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Copyright 2008 Gemcom Software International Inc. (Gemcom).

This software and documentation is proprietary to Gemcom and, except where expressly provided otherwise, does not form part of any contract. Changes may be made in products or services at any time without notice. Gemcom publishes this documentation for the sole use of Gemcom licensees. Without written permission you may not sell, reproduce, store in a retrieval system, or transmit any part of the documentation. For such permission, or to obtain extra copies please contact your local Gemcom office or visit www.gemcomsoftware.com. While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this manual, we assume no responsibility for errors or omissions. Neither is any liability assumed for damage resulting from the use of the information contained herein. Gemcom Software International Inc. Gemcom, the Gemcom logo, combinations thereof, and Whittle, Surpac, GEMS, Minex, Gemcom InSite and PCBC are trademarks of Gemcom Software International Inc. or its wholly-owned subsidiaries. Contributors Staff of Gemcom Software, North America with additions by James Willoughby Product Gemcom Whittle

Table of Contents
Getting Started ................................................................................................................................. 4 Running a Whittle Project and Examining Nodes ................................................................................ 5 Basic Slope Set .................................................................................................................................. 7 Basic Data for Pit Shell Generation node ............................................................................................ 8 Operational Scenario node ...............................................................................................................11 Pit by Pit Graph node .......................................................................................................................13 Schedule Graph nodes ......................................................................................................................14 Bench Schedule node .......................................................................................................................15 Conclusion .......................................................................................................................................17

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Getting Started
Welcome to Gemcom Whittle! When you are ready to experience the full strength of Whittle, we recommend our training program to achieve maximum results from this powerful tool. To get you started, this document provides a very basic tutorial, giving you an overview of Whittles capabilities. You will be able to run a full open-pit optimization on a sample set of data. You will have the opportunity to examine initial results, modify parameters of the project and to produce outputs. We are confident you will understand why Whittle is the world's most popular and effective pit optimization and analysis solution for open cut mines. 1. After Whittle is installed, open the sample project, Marvin1.fxp, when prompted. 2. Expand the project tree in the left panel by hitting the + button. Each level of the tree contributes input to the design of the pit. 3. For each level (or node) examine the Description tab on the right side of the screen. The Description tab explains the objectives of each node.

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Running a Whittle Project and Examining Nodes

Running a Whittle Project and Examining Nodes


Try doing a complete run of the project. 1. Select the Node > Run All command. The Node menu is at the top of your screen. Please note that this may take about 5 minutes to finish running. An icon appears beside each node to show whether Whittle has finished processing that node.
This icon... shows that the system... has completed processing up to this node. is currently processing this node.

2. After the run is complete, examine the contents of each node. a. Click the + button to expand nodes on the left side of the screen. b. On the right side you can find the results for each node by hitting the Output, Report, and Messages tabs. 3. Specifically examine the graph of the outputted net present value (NPV) values and ore/waste tonnages from multiple pit shells. a. To see this graph click on the Pit by Pit Graph node of on the left side of the screen, and, in the pane on the right, select the tab Graph. The Graph tab becomes available after you have 'run' the node. You have already done this by selecting the Run All command.

The displayed graph shows the tonnages of ore and waste (the coloured yellow and gray bars respectively) In addition, the NPV results for each pit are displayed in the form of lines (the NPV for the best case is shown in blue, the worst is the red line, while a specific case based on a defined pushback sequence is shown in green).

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Running a Whittle Project and Examining Nodes

b. Hit the Display graph detail button (the magnifying glass) to get a more detailed look at these results.

The tonnages and NPVs shown on the graph are each for a specific pit shell (each pit shell is identified by a unique revenue factor). NPV and tonnages are measured in the Y axis. The X axis shows the pit number. The results that you see on the graph are explained in more detail on the Description tab of the Pit by Pit Graph node. c. When finished examining the graph, click OK. 4. Click on the two most upper nodes in the project, Marvin Copper and Marvin block model. These two nodes describe the project and the block model in use. You should not change these nodes when working in this tutorial.

