Reliable flow control for first-class mining project in Bosnia
Apr 4, 2024
The need for strategic metals is continuously growing; they are vital for industrial development and energy transition. The Adriatic Metals’ Vares mine is Bosnia’s premier mineral processing facility, and also a forerunner in sustainability. This massive multi-year project has now reached the final stage as the Vares processing plant started operating in Q1, 2024. Successful cooperation between Valmet and our local channel partner IBEJ helped Vares stay on schedule, and the delivery of robust high quality valves, pumps and valve controllers ensure reliable operations at the plant.
Adriatic Metals is a UK-based mining company and the owner of Vares’ next-generation multimetal mine. The importance of Vares’ mineral processing plant is high because it is the first project for Adriatic Metals, and the biggest and technologically advanced mining investment in the history of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Not only is the project significant for Bosnia itself but it is also significant on a broader level in order to meet the demand of important raw materials for global customers.
CHAPTER ONE Land rich of minerals – answering the growing need for strategic metals
The Vares processing plant produces silver-lead & zinc concentrates that are used globally in various applications, from mobile phones and electric vehicles to many other electronics and energy transition, to name but a few.
Vares, located 45 km north of Sarajevo, is historically known as a mining region. The area is very rich with different types of minerals, and also the richness of the minerals is high. It was discovered already during Roman times, and there have been mines since the Osman period. Due to the need for critical minerals and metals, the management of Adriatic Metals established the idea to start mining. After conducting geological exploration and feasibility studies in recent years, the management came to the conclusion that mining would be very profitable in Vares.
CHAPTER TWO Local community wins
“The impact of starting this new mine will have huge benefits not only for the Vares area but for our country Bosnia-Herzegovina. It will also bring many new jobs to the area,” says Saša Šišić, Process control engineer at Vares processing plant. Now, the town of Vares is experiencing the arrival of new families and also returning former inhabitants. ”
“For me, being part of this project is significant because my grandparents are from Bosnia. So, growing up in New Zealand and Australia, and then bringing back my knowledge with familiar products and delivering projects is great,” says Jovan Opačić, Commissioning manager at Vares processing plant.
CHAPTER THREE From discovery to production in seven years
The initial project and exploration stage started already in 2017. In 2022, all permits were received, and the construction of the plant begun. Today, in 2024, the plant is up and running. “The new Vares plant is laying on the ex steel mine which was closed in the early ’90s. This is a kind of “Phoenix rising” moment, as we’re now starting here with the new mine, by installing new technology and equipment to run the ancient minerals,” explains Saša Sišić.
A demanding, fast-paced project requires reliable and dedicated partners. “After the decision to start building the mine, we were searching for reliable partners to execute all the jobs. I B E Junuzović d.o.o. (IBEJ) was known as a very reliable partner in Bosnia and Herzegovina, so we reached out to them to establish the cooperation. They are also the certified flow control partner for Valmet in Bosnia and Herzegovina,” continues Saša.
“There are many challenges when handling a project of this size: putting together so many aspects, so many nationalities, so many standards, so many products. Therefore, it’s important to have support from our business partners and suppliers with delivering what’s been committed, and to provide training for ongoing maintenance and operations, which will lead the project into the future,” says Jovan Opačić, Commissioning manager at Vares processing plant.
Jovan Opačić
“IBEJ gave us a complete service during our journey, from the moment of installation to the commissioning, as well as support during the start-up phase. Their support regarding what was in their scope has been extraordinary,” remarks Saša Sišić. “IBEJ helped us a lot with the subject matters on the equipment that we acquire, and also training the personnel that will operate the plant. They also perform maintenance routine tasks, and bring the installation to a good quality and into operation,” adds Jovan.
CHAPTER FOUR 100 tons of ore per hour – with sustainability in mind
Tha Vares plant has the capacity to produce 100 tons of ore per hour, which comes from the Rupice mine. After primary crushing, the ore will go to fine crushing to grinding mills. After that, the slurry, which is already mixed with water, will move to the flotation area, where the separation between the actual product and tailings will happen. The rich slurry concentrate is then transferred to the filtration area, where all the extra water will be removed. The final products, the lead concentrate and zinc concentrate, are transported by sea for further processing in Europe.
Vares is the most advanced plant of its kind in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as in southeast Europe. All the possible environmental impacts of the mine were taken into consideration already during the planning phase, and the plant uses recirculation of water. “We’ve applied completely new technology here, and we have focused on sustainability. We’ve made the water sources self-sufficient, and we collect all the water which is coming from the process which goes to our main tailings pool. After that, the water is then reused as technical water further down in the process. We are thus able to use water very effectively,” explains Saša.
