NorNickel, Moscow, Russia:

G. V. Sabyanin, Head of the Mining and Processing Management at the Industrial Engineering Department, Candidate of Engineering Sciences

NorNickel’s Polar Division, Norilsk, Russia:
A. A. Kisel, Head of Department at the Geodynamic Safety Center, kiselaa@nornik.ru
A. A. Bazin, Chief Specialist, Geodynamic Safety Center
E. V. Kositsyn, Chief Surveyor at the Surveying Center of Mayak Mine

The article presents the studies aimed to optimize and validate a mining flow chart for extraction of solid sulfide ore reserves from the Second Southern Lens with regard to the ore morphology and mode of occurrence. The geology of the Second Southern Lens is represented by the upper Devonian overburden and the lower Tunguska series cut with differentiated intrusion of gabbro-dolerite. Bed rocks are overlaid with thick and sheet-like quaternary strata, with an aquifer in boulder–chisley deposits at the bottom. The latter are overlaid with clay and loam layers 50–60 m thick. For safe and convenient mining under the old quaternary aquifer, an ore crown was left to isolate the zone of mining operations from the water-bearing body. With regard to the mode of occurrence of the ore body, the ground control assumes cemented paste backfill transported from the surface backfill preparation plant to the backfill holes by dump trucks. Full backfill ensures compete extraction of high-value ore reserves and sufficient safety of mining. The existing constraints (small thickness of the ore body in combination of its steep dip, low quality of the ore–barren rock interface, aquifer and shallow occurrence), as well as the high extraction standards govern selection of the stoping mining system with vertical slicing and horizontal blind entry cuts.

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