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KAZ Minerals is constantly seeking to improve the energy efficiency of its facilities.
KAZ Minerals seeks to reduce the impact of its activities on the environment and to raise environmental awareness amongst its employees, contractors and suppliers. The Group has an environmental policy which sets out its commitment to environmental protection, reduction of emissions and waste and efficient consumption of resources such as energy and water. The policy can be downloaded from the Group’s website, www.kazminerals.com.
The Group conducts detailed environmental due diligence prior to the development of new mining projects and continually monitors the impact of its activities on the environment, publishing key performance indicators annually.
The Health, Safety and Sustainability (‘HSS’) Committee is a Board Committee which is responsible for oversight of the Group’s environmental policies, reporting, standards and compliance. Senior management are responsible for the Group’s overall environmental performance. For more details on the HSS Committee, please see the HSS Committee section in the Governance framework on page 104 of the 2020 Annual Report.
The calculation of electricity consumption at Aktogay in 2019 has been updated to reflect 2020 methodology, resulting in changes to the reported prior year Aktogay energy use, electricity consumption and related CO2 emissions and intensity data.
The Group’s energy efficiency, measured as energy use per tonne of ore processed, has remained at historically low levels in 2020. The main drivers of the energy efficiency of the new assets are the use of large scale processing facilities and the modern grinding and flotation technology employed in the concentrators. The low strip ratios of the Aktogay and Bozshakol deposits, where limited quantities of waste rock are required to be removed per tonne of copper ore extracted, also increases efficiency.
| Total | 11.95 | 11.97 |
| Energy intensity1 | 0.20 | 0.20 |
| 2020 | 2019 | |
|---|---|---|
| Aktogay | 4.35 | 4.24 |
| Bozshakol | 4.46 | 4.31 |
| East Region | 2.87 | 3.10 |
| Bozymchak | 0.27 | 0.32 |
1 TJ/kt sulphide ore processed.
| Total | 11.95 | 11.97 |
| Energy intensity1 | 0.20 | 0.20 |
| 2020 | 2019 | |
|---|---|---|
| Electricity | 8.87 | 8.63 |
| Diesel | 2.01 | 2.08 |
| Heat | 1.00 | 1.20 |
| Coal | 0.02 | 0.00 |
| Petrol | 0.05 | 0.06 |
1 TJ/kt sulphide ore processed.
Total energy use of 11.95 PJ was in line with energy consumption in the prior year (2019: 11.97 PJ). In 2020, the impact of increased ore throughput at Bozshakol was offset by the temporary closure of the Bozymchak mine for most of the fourth quarter and lower heat energy consumption in the East Region, due to a relatively warmer winter period. The closure of the Belousovsky concentrator facility in 2019, with ore from the Irtyshsky mine now processed at the Nikolayevsky concentrator, also improved operational efficiency.
The energy intensity of the Group’s activities, measured as the quantity of energy used per unit of ore processed, was in line with the prior year, at 0.20 TJ per kt of sulphide ore processed.
| Total | 8.87 | 8.63 |
| Electricity intensity1 | 0.15 | 0.15 |
| 2020 | 2019 | |
|---|---|---|
| Aktogay | 3.63 | 3.49 |
| Bozshakol | 3.57 | 3.44 |
| East Region | 1.54 | 1.54 |
| Bozymchak | 0.13 | 0.16 |
1 TJ/kt sulphide ore processed.
The Group’s electricity consumption increased by 3% to 8.87 PJ (2019: 8.63 PJ) due to higher sulphide ore processing volumes in 2020 and the continuous operation of the Bozshakol clay plant, which was closed during upgrade works in early 2019. Electricity consumption at Bozymchak decreased by 19% to 0.13 PJ (2019: 0.16 PJ) due to the closure of the site for most of the fourth quarter of 2020, following a period of political instability in Kyrgyzstan.
| Total | 2.01 | 2.08 |
| Diesel intensity1 | 0.026 | 0.022 |
| 2020 | 2019 | |
|---|---|---|
| Aktogay | 0.73 | 0.76 |
| Bozshakol | 0.88 | 0.87 |
| East Region | 0.28 | 0.30 |
| Bozymchak | 0.12 | 0.15 |
1 TJ/kt ore mined.
Diesel consumption decreased by 3% to 2.01 PJ (2019: 2.08 PJ). Diesel consumption per asset was broadly in line with the previous year, except at Bozymchak due to the temporary closure of the mine in the fourth quarter. Diesel intensity increased by 18% to 0.026 TJ/kt due to lower total ore mined and an increase in diesel consumed through moving higher volumes of non-ore material in 2020.
The Group constantly seeks to improve the efficiency of its haul truck fleet, the main source of diesel consumption. Fleet movements at Aktogay and Bozshakol are monitored in real time, using an automated remote dispatch system, to optimise truck dispatching to loading units, reducing the number of haul trucks required and parking any excess vehicle capacity to minimise diesel consumption. Aktogay and Bozshakol benefit from close proximity to pre-existing rail infrastructure that is used to transport copper concentrate to customers, eliminating the need to transport concentrate using diesel powered trucks.