Pit limit determination is an important aspect in surface mining and the most important part of surface mine planning. By determining the optimum pit limit, it is possible to extract mineral economically, to draw the extent of the pit boundaries and geometric layout. In this fashion, facility planning and dump site planning can be done effectively, preventing later undesired cost. It is important to plan surface mines for their lifetime because of high capital cost. There are many algorithms for pit limit determination. Lerchs-Grossmann algorithm is the most common one because of easiness to program. Lerchs-Grossmann algorithm is integrated in many mining design software. In this study, the algorithms and methods to determine pit limit are briefly reviewed. Lerchs-Grossmann algorithm is applied to Eti-Mines Kestelek open pit mine. For this purpose, pit optimization module of Vulcan software of Maptek is used. Ore, geology and topography are modeled and block model of the mine is constructed by the help of drill data obtained from the mine. Economical values are assigned to blocks according to ore content. Then Lerchs-Grossmann algorithm is applied and optimum pit limit is determined. Overburden ratio, ore reserve and mine value are calculated.
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