Tailings Mineral Resource Estimates can appear straightforward. The material has already been mined, crushed, processed and deposited in one location — but tailings facilities present their own unique set of technical challenges.
In this episode of Fresh Thinking by @SnowdenOptiro , Senzeni Mandava and Melanie Bulley explore the nuances of estimating Mineral Resources within tailings facilities. They discuss how tailings differ from conventional in situ deposits and why depositional engineering, rather than natural geological controls, can become fundamental to understanding continuity.
opics covered include:
Density and moisture uncertainty
Sampling unconsolidated and saturated material
Variography and spatial continuity in tailings • Depositional history and hydraulic segregation
The importance of the phreatic surface and hydrogeology
Metallurgical recoverability and project economics
Mineral Resource classification
Tailings reprocessing, critical minerals and ESG considerations
As Senzeni and Melanie discuss, a tailings facility is not simply a relocated orebody. It is an engineered, evolving sedimentary system with its own geotechnical, hydrogeological, metallurgical and operational complexities.
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