COMMINGLING TECHNOLOGY: ADVANCING SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT OF WASTE ROCK AND TAILINGS IN THE MINING INDUSTRY * Deza Grados Néstor1, Espinoza Asencios Carlos1, Fernández Castillo Ernesto1 1 Compañía Minera Antamina, Huaraz, Perú (*Presenting author: ndeza@antamina.com) ABSTRACT Antamina has implemented a tailings management strategy grounded in responsible socioenvironmental practices, in compliance with national and international regulations, and prioritizing the needs of those directly affected. As a result, considering it's looking for optimal new tailings sites, Antamina is researching an innovative and unprecedented solution for the world mining industry called Commingling, which involves disposing of dewatered tailings in the voids of the crushed waste rock dump. This idea began with a scoping-level evaluation six years ago, which has almost reached the Gate 3 Feasibility stage. Additionally, Antamina has conducted, in parallel with the engineering studies, geotechnical and geochemical laboratory tests and field trials, including a Pre-Pilot Plant (PPP) and a Pilot Plant (PP), with the latter in progress to date. The PPP analyzed three dewatering alternatives: thickening, cyclone-screening and filtration, and the preparation of mixtures (waste rock/tailings) in ratios from 4:1 to 7:1. These mixtures were used in the development of instrumented mesoscale columns and rain barrels, whose data were sent in real time to international consultants' cloud platforms for their analysis. Currently, a PP is being built to evaluate geotechnical and geochemical conditions in two piles at heights of 32 and 60 m. This information will be used in the Feasibility study to justify the project, which consists of processing 100% of Antamina's total tailings production. The project includes two gyratory crushers with a processing capacity of about 140 million tons per annum (Mtpa), a conveyor belt system, and a tailings dewatering plant that uses cyclones and screens to produce around 54 Mtpa of dewatered tailings. These tailings are mixed with the crushed waste rock for transport and disposal in the waste rock dumps using the W2 mechanized system, located in Quebrada Antamina, near the pit. Considering the development of this project, Antamina would extend the life of the existing tailings storage facility to approximately 20 years, thereby optimizing tailings storage and postponing the need for a new tailings area.
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