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Basic Slope Set

Basic Slope Set


1. 2. 3. 4. Select the Basic Slope Set node. Click the Profiles tab. Click the Add Profile button. Enter in the following information for the new "Profile 1". a. Bearing 0; Slope 46. b. Click Add to add another bearing and slope: Bearing 90, Slope 42. c. Add two more rows: Bearing 180, Slope 41; and Bearing 270, Slope 38. d. In the Slope Regions section, change the slope profile from Default to Profile1.

5. Click Accept in the lower part of the screen. Notice that the ticks underneath Basic Slope Set disappear. 6. With Basic Slope Set selected, click the Run to the selected node from the trunk button.

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Basic Data for Pit Shell Generation node

Basic Data for Pit Shell Generation node


The initial pit design constraints of mining, processing and selling costs are set on the Basic data for pit shell generation node. Revenue factors, which are used to define pit shells, are also entered in at this level. The next task is to change some of the inputs to get different pit shells. 1. Select the Basic data for pit shell generation node. 2. The mining cost is defined as the cost of mining one tonne of material. Change the mining cost: a. Click the Mining tab. b. Change the Reference Mining Cost from 0.9 to 1.00. Note that at this stage you could also change the mining recovery, dilution factor and you could input varying cost adjustment factors (CAF) depending on the rock type. c. Click Accept. d. When you see the prompt to copy the changes to child scenario nodes, click Yes. 3. The cost of processing specific rocks or elements (such as Au) is entered on the Processing tab. The processing recovery is also specified here. Try adding an elemental cost to the MILL PM process for both gold and copper. a. Under MILL PM, change the processing cost of Au from 0 to 0.05 b. Change the cost of Cu from 0 to 0.2. c. Still under Mill PM, change the processing recovery of Cu from 0.88 to 0.8. d. Click Accept.

4. Both the price and the selling cost of your elements are specified on the Selling tab. Try changing the following; a. Change the Au price from 12.00 to 13.00. b. Change the Cu price from 0.907 to 1.10 c. Click Accept.

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Basic Data for Pit Shell Generation node

5. The Optimization tab is used to produce nested pit shells. Pit shells are created for each revenue factor that you have entered in the Output area. Try altering the revenue factors to get fewer nested pit shells (in the original run, 54 pits would have been produced). a. To change the revenue factors, highlight the first set of fixed factors (0.5 to 0.9 using 41 fixed factors). Click Edit. b. In the popup menu, change the step size from 0.01 to 0.015, and click OK. (Now a pit will be produced for 27 revenue factors instead of 41). c. Click Accept. 6. Try running all of the changes youve made by right-clicking on the Basic data for pit shell generation node on the left panel and select Run To. 7. When the run is complete, examine the Output tab. The tonnages and the ore/waste distributions for each revenue factor (each pit) are displayed in the table.

8. To get an idea how these pits will look in 3D, highlight the Basic data for pit shell generation node, and click the Start Three-D viewer button.

a. In the Select data to display form that pops up, leave all of the options selected and click OK. b. When the model file is loaded, the three-d viewer will open up. To see the outlines of the different pits select the Show Pit option.

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Basic Data for Pit Shell Generation node

c. Click Invert to show the 3D pit with a white background, instead of a black background.

d. To look at all the various pits, use the up and down arrows under Show Pit. e. To change your viewing perspective, click on the pit, hold down the mouse button and drag. f. When you are finished viewing, click the Close button.

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Operational Scenario node

Operational Scenario node


The Operational Scenario node allows you to perform scheduling for the mining of an open pit. Any changes that you need to account for over the life of mine are indicated in this node. You also specify capital costs, and mining and processing limits, at this stage. 1. Select the Operational scenario node. 2. On the Mining tab, change the mining cost for different periods of production. a. Try doing this by clicking the Period variation button (the clock) on the right side of the Reference Mining Cost.

b. Click Add and enter a cost of $1.10 starting in year 7 (in this project, year 7 is equivalent to period 7). c. Click OK.

3. Using the Time Costs tab, you can alter the initial capital cost and the discount rate for the project. a. Change the Initial Capital Cost to $300,000,000. b. Change the discount rate of the project to 4%. c. Click Accept.

