Case Study: Palabora Copper achieves efficient cave management and 60,000 tonnes annual output with Dassault Systemes (GEOVIA)

Palabora Copper - Customer Case Study

Palabora Copper, South Africa’s only producer of refined copper, moved from open pit to a block cave operation and needed better draw control, resource development and exploration management to sustain and grow output. To address these challenges they turned to Dassault Systemes’ GEOVIA applications—primarily GEMS SQL for geological modeling and PCBC (with the Cave Management System) for block cave planning and production control—along with GEOVIA Services for onsite configuration and training.

Dassault Systemes implemented GEMS SQL to bring resource modeling in‑house and tightly integrated it with PCBC and the CMS, enabling monthly planning, daily reconciliations and realistic sensitivity analyses. The solution reduced modeling errors, improved reserve estimation and long‑term mine planning, and automated shift-based draw orders—saving over 2,100 hours annually (about one man‑year)—while supporting a block cave that meets plan and produces roughly 60,000 tonnes of refined copper per year.

Palabora Copper

Sam Ngidi

Mine Study Manager