Northern Iron Ltd (NIL) is an Australian listed company that recently brought the historic Sydvaranger open pit Magnetite Mine (the Project) in Northern Norway successfully back into production._x000D_
NIL made the decision to operate the Project on an owner mining basis, due to limited large scale mining expertise amongst Norwegian mining contractors, a long mine life, a limited range in planned mining rate and to minimise costs._x000D_
As a new mine operator in a country where labour practices are strictly regulated, there was the desire to reduce the risk associated employing and managing skilled personnel. This was achieved by coupling the purchase of the required mining equipment from the original equipment manufacturer's (OEM) regional dealers with OEM supported Maintenance and Repair Contracts (MARC)._x000D_
This paper examines the process that was followed to implement an owner mining operation in a short time frame; approximately 12 months from the initial requests for quotation to actual delivery of mining equipment to site, and some of the challenges faced._x000D_
By following a formal and well-tested process, not only was the implementation achieved in the set time frame, but significant value was added through the cost savings achieved in the equipment purchase price and MARC rates that were negotiated through this process._x000D_
FORMAL CITATION:Cruickshanks, S, 2010. Sydvaranger Magnetite Mine, Norway - owner mining tenders and implementation, in Proceedings Seventh Large Open Pit Conference 2010, pp 39-44 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).