This Rio Tinto-Fer et Titane expansion raised the UGS plant production capacity to more than 375,000 tonnes per year
(tpy), an increase of 15%.
This project is the continuation of a Rio Tinto-Fer et Titane investment program of several hundred million dollars,
designed to reduce costs and improve quality. This is the third expansion of the UGS prototype plant since it went on
stream in 1998. The extensive support given by Rio Tinto-Fer et Titane operating, maintenance and metallurgy personnel
was a major factor in helping to maximize return on investment and limit commissioning delays.
The project involved adding another production line to the existing ALP (acid leaching plant) and SPP (slag preparation
plant) plus debottlenecking work in all remaining plant areas. The project budget was divided almost equally between the
two sectors. For each line, Hatch designed all the main production equipment in Mississauga, Ontario. The preliminary
design studies (preliminary and basic engineering) and the detailed engineering were done at Hatch’s offices in Montréal
and Sorel-Tracy. The structural engineering and the detailing of the steel for the SPP building were assigned to the team at
Hatch’s office in Woodmead, South Africa.
Hatch was wholly responsible for the engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM), the design of the
process equipment (reactor, dryer, classifier), the programming of the controls, and the commissioning for the expansion
of the ALP and SPP sectors of Rio Tinto-Fer et Titane’s UGS plant in Sorel-Tracy, Quebec.
In parallel with basic engineering, an array of detailed design and procurement activities were initiated because of the tight
time frame. These activities were assigned to the Hatch Fluidization Technology Group (FTG). The FTG, located in
Mississauga, worked in parallel with the project team in Montréal, while being fully integrated in the overall execution of
the project. As a result, it was possible to begin fabrication of the process vessels during the basic engineering phase.
The solutions chosen, that is, the addition of two new production lines in two sectors, raised a number of design and
construction challenges. More than 400 piping, mechanical and electrical tie-ins were required for the project. In the
process buildings, a dozen or so pieces of major equipment were installed using cranes capable of lifting over 400 metric
tonnes. In the ALP sector, upwards of 3,000 m of piping were required, along with 154 pipe hangers specially designed to
protect the piping systems against thermal stresses.
The integrated Hatch–Rio Tinto-Fer et Titane team not only achieved all objectives, but the project was delivered three
months ahead of the project schedule, $15 million under budget, and with no lost-time incidents in 525,000 hours
worked.
The project took 22 months to complete from the beginning of basic engineering, from December 2004 to November
2006, which is approximately eight to 10 months faster than a typical fast-tracked project of the same scope.
A number of procurement packages had to be awarded very early in the project timetable. These packages were for long
lead-time equipment and for site preparation and foundation work. The prices obtained in this phase helped increase the
accuracy of the estimate for approval, as firm prices had been established.
More than 8,000 pieces of equipment were received and distributed to the contractors by the project team. For example,
each pipe spool was designed, identified, purchased and received by the team, and then distributed to the construction
contractors.
The ALP was on stream after two days and SPP after one week all while maintaining full capacity output at all times.
- Project Management Institute, International – Project of the Year Award, 2008
- Project Management Institute, Montréal – Project of the Year Award, 2008
- Hatch Global Awards – Roy Curtis Project Excellence Award, 2007
“ On my behalf and that of Rio Tinto-Fer et Titane, I wish to express my great satisfaction regarding the third project to
increase the production capacity of the UGS plant.
Completed in December 2006, the UGS expansion to 375 000 tons per year was a success in every respect. The
integrated Hatch-Rio Tinto-Fer et Titane team not only met all of its objectives, but the project was delivered three
months ahead of schedule with savings of $15 million dollars, and this, without any compensable accidents.
An increased production will enable the Rio Tinto-Fer et Titane UGS plant to consolidate its position on the growing
market for chloride slag, a market on which UGS is very much in demand.
Hatch was fully responsible for the engineering, procurement, construction management and project management, and it
brilliantly carried out its mandate.
According to many, the UGS expansion to 375 000 tons per year is the best project carried out by Hatch-Rio Tinto-Fer et
Titane over the last 25 years…”
— Gilles Grégoire, Project Manager, Rio Tinto-Fer et Titane inc.
Rio Tinto-Fer et Titane and Hatch’s objective is to deliver projects that exceed expectations for the environment, health
and safety. The project management team adopted measures that made safety a top priority for contractors and workers, in
both engineering and construction. And these efforts produced results: not one lost-time accident occurred in
525,000 hours worked in a plant operating at full capacity.
