. Mine Haul Road 20km x 30


Water Savings

  2 x 70,000 litre tankers watering 10 times per day

   140,000 litres x 10 = 1.4 million litres of water per day

   511,000,000 litres of water per year (511 million litres of water per year)

 

Water Saving


Fuel and Cost Savings

Improved road surface with EBS Surface Seal and subsequent elimination of watering and grading the surface resulted in a fuel savings of 2.9 million litres at a cost of $2.7 million USD.

Fuel Savings

 CO2 Savings

 A fuel savings of 2.9 million litres equates to a CO2 reduction of 7.7 million kg of reduced carbon emissions

CO2 Savings1

 Cost Savings Comparison

Traditional method of watering and grading = 10-year cost $28.9 million

EBS Surface Seal 10-year cost = $3.4 million.Cost Comparison

How this was calculated   (tap to expand)
Water trucks: 2× CAT 777F, 20 hrs/day @ 82.4 L/hr → 3,296 L/day · 1,203,040 L/year
Graders: 3× CAT 16M, 12 hrs/day @ 42.8 L/hr → 1,540.8 L/day · 562,392 L/year
Haul trucks: 20× CAT 789, 20 hrs/day @ 159 L/hr baseline — improved rolling resistance cut consumption by a minimum 5% (7.95 L/hr/vehicle) → 3,180 L/day · 1,160,700 L/year saved
Total diesel reduction: 2,926,132 L/year (≈2.9M L) — at US$0.95/L, a saving of US$2,779,825.40
Water: 2× 70,000 L tankers, 10 trips/day → 1.4M L/day · 511M L/year. At US$0.06/m³, US$30,660/year
CO₂: 2,926,132 L diesel reduction × 2.63 = 7,695,727 kg CO₂/year
Avoided water-truck operating cost: US$136.14/hr, 13.3 hrs/day, 365 days → US$1,326,877/year
Avoided grading cost: US$102.85/hr × 3 graders, 12 hrs/day, 365 days → US$1,351,449/year
Avoided wearing-course remediation: US$0.31/m² → US$186,000
Fuel consumption figures averaged from the Caterpillar Performance Handbook, Version 47.

  2. Mine Access & Pit Road Project

  21 km x 30m

Application of EBS Surface Seal on Access Roads and Haul Roads

 

Case Study 2 Cost SavingsCOST SAVINGS…

 1 Year Savings  = US$ 1.4 Million 

 10 Year Savings  = US$ 27.2 Million 

The 10 year life cycle cost benefits are based on the fact that once our products are applied the requirement for all remediation work is eliminated including watering, grading and importation and placing of additional road material.

WATER

The water use per day was 416,350 litres x 14 trips per day using 4 CAT 785D water trucks applying a total of 5,828,900 litres per day
 Water saved in 1 Year:
2.1 billion litres 

 Water saved in 10 Years: 21 billion litres

WATER SAVINGS 2By eliminating the use of water trucks and graders 

CO2 SAVINGSDIESEL REDUCTION = CO2 REDUCTION

2.4 million litres of diesel (607,596 gallons) was saved! Which equates to CO2 savings of 6.35 million kgs per year

Contact us to see if you qualify for a free Cost & Benefit Analysis Report.  The above information is general, our reports will provide quantifiable amounts and detailed recommendations.

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