ekati

Facts and Information about the Ekati Diamond Mine

• The Ekati Diamond Mine Country is found in Canada

• The Ekati Diamond Mine Location: Lac de Gras, Yellowknife, Northwest

Territories and is 200km south of the Arctic circle and 20 kilometers distance

from of the Diavik diamond mine

• The Ekati Diamond Mine diamond source: Kimberlite volcanic pipes

• Formation of Ekati volcanic pipe: Shallow lakes formed in inactive volcanic

craters

• Mining Method: Open pit mining

• Size of the Ekati Diamond Mine: 110 acres and reaches underground to 1,900

feet

• The Ekati Diamond Mine diamond quality: Many large diamonds have been recovered,

including a 182 carat stone

• Age of Diamonds: 45 to 62 million years old

• Age of the mine: The Ekati pipe was discovered by Prospector Chuck Fipke discovered

the Kimberlite pipes in 1991 and the Ekati mine began operations on October 14 1998

• By April 1999 the EKATI diamond mine had produced one million carats of diamonds

• Diamonds from the Ekati Mine are sold under the trade name Aurias and their

authenticity is verified through the "CanadaMark" service

• Color of diamonds found at the Ekati Diamond Mine: Colorless, and very rarely, yellow.

• The Ekati Diamond Mine is operated by: BHP Billiton Diamonds, Inc

• The Canadian Ekati diamond mine leads the world on environmental standards

Critical Mission

• Build a deep tunnel to reach the diamonds deep below the existing pit.

• Get a new pit “Fix Pit” an open pit mine rock must be removed to access the diamonds.

Challenges

Battling Killer Cold

Moving Mountains of Earth

Environmental Protection

Delivery of supplies to mines for continuous operation

Remain Cost effective

Requirements

Human Resources

Skilled Labour

System Operators

Geological Experts

Mine Dwellers

Extreme Machines

The Driller

The Demag

CAT

X-Ray Machines & Grease tables

Regular Supplies

Explosives

Machine Components and Repair Tools

Food and water supplies

Manpower supply

Timelines

• Discovered by Chuck Fipke and Stewart Blusson who

had been prospecting in the region for almost ten years.

• Having found kimberlite indicator minerals as early as

1985.

• EKATI officially began operations on October 14, 1998.

• Between 1998 and 2009, the mine has produced 45

million carats.

Equipment Used

• Blasthole drill• Cone crusher• Conveyor• Dozer• Grinding roller• Gyratory crusher• Hydraulic excavator• Hydraulic shovel• Loader• Rock truck• Roll crusher

Mining equipment includes

• four Driltech D90KS blast hole drills

• two Demag H655SO diesel-hydraulic shovels

• ten Caterpillar D10R bulldozers

• a Cat 994 loader

• a Cat 5120 hydraulic excavator

• four Cat 992 loaders

• 13 240t Cat haul trucks

• three 170t Cat 793 haul trucks

• 11 100t Cat 777D haul trucks carry waste and ore from the pits

Recovery Plant Instruments

• Fuller and Nordberg crushers

• KHD Humboldt Wedag grinding rolls

• Linatex screens and dense medium separators

• Eriez magnetic separators

• Bateman pneumatic conveying system

• Fynsort Technologies x-ray sorter

• Prime construction contractor

– Simons Mining Group

• Process plant design

– Signet Engineering

Featured Suppliers

• FLSmidth - Flotation, Agglomeration and Filtering

• FLSmidth - Engineered Mineral Processing Equipment

• Gekko - Gravity Separation and Mineral Processing Equipment

• Gemcom Software - Exploration, Mine Planning, Mine Scheduling,

Strategic Mine Planning, Pit Optimization and Mine Production

Software

• Mine Site Technologies - Mining Communication Solutions

• Voith Turbo - Start-Up Components

Man Power

• BHP Billiton employs approximately 800 regular employees and

an average of 700 contractors at the EKATI mine

• The company is committed to providing employment and

business opportunities to Northerners; hiring preference is

given to local residents and Aboriginals.

• In early 2008, BHP Billiton was awarded the John T. Ryan

National Safety Trophy as EKATI achieved the best safety

performance in the Select Mine Category for 2007.

Stakeholders

• BHP Billiton (80%),

Charles E. Fipke (10%),

Stewart Blusson (10%)

• Environment

– Environmental awareness is an integral part of staff training

• Water use

• waste management

• land use

• rehabilitation

Finances

• Operating performance at our EKATI Diamond Mine in Canada was strong, while the acquisition of Anglo Potash Limited enhances our diversification.

US$ millionRevenue 969

Underlying EBIT 189

Capital expenditure 123

Net operating assets 1,694

RISKS

• Equipment operating in the vicinity of loaded holes or explosives

remnants.

• Misfires and the destruction of old explosives

• Blasting in hot or reactive ground

• Open pits and facilities in the Koala Watershed and King-Cujo

Watershed

• Chloride increase in lakes due to the addition of saline groundwater

• Elevated concentrations in kimberlitic ore from Misery Pit

Quality

• Annual Production:

– Diamond, 4k carats in FY09

– Silver 4.2m oz in 2009

• For the past two years, Ekati has produced approximately 7

million carats of high-quality diamond deposits, equating to

3% of worldwide revenue from rough diamond sales.