Geocells for Suriname mine haul roads

Presto Geosystems deploys the GEOWEB Cellular Confinement System geocells for Suriname gold mine haul roads.

Due to its location in a tropical climate near Paramaribo, Suriname, on the northeastern coast of South America, a remote gold mine sustains frequent heavy rains that result in soft clay soils becoming impassible. These conditions pose operational challenges and increase cycle times because Caterpillar 785 trucks (293 tons [265 tonnes]) must be able to travel through the soft soil areas to access the mine. The mining haul roads needed a soil-stabilization system to strengthen the underlying soils.

The project owners adopted a value engineering approach to optimize haul road design and minimize long-term costs associated with recurring maintenance and repair. They accomplished this by employing the Presto Geosystems GEOWEB Cellular Confinement System (geocells) to stabilize and confine road-base materials. The geocell system allowed for the beneficial use of locally available coarse river sand for the placement of base materials.

Project results

• No downtime
• No rutting observed
• Decreased rolling resistance and increased tire life
• Less vehicle maintenance, less fuel
• Better productivity and better operational costs
• Reduced carbon emissions
• Safer