Optimizing Long-Term Production Plans in Underground and Open-Pit Copper Mines

Epstein, Rafael; Goić, Marcel; Weintraub, Andrés; Catalán, Jaime; Santibáòez, Pablo; Urrutia, Rodolfo; Cancino, Raúl; Gaete, Sergio; Aguayo, Augusto; Caro, Felipe

doi:10.1287/opre.1110.1003

Cited by 70 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…In long-term settings, geometric block models (containing on the order of a million blocks) describe the nature of each orebody to be mined, while extraction sequences are devised to maximise the net present value (NPV) of a venture (Fricke 2006, Osanloo et al 2008, Gleixner 2008, Newman et al 2010, Epstein et al 2012). The grade blocks scheduled for extraction in the short term do not conform to a regular gridded structure.…”

Section: Background and Related Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Decomposition-Based Heuristic for Collaborative Scheduling in a Network of Open-Pit Mines

Blom

Burt

Pearce

et al. 2014

INFORMS Journal on Computing

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W e consider the short-term production scheduling problem for a network of multiple open-pit mines and ports. Ore produced at each mine is transported by rail to a set of ports and blended into signature products for shipping. Consistency in the grade and quality of production over time is critical for customer satisfaction, whereas the maximal production of blended products is required to maximise profit. In practice, short-term schedules are formed independently at each mine, tasked with achieving the grade and quality targets outlined in a medium-term plan. However, because of uncertainty in the data available to a medium-term planner and the dynamics of the mining environment, such targets may not be feasible in the short term. We present a decomposition-based heuristic for this short-term scheduling problem in which the grade and quality goals assigned to each mine are collaboratively adapted-ensuring the satisfaction of blending constraints at each port and exploiting opportunities to maximise production in the network that would otherwise be missed.

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Section: Background and Related Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Decomposition-Based Heuristic for Collaborative Scheduling in a Network of Open-Pit Mines

Blom

Burt

Pearce

et al. 2014

INFORMS Journal on Computing

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“…000-000, c ⃝ 0000 INFORMS 7 problem we tackle in this paper. Epstein et al (2012) present an approach to integrate long-term production scheduling across multiple copper mines (both open-pit and underground) that share downstream processing plants. Each mine produces one or more commercial products, each with defined characteristics (copper grade and contaminant levels).…”

Section: Related Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Decomposition-Based Algorithm for the Scheduling of Open-Pit Networks Over Multiple Time Periods

2016

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We consider the multiple time period short-term production scheduling problem for a network of multiple open-pit mines and ports. Ore produced at each mine, in each period, is transported by rail to a set of ports and blended into products for shipping. Each port forms these blends to a specification, as stipulated in contracts with downstream customers. This problem belongs to a class of multiple producer/consumer scheduling problems in which producers are able to generate a range of products, a combination of which are required by consumers to meet specified demands. In practice, short-term schedules are formed independently at each mine, tasked with achieving a grade and quality target outlined in a medium-term plan. Due to uncertainty in the data available to a medium-term planner, and the dynamics of the mining environment, such targets may not be feasible in the short-term. We present, in this paper, an algorithm in which the grade and quality targets assigned to each mine are iteratively adapted, ensuring the satisfaction of blending constraints at each port, while generating schedules for each mine that maximise resource utilisation. : 2 Management Science 00(0), pp. 000-000, c ⃝ 0000 INFORMS mine. Moreover, we describe a general class of multiple producer/consumer problems to which our solving approach can be applied, instances of which appear in a wide range of domains.The MTP-MMPP is significantly more complex than the single period MMPP solved by Blom et al. (2014). This is primarily due to the combinatorial complexity of selecting regions of material to extract across multiple time periods, and several mines -where many extraction schedules are possible -to optimise an objective that is dependent on the activity at each mine, in each period.A solution to the short-term MTP-MMPP schedules the movement of material, from available sources of ore and waste at each mine, to appropriate destinations, and the transport of ore between each mine and port, in each time period of a scheduling horizon. In the short-term, for the case study we consider in this paper, this horizon is 13 weeks long, split into weekly periods. During each time period, at each mine, ore from a variety of sources is processed and blended in a stockyard, producing ore of a specific grade and quality. Ore is reclaimed from this stockyard onto trains, railed to a port, and blended with ore from other mines to form desired products. An optimal solution to the MTP-MMPP requires coordination across mines. The grade and quality of production at each mine, in each period, must support the formation of correctly blended products at each port.In practice, short-term planning in a network of open-pit mines proceeds with the independent construction of block extraction schedules at each mine, by individual short-term planners. In this process, the short-term planner at each mine is guided by a five year, or medium-term, plan. This plan sets monthly grade and quality targets on mine production -assumed to be both achievable given the estimated com...

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“…After this process, raw materials result in more than one component, according to a conversion factor

ρ_{b i}

defined as the amount of component b generated from processing one unit of raw material i . The use of such conversion factors is common in optimization models for supply chain planning involving natural resources, such as copper (Epstein et al., ) and oil (Kong, ; Zimberg and Testuri, ).…”

Section: Problem Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Joint optimization of pricing and planning decisions in divergent supply chain

Guajardo

Kylinger

Rönnqvist

2013

Int Trans Operational Res

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In divergent supply chains, such as in the oil industry, processing raw materials results in an outflow of multiple products. Final products are stored at international depots, from where they are ready to be shipped to the markets. Even if one company controls the entire chain, when production and sales organizations are decoupled, a relevant problem is to determine the internal prices of products at depots for achieving coordination. We propose an optimization model involving pricing and production decisions, and several constraints commonly used in divergent chains. In our approach, the producer incorporates the sellers' behavior by expressing demand as a function of the internal price. As a result, our model serves as a coordination mechanism in trying to get an overall coordinated integrated solution in a decoupled reality. Numerical examples in single and multiple periods problems show the advantages of our approach over cost-based methods.

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Optimizing Long-Term Production Plans in Underground and Open-Pit Copper Mines

Cited by 70 publications

References 16 publications

A Decomposition-Based Heuristic for Collaborative Scheduling in a Network of Open-Pit Mines

A Decomposition-Based Heuristic for Collaborative Scheduling in a Network of Open-Pit Mines

A Decomposition-Based Algorithm for the Scheduling of Open-Pit Networks Over Multiple Time Periods

Joint optimization of pricing and planning decisions in divergent supply chain

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