How the Kearl Oil Sands mine’s maintenance program saves millions

Since beginning operations in 2012, the Kearl Oil Sands (owned by affiliates of Exxon Mobil™) mining project in Alberta, Canada, has been running relatively efficiently, despite the extreme conditions and complex logistical challenges that the operation faces.

• Established in 2012 in Alberta, Canada
• Mine an area more than 196 square kilometers with a fleet of over 70 CAT 797F Haul trucks
• Has a mine feed rate of 10,000 tons/hour and can produce up to 4.7 million liters per day
• Daily weather ranges from -34°C to 32°C throughout the year

While operations have been running smoothly, the mine’s maintenance team wanted to find ways to cut back on costs, particularly for its high-touch hydraulic equipment.

The maintenance staff collaborated with the Mobil™ team to see how they could adjust their maintenance program to deliver on that goal. After conducting an Optimum Drain Interval Study, the team identified a solution built around a more advanced lubricant product that would help the mine safely extend oil drain intervals by six times the OEM-recommended limit.

For Kearl, the stakes of making a change are always high, but their confidence in the team and the potential pay-off was too big to pass up.

And, the team was glad it made the switch, as the results speak for themselves:

• Reduced annual oil consumption by 450K liters
• Reduced annual maintenance-related labor on mobile equipment by 145 hours
• Generated more than CAD $2.5 million in company-estimated annual savings*