CHAPTER FIVE High quality flow control ensures process reliability
Mineral processing involves very harsh conditions, and unplanned downtime can lead to great losses in production and increased costs. The significance of valves and pumps in the reliability of a mine’s operation is very important. They control the flow and keep the processing plant’s process stable, helping to secure that the plant operates efficiently. The valves and their sizing must meet the process requirements and they must be operationally reliable; otherwise, the desired product quality and quantity cannot be reached. This is why Valmet valves and pumps were chosen for Adriatic Metals’ new plant in Vares.
“IBEJ delivered us Neles™ and Flowrox™ valves, which are basically installed all over the Vares processing plant – on all seven sub factories. Also, Flowrox pumps are installed in the most demanding applications. The pumps are transferring the slurry through the process so that it can be processed productively further down to the final product,” explains Šišić.
CHAPTER SIX Valves, pumps and valve automation for flotation and filtration
In minerals processing, valves and pumps are required to control the flow and to ensure process performance and reliability. Adriatic metals relied on Valmet’s and IBEJ’s expertise to select the best solutions for their needs. “The scope of our flow control solution delivery included both on-off and control valves: Flowrox knife gate valves, Neles L6 series butterfly valves, Neles M1 series ball valves, Neles GU&GB globe valves, Flowrox PVE pinch valves, Neles actuators, and Neles ND9000 smart positioners. As well as these, several Flowrox LPP-T transfer pumps are installed in filtration and flotation areas. Our service included the delivery and commissioning of the flow control products,” describes Vedad Kadrić, Sales engineer and technical support at IBEJ. “In addition, we have provided our recommendations for optimizing valve configuration and sizing, based on best engineering practice. Furthermore, we also provided additional support through valve commissioning.”
“I’ve come across Neles products in the number of different projects I’ve been part of. The quality of the products and their ability to withstand the industrial requirements of the installation has always been top notch,” says Jovan.
“Our company and Valmet know each other from before. I’ve worked with their valve products in my previous jobs; they are well presented in the market. Neles and Flowrox valves are applied in very harsh conditions, for example, in the chemical industry as well as in the mining industry. Valmet’s flow control products have shown sustainability and reliability in these conditions,” confirms Saša Sišić.
Saša Šišić
“From what we have seen so far, we can highly recommend Valmet and all the Valmet flow control equipment to be used in very demanding conditions. The flow control products have proven themselves to be very reliable equipment. My recommendation is that they can be used in mines all over the world,” he concludes.
CHAPTER SEVEN A close and supportive partnership brings results
IBEJ and Valmet experts worked together to put the Valmet flow control solutions into production.
“We were in daily contact with Valmet’s product and application specialists. By open, honest and supportive collaboration we can achieve the best results for the customer,” says Kadrić.
“The policy of our company is that the company is made of people. We see this type of approach also with Valmet as one big family which is delivering what is asked for, even with deadlines, which are sometimes very short. We see them as a reliable partner both for present and future jobs,” says Saša.
“The cooperation between IBEJ and Valmet has been great. We don’t feel like they worked as two different companies, they were present as one. They always look to deliver what is promised and to meet our schedules within tight project deadlines,” agrees Jovan.
“We’re glad to have a partner like IBEJ. They are very proactive, and are constantly present in the market. I’m very happy about their active and close collaboration,” says Aleksandar Henc, Channel Sales Manager, Valmet’s Flow Control business line.“Our customers and end users require local support, and we have been developing our channel partner community for many years. Our cooperation with IBEJ officially begun last year, but already now we’ve seen great progress and commitment on their side, also with this project.”
CHAPTER EIGHT An exciting year ahead
“It’s exciting to see everything come to a close after years of planning and hard work as we are now putting everything into operation,” concludes Jovan. By the end of 2024, the Vares processing plant is aiming to run a full capacity of 100 tons of ore per hour. The annual production rate for the Vares mine is estimated to be 800,000 tpa; 90,000 tpa of zinc concentrate and 65,000 tpa of silver/lead concentrate.
“We hope to be able to plan some extensions for the plant in near future. Our wish is to continue our cooperation with Valmet regarding maintenance and possible future plant upgrades,” says Sasha.
Discover more: adriaticmetals.com
Detailed list of flow control delivery
- On/Off valves: Flowrox SKW knife gate valves
- Typical application: Pump boxes (at suction or disharge of pumps at flotation, thickener underflow and tailing process)
- Control valves: Neles GU and GB series globe valves, Neles L6 series butterfly valves, Neles M1 ball valves, Flowrox PVE pinch valves, B1 and VDR series of pneumatic actuators, and Neles ND9000 valve controllers.
- Typical application: L6 - process water flow control applications – process water supply/discharge (for ball mill); M1 - level control valves (water level in tanks); GU&GB - flow control of process water for concentrate flocculant mixer; PVE – for lime milk. Process: flotation, filtration, thickener underflow and tailings.
- Flowrox LPP-T hose pumps
- Typical application/process: flotation cells, thickener underflow, tailings
Discover more customer success stories and our flow control solutions for mining
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