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Tailings dams

Large-scale mining generates substantial volumes of residual material. Tailings Storage Facilities (TSFs) are engineered geotechnical structures that store these by-products from mineral processing. They are essential to most mining operations, but failures can have severe environmental, social, and economic consequences. Improving safety, performance, and sustainability across the full TSF lifecycle is a strategic focus area for NGI.

Following several catastrophic failures, TSFs today face increased regulatory expectations and stakeholder scrutiny. NGI supports owners and operators with a range of services related to tailings management, including compliance with the Global Industry Standard on Tailings Management (GISTM). Our teams combine geotechnical expertise, risk‑based and probabilistic analyses, and state‑of‑the‑art modelling to enable owners to make risk‑informed decisions that are defensible, auditable, and aligned with evolving requirements.

NGI is a leading contributor in the international tailings community. We represent Norway on the ICOLD Committee on Tailings Dams and participate actively in the development of international guidance and best practice. NGI is also an active member of ISSMGE Technical Committee TC221 on Tailings and Mine Waste, contributing to research, industry standards, and global knowledge‑sharing. Through these roles, NGI helps advance safe tailings management worldwide and ensures that our clients benefit from the latest international developments.

NGI’s services related to TSFs include:

  • Risk assessments and risk management

  • Laboratory testing and characterisation of soil and tailings materials

  • Planning and executing site investigations for TSFs

  • Stability assessment of dams using advanced numerical modelling (static, seismic, seepage, liquefaction)

  • Assessment and design of stabilising measures, including buttressing, drainage, and water management

  • Implementation and compliance with GISTM

  • Runout and breach modelling to assess downstream impact

  • Monitoring and surveillance systems for dam safety monitoring and early warning

  • Assessment of environmental risk and mitigations, including safe closure

Project example

Zelazny Most mine tailings dam

To ensure the safe operation of the tailings dam at Zelazny Most, NGI has assisted the mining company KGHM Polska Miedz with advanced stability analyses of the dam structure and associated ground. Various measures to stabilize the dam surface have also been evaluated.

Portrait of Arnkjell Løkke

Arnkjell Løkke

Head of Section Dam Safety Dam Safety and Hydrodynamics arnkjell.lokke@ngi.no
 +47 480 48 843
Portrait of Håkon Heyerdahl

Håkon Heyerdahl

Head of Section Slope Stability and Risk Assessment Slope Stability and Risk Assessment hakon.heyerdahl@ngi.no
 +47 951 25 767
Portrait of Thomas Pabst

Thomas Pabst

Head of Section Environmental Geotechnics Environmental geotechnics thomas.pabst@ngi.no
 +82 010 4430 3047