Services support ore processing at one of world’s largest copper mines
Zurich, Switzerland, May 29, 2007 – ABB, the leading power and automation technology group, has signed a four-year contract worth $26 million with leading copper producer Compañía Minera Doña Inés de Collahuasi SCM to manage maintenance operations at its ore processing plant located in the Tarapacá region of northern Chile.
Under the agreement, about 190 ABB employees will supply a wide range of maintenance services covering mechanical, electrical, hydraulic, pneumatic and lubrication systems plus reliability engineering, maintenance planning and scheduling.
Contract performance will be measured, and the terms include both fixed payments and a variable compensation plan linked to factors like equipment availability, safety and continuous improvement of production processes.
“This contract continues a string of recent successes in delivering our Full Service competence to leading process and manufacturing companies,” said Veli-Matti Reinikkala, head of ABB’s Process Automation division. “By taking responsibility for the factors that influence productivity, energy efficiency and safety, we help our customers sharpen the focus on their core business activities.”
The Collahuasi mine complex, located at 4,400 meters (14,000 ft.) above sea level in the Andes mountains, is one of the largest and most modern copper producing facilities in the world, with an annual output of some 440 thousand tons of finished copper. The mine is owned by a group of companies including Xstrata plc, Anglo American plc, and a group of Japanese companies headed by Mitsui & Co. Ltd .
ABB is a frequent supplier to the mining industry, providing maintenance and engineering services, automation products and systems, mill motors, drives, power distribution transformers and control equipment. The new Full Service agreement will commence in June 2007.
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 109,000 people.