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The history of the El Boleo Mine, located on the Baja Peninsula of Mexico, dates back to the late 1880s when a French company began mining high-grade copper ore from the desolate coastal area where the town of Santa Rosalia now sits. Various companies have worked the mine over the years, as prices for precious metals rose and fell, and more advanced extraction methods allowed for the mining of lower-grade minerals including manganese, zinc and cobalt. More recently, Baja Mining Corp., El Boleo’s current owners, began working with Rock-It Cargo’s industrial division to transport modern equipment to the site as they ready the mine for operation once again.
When the El Boleo Mine first opened, equipment was transported from Europe via ocean vessel around the Horn of South America and up the eastern coast of the Pacific into the Sea of Cortez. From there, mules carried provisions and gear over the rugged terrain, through blistering heat and occasional hurricanes to reach the mine site. Today, Rock-it is working directly with engineers and Baja Mining Corp. to manage the modern logistics for shipments from Germany to Houston via ocean and then overland from Houston to Baja Sur, Mexico by truck.
Rock-It began shipping for El Boleo in 2008. The most recent shipment of 23 units included a steam turbine weighing 60 metric tons and a generator weighing 85 metric tons, both manufactured by Siemens. The pieces were shipped from Bremen to Houston where a floating crane nicknamed “Big John” lifted them off the vessel and floated them to the wharf. From there, a specialized trailer transported the units to a warehouse for storage where they now wait until the mine is ready to take delivery. This exercise will repeat itself through Houston and the port of Ensenada until over 4,000 pieces—some weighing up to 250 metric tons—eventually make their way to Santa Rosalia over the single highway that runs through the Baja peninsula.
Houston's "Big John" floating crane works with a tug boat to unload steam turbine from vessel
Rock-It’s team faced a number of challenges with the Siemens shipment. The cargo was traveling in bond to Mexico, therefore requiring storage in a Free Trade Zone. Because of warranty issues, the storage facility had to be atmospherically controlled so that conditions did not exceed 50% humidity or drop below five degrees Celsius. The crane at the warehouse was unable to lift the large pieces, so Rock-It used a system of skates (rolling platforms) to move the pieces from the truck to the storage area. A special enclosure was custom built to meet the humidity and temperature requirements.
Transportation options have changed in a hundred years, but planning is still critical according to Rock-It’s Bill Feliss. “We start many months in advance doing preliminary survey work to determine which roads can handle the shipments. We look at what the ‘envelope’ is and consider options such as barges or building our own landings. We review all the costs and determine what is feasible. We built our reputation on how good we are in determining the route, budget, and best practical solutions available today,” he says. With 400 hundred shipments already completed, Feliss estimates that the project will continue for another 20 months. Advanced mining techniques could keep the mine in operation for several decades.
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