Open-Pit Mining

What it covers

• Bench development and production drilling
• Overburden and waste removal
• Blasting sequenced to the plant's throughput

On a surface mine the drill-and-blast programme sets the pace for everything after it — loading, hauling and processing. If the muckpile is the wrong shape or size, the whole downstream chain slows down.

Why sequencing matters

We plan blasts around the production schedule so the plant keeps feeding and the loading fleet is never waiting on broken ground. Bench heights, pattern and blast volumes are chosen for a steady, predictable supply rather than occasional large shots. See drilling and blasting in quarries for how this works in practice.

Fragmentation for productivity

The blast is designed for the fragmentation the crusher and loaders need — not just to break rock, but to break it to the right size. Good fragmentation of the muckpile means faster digging, less secondary breakage and lower wear on equipment.

Bench and slope control

Wall-control blasting at the pit limit keeps the final slopes stable and safe, protecting the bench design and the long-term geometry of the pit.

Surface or underground?

As a deposit deepens, the economics can shift toward underground mining. We work both; the comparison in open-pit vs underground explains the trade-offs.