Pit slope manual, supplement 5-3: financial computer programs
Young-shil Kim, William Cleamon Cassun, Tony Hall · 1977
The designer of an open pit attempts to minimize both the cost of waste excavation and the costs arising from instability associated with relatively steep slopes. The objective is to achieve an optimum geometry. The computer programs described in this supplement assist in reaching this goal. The economic analysis is divided into two stages: one assesses economic benefits and costs associated with various slope angles, the second determines overall economic outcome. Performing the first is mandatory for every design. The concepts incorporated in wall design are: (a) reliability of slopes, (b) integration of the reliabilities into a risk analysis, and (c) quantifying benefits and costs resulting from slope changes. An example of the economic analysis of a pit wall based on a case study performed for an operating porphyry copper mine is provided. Appendices A and B contain program users' guides for both benefit-cost analyses and economic risk analyses.