Water Management Portfolio Project

Crescent Valley, NV Barrick Cortez Inc.

Akana provided engineering services for the completion of scoping, prefeasibility and feasibility studies for the Barrick Cortez Water Management Portfolio Project. This work is required to ensure that Barrick can meet Nevada Profile 1 standard for the disposal of all water, including dewatering non-contact water, for the Cortez Mine site.    

In 2014 and 2015, Akana assisted in a Scoping Study and Pre-Feasibility Study for an arsenic removal water treatment facility, receiving dewatering water.   The Prefeasibility Study results determined that a site water treatment facility would best suit Cortez.  Now, Akana is providing engineering support to evaluate, design, and verify equipment selection for pumping and transmission of dewatering water to an existing irrigation system and to rapid infiltration basins for final disposal.  

Akana had developed bid ready plans and specifications for large pump stations and pipelines. This has included two pump stations transmitting 12,800 gpm and 4,300 gpm continuous flows. Pipelines are 6.5 mi of fusion welded HDPE (up to 42” dia. – DR 17) and 6.7 mi of welded steel pipe (AWWA C200 polyurethane coated-0.225” wall thickness and up to 310’ of static head). Criteria included addition of expansion components for both types of pipelines, modeling of pressure situations, design of pressure controls, and designing installations that involve high head conditions (650’ elevation difference in the steel transmission line). Akana is also developing a reservoir storage and delivery option, including siting a new earthen dam and designing another pump station and HDPE delivery pipeline for transmission of 13,000 gpm continuous flow. 

Under an extremely aggressive schedule, Akana consistently met the project schedule for delivery of design documents.