4. On the Limits tab you can change the mining and processing limits over the life of the mine. a. Change the Processing Method Limit for the Mill process to 25,000,000.

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Operational Scenario node

b. Click Accept

5. Use the Run To command to calculate the results from these changes.

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Pit by Pit Graph node

Pit by Pit Graph node


The Pit by Pit Graph node allows you to find economic factors, such as net present value (NPV) and internal rate of return (IRR), for each of the nested pit shells that were produced in the upper nodes. You can also specify the scheduling of mining the pit at this level (by introducing pushbacks). 1. Select the Pit by Pit Graph node. On the Schedule tab, you can enter a pushback schedule. In the existing profile the pushback schedule has been entered manually. These schedules can also be entered in automatically or semiautomatically. Advanced algorithms can also be applied in order to optimize for different areas of interest. 2. Try changing the current pushback sequence: a. In the Specified Case Pushback Definitions section, change the schedule to Auto and enter 6 as the Number of Pushbacks. Now Whittle will automatically generate six pushbacks at logical stages. b. Click Accept. c. Click the Run To button. d. After the run is complete (this may take several minutes) examine the Output, Graph and Summary tabs to find the results for best, worst and specified (for the defined pushback sequence) cases. The Summary tab outputs the NPV, the IRR, the life of mine (LOM) and other key indicators for each pit design.

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Schedule Graph nodes

Schedule Graph nodes


The 'Schedule Graphs' nodes (for example Push backs: 11 12 14 16 20 25 31) allow you to further investigate the designs of pits based on a specified pushback schedule. You can enter the final pit for your design and can choose to make graphs of various factors for analyses. 1. Select the Schedule tab. On the Schedule tab, you can choose whether to examine the best, worst, or a specified case for your pit design. You can also enter a pushback schedule and a final pit. 2. For this example, change the Specified Case Pushback Definition from Manual to Auto, and enter 6 as the Number of Pushbacks. 3. Click Accept. 4. Use the Run To command. 5. After the run is complete, examine the contents of the Output, Graph and Summary tabs. These tabs detail the cash flow and tonnages on a yearly basis for the mine, in addition to the overall NPV, IRR and life of the mine. 6. Try repeating these steps for a different pushback sequence.

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Bench Schedule node

Bench Schedule node


The last level of interest to be examined in this brief introduction is the Bench Schedule node. This node allows you to examine the results of your design on a bench-by-bench basis. The Definition tab is the only item that you can change. In this tab you can specify exactly what information you want to see in the output. 1. Select the Bench Schedule node and the Definition tab. Currently the output would show the total tonnage and the amount of waste mined on each bench. However it does not display how many tonnes of each rock type are mined. 2. To also output these tonnages, click Add. 3. In the popup menu select Material Mined; Rock; Tonnage of <rock-type> mined, and click Add to selection list.

4. In the popup choose to select all items, and then click OK.

5. Click OK again. 6. Next move the three rock types up in the Values to display in output list by highlighting them and clicking the Up button.

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Bench Schedule node

The three new values (Tonnage of MX mined, Tonnage of OX mined, and Tonnage of PM mined) should appear below Total tonnage mined as seen in the following image.

7. Accept the changes. 8. Use the Run To command to return the output for this node. 9. After the run is complete, examine the Output tab. The newly populated columns appear in the table.

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Conclusion

Conclusion
After completing this tutorial, you have performed a preliminary open-pit optimization. In the Marvin1.fxp sample project there are additional nodes that you have not yet run. These nodes represent additional scenarios for the block model. For each scenario, you can use different parameters. In addition you might even consider a reblocked block model. The additional nodes in this project involve more advanced Whittle modules, such as stockpiling options and pushback sequencing using the Milawa algorithm. To run the other nodes, click the Run all nodes button and examine the results. We hope that you found this basic introduction to Whittle informative. Gemcom invites you to understand why Whittle is the worlds most trusted strategic mine planning software used to determine and optimize the economics of open pit mining projects. To further inquire about the functionality of Whittle, for purchasing enquiries, or to register for an upcoming training program, please contact our sales and customer service team. You can find our most up-to-date contact details at http://www.gemcomsoftware.com/ in the 'Contact Us' section.

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