ABB to help new iron ore plant to operate at the highest levels of energy efficiency

Electrification and automation solutions for Northland Resources mine in northern Sweden.

Baden, Switzerland, – ABB, the leading power and automation technology group, has won two orders for electrification and automation equipment to help Swedish iron ore producer Northland Resources operate its new concentrator plant at the highest levels of energy efficiency.  Both contracts were received in March 2012.

The newly established Kaunisvaara project is located approximately 100 km north of the Arctic Circle in Sweden, near the Finnish border. When in full production, it will produce five million tons of high grade iron ore per year in the concentrator plant, for use in iron and steelmaking.

ABB will supply a range of electrification and automation solutions for the concentrator plant and the excavation operations in the open pit mine that feeds it. The first order was awarded directly from Northland Resources and includes prefabricated containerized electrical rooms, plant wide fiber optic network infrastructure and associated civil works for the Tapuli iron ore deposit. The second order was placed by Metso and comprises the complete electrical and control package for the concentrator plant.

ABB’s electrification and automation solutions will allow Northland Resources to achieve optimal operational conditions to reach the highest production at the lowest energy costs. The scope of supply includes nine containerized electrical rooms with embedded medium- and low-voltage switchgear, variable-speed drives and motor control centers, integrated with a plant-wide process automation system using ABB?s Extended Automation System 800xA. ABB?s delivery also includes fiber optic network equipment cabling, cable trenching, installation material, engineering, commissioning, installation supervision and project management services.

ABB’s vast minerals industry experience, project resources and comprehensive power and automation technologies will help this new plant operate at its most productive and efficient from the very first day or start-up,? said Veli-Matti Reinikkala, head of ABB’s Process Automation division.

Production start-up is scheduled for November 2012. The extremely tight schedule makes this project unique; ABB?s ability to provide on-time delivery, as well as its strong position in the Scandinavian market, helped to win this project.

These contracts follow a previous order in 2011 for one dual pinion (2x 5800 kW) low-speed mill drive system, consisting of converter transformers, a frequency converter ACS6000 and synchronous motors. The sophisticated dual pinion drive solution, with the inherent variable-speed feature, provides increased availability of the complete grinding process and raises its efficiency.

ABB (www.abb.com) is a leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve their performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in around 100 countries and employs about 145,000 people.