Influence of the ore block model estimation on the determination of the mining cutoff grade policy for sustainable mine production

Abstract

Strategic mine planning includes different cut-off grade policy depending on economic parameters of mining projects and grade-tonnage distribution of the deposit. Minimizing incorrect classification of ore and waste during grade-tonnage distribution is of critical importance for a mining operation. This article reviews the influence of the ore grade-tonnage distribution over the cut-off grade policy in a given mining operation. In this study, firstly, the interpolation parameters used to characterize the grade-tonnage distribution in the orebody are given. The resulting distribution of ore and waste is used to analyze uncertainty, risk impact, and to justify mine-planning decisions, according to the interpolation technique used and the number of geological settings and sampling scenarios being considered. Then, the working scheme of the cut-off grade policy and economic parameters are compared according to the resulting estimation from the inverse distance and the nearest neighbor methods.