Tailings rarely receive the same operational attention as production — yet they remain one of the most underestimated risk drivers in mining.
In a landscape of tightening regulations, rising stakeholder expectations and increasingly volatile weather, reactive tailings management is no longer sustainable. Small issues become complex, costly, and operationally disruptive when left unchecked.
At XR3, we see the same pattern across sites: tailings challenges often become visible only when they are already expensive to address.
When tailings management becomes reactive, mines lose control over production, cost and compliance – often without realising tailings are the root cause.
Common impacts include:
Even minor access constraints accumulate into millions in lost production annually.
Tailings management is production management — just at a distance.
Premium-rate mobilisation
Short-notice pump supply
Equipment strain
Decisions that treat symptoms, not causes
Unmanaged tailings increase closure costs:
Deposition zones requiring rework or reshaping
Saturated cells needing drying or relocation
Restricted access forcing hydraulic mining late in life
Increasing regulatory expectations for TSF closure
Every unresolved issue compounds planning and cost at closure.
Regulators expect clear, defensible evidence of control.
Data gaps, inconsistent deposition, and poor monitoring don’t stay hidden:
Audit findings
Dam inspections
Environmental reporting
Licence renewals
Compliance issues start with missing data — not major failures.
Even minor incidents in tailings storage facilities (TSFs) can trigger scrutiny, reputational risk, and ongoing operational pressure.
Reactive tailings management keeps sites in “recovery mode,” addressing symptoms rather than preventing issues.
Proactive tailings control integrates deposition planning, water management, and monitoring into daily operations. Mines that maintain strong tailings performance benefit from:
Consistent production in all weather conditions
Reduced emergency spend
Stronger compliance and audit readiness
Optimised deposition surfaces and stable slopes
Lower closure and rehabilitation liability
Safer, more accessible operational zones
Proactive management is not only safer — it is far more cost-effective.
Modern tailings management demands specialised equipment, skilled operators, and consistent execution. XR3 provides complete, integrated support across the full tailings lifecycle.
Our capabilities include:
Safely reclaiming or relocating tailings — including inaccessible or legacy deposits.
Restoring stability, recovering space, or preparing cells for future use.
Supporting both planned systems and rapid-response requirements.
Experienced operators and supervisors focused on safe, reliable execution.
Data, monitoring, deposition strategy and operational improvement.
From cell clean-outs to full-site reclamation.
With XR3, mining operations have a single partner capable of handling tailings reclamation, relocation, dewatering, planning and rehabilitation — end to end.
If your operation is seeing access issues, rising pond levels, inconsistent deposition or wet-season pressure, XR3 can help.
From early assessment to full lifecycle execution, we support mines in staying compliant, productive, and future-ready.