Guangxi Daxin Tungsten Mine
Located in the south of Guangxi Qian-nan Autonomous Prefecture, Guangxi Daxin Tungsten Mine is the largest tungsten mine in the world. Its proven reserves are the largest in Guangxi, reaching 6.397 million tons, with the tungsten content of 0.105%, ranking it among the top grade tungsten mines all over the world.
The mine has a total area of 3,630 square kilometers, with a planned annual exploitation rate of 5 million tons. It is situated at an altitude of 1,150 meters and is surrounded by mountains, ravines, and hills. It has a total of 8 underground exploratory holes, 8 open pit mines and 2 beneficiation plants, as well as 2 smelters and 4 slag yards.
The ore of the mines is classified into two types: the sulfide ore, which is rich in tungsten content and the oxidized ore, which is low in tungsten content but high in phosphorus. In order to exploit the sulfide ore, digging of exploratory holes is employed. When the target layer of ore is reached, the ore is loaded into the underground hoppers. The ore is then transported to the beneficiation plant, where it undergoes four processes, namely ore crushing, ore grinding, ore flotation, and ore dewatering.
After the beneficiation process, the ore is sent to the smelters. At the smelter, ore concentrates are combined with fluxing material, heated, and melted at high temperature in an electric furnace. Molten slag and tungsten-rich matte are poured out, and then separated and processed to remove impurities. Finally, pure tungsten is obtained and poured into molds for sizing, cooling and packaging.
In addition, there are plans to increase the mines annual capacity from 5 million to 10 million tons by 2020. With its rich tungsten reserves, the mine is expected to continue providing high-quality tungsten ore for many years to come. It will not only provide a secure revenue flow for the region, but also contribute to the global tungsten market, increasing availability of tungsten around the world.
