By the looks of it, the mine is now starting to take shape, lots...

By the looks of it, the mine is now starting to take shape, lots of work at mine site, also the article below, shows that Meridian Drilling, is now drilling and blasting at mine site.  the interesting thing that I got from the article is this, " The mine is expected to have a minimum 10-year lifespan, with 25 years being a possibility"

27 Aug 2014

Drilling & Blasting  



Meridian Drilling has taken on its second active UK project after starting work at the Wolf Minerals tungsten and tin mine near Hemerdon in Devon. The contract, at the Drakelands mine project, will see Meridian drilling 1,200m comprising of six 200m holes, to conduct a geotechnical assessment of the pit wall stability. Meridian said it is hoped that its assessment will allow for a steeper pit wall design and, in turn, deeper mining.

Jeremy Moore, MD of Meridian Drilling, said: “As a company our most significant projects have been overseas, but our headquarters have remained in the UK. It’s a great project for us to work on, not just because it’s in our home country, but because of its global significance.”

Once operational, the project is expected to supply 3% of global tungsten. The mine is expected to have a minimum 10-year lifespan, with 25 years being a possibility.

Meridian is set to carry out oriented core testing using tipple tube drilling and the Reflex ACT2 core orientation system. The team will also conduct packer testing using wireline single and double packers to assess the permeability of the rock mass and install groundwater monitoring into the holes.

This is the second active UK project for Meridian Drilling. The Bath-headquartered company is also working with Treliver Minerals on a project near St Columb, Cornwall to explore for tin.

http://www.miningmagazine.com/panorama/meridian-starts-work-at-drakelands