MINEX Forum

Website: Europe.com

  • Lithium in Serbia, then and now

    Lithium in Serbia, then and now

    Serbia is unique in the world because over 294,907 people (data from the Internet as of October 18th, 2023) deal with lithium and know everything about mining and obtaining lithium. According to data from 2021, 7,606 papers on lithium-ion batteries (the area of ​​greatest interest when it comes to lithium) were published in the world that year. If the average number of authors on each paper is five, this means that around 38,000 people worldwide deal with lithium. And in Serbia, eight times more people deal with lithium, that is, every 23rd resident of Serbia knows everything about the technology of mining and obtaining lithium.

    Although they acquired their knowledge about lithium from self-proclaimed lithium experts, it did not prevent them from considering themselves experts. (This is a worrying fact that shows how many people in Serbia believe inaccurate and wrong information from social networks.) Serbia still remembers how much damage the group and the party of self-proclaimed experts caused to Serbia. It was enough to consider yourself an expert and become a member of the expert party.

    Since two years ago, a group of self-proclaimed social network experts has emerged who know everything about the technology of mining and obtaining lithium. Some of these self-proclaimed “experts” have become known to the public as lithium “experts” even though they have never dealt with lithium, nor do they have any published work on lithium. The damage that these self-proclaimed experts will cause to Serbia will be calculated later.

    It all started in 2004, when the then Government of Serbia granted a permit for exploratory drilling to a multinational company. It goes without saying that whoever gets the right to exploratory drilling also gets the right to exploitation, if the results are positive. Lithium used to be, in 2004, the most harmless element of the periodic table, at least that’s what some of today’s “experts” advised the government. And also the most useful because in further contracting, according to the unwritten law on incorporation, it could be very useful for contractors from Serbia.

    When large deals are contracted, commissions are also large. Since their opportunity for contracting failed because someone else got the opportunity to mediate in contracting very large jobs, those same former advocates of lithium exploitation became the biggest opponents of that job, with the slogan “to stop everything”. Should others take a commission for the work they contracted first. They decided that they should pledge to postpone that work, until they have the opportunity to accomplish this great work.

    Our great “experts” for lithium need the citizens of Serbia, those who are not among the 294,907 “experts” for lithium, to explain how lithium, from the most harmless and most useful element of the periodic table in 2004, became the most dangerous and harmful element of the periodic table in 2020‒2021. Not even the “scientific” assembly at SAN gave an answer to this question. Anyone who has followed the literature on this subject knows that there have been no revolutionary discoveries in lithium chemistry (apart from advances in battery manufacturing). So the commission made lithium the most dangerous element.

    The Government of Serbia made the mistake of believing the stories of “experts”. The government (ministries of mining and energy, science and environmental protection) should have appointed a working group consisting of people from universities and institutes of various profiles (mining-geological, hydrological, agricultural, then chemists, physicochemists, technologists, machinists, biologists, etc. .), which would propose to the government a decision on this project based on all the existing documents or on the basis of some more that would be done, and on the basis of scientific literature and world experiences in this area.

  • Ukraine’s coal mines turn to women to solve wartime staff shortages

    Ukraine’s coal mines turn to women to solve wartime staff shortages

    After more than a thousand of its workers went to fight Russia’s invasion, a coal mining enterprise in eastern Ukraine suffered a huge staff shortage. Its answer was to allow women to work underground for the first time in its history.

    Over a hundred took up the offer.

    “I took this job because the war started and there were no other jobs,” 22-year-old Krystyna said candidly.

    For five months, she has worked as a technician 470 m below ground, servicing the small electric trains which haul workers more than four kilometres from the lift shaft where they descend to the seams of coal.

    The mine, a vast tower with shafts running more than 600 m under the surface, juts out against the flat landscape and the grey November weather.

    Reuters was asked by the mine’s management not to name it or give the surnames of those interviewed.

    Krystyna only resolved to take the job after overcoming her fear of leaving her four-year-old son, Denys, at home with her mother. Her hometown of Pavlohrad is 100 km (62 miles) from the front, but is often hit by Russian missiles.

    The work is interesting but difficult, she said: the battery lids are heavy and the steam can be unpleasant. The pay is good, however, and she feels a sense of duty to stay and do her bit for those who have gone to fight.

    Her beloved older brother worked in the same mine. He joined the army two weeks after the start of the full-scale invasion, Krystyna said, adding that she worries greatly about him.

    “Our boys were taken to the front, and now we need to support them: there is no-one else to work in the mine now.”

    Ukraine’s coal industry, once one of the largest in Europe, has suffered decades of decline since the collapse of the Soviet Union. The centrally-managed internal market which it supplied suddenly ceased to exist.

    Russia-backed militias in eastern Ukraine took over many coal-rich regions in 2014. After the 2022 invasion, Russia occupied even more mines.

    DTEK, the mine’s owner and Ukraine’s largest private energy company, says nearly 3 000 of its 20 000 mineworkers are fighting.

    Of the thousand miners at this mine and its nearby twin enterprise who went to fight, 42 have been killed.

    Although some women worked in the mines before the war, they were barred from doing jobs underground by the government, which considered the work too physically demanding, a policy in place since the Soviet era.

    After the wartime repeal of that ban, about 400 women now work underground at DTEK’s mines — although that is only 2.5% of the total subterranean workforce.

    “We do everything on the same level as the men– unless its something very heavy that we can’t lift,” 43-year-old Natalia, who also works as a technician inspecting the trains, said.

    She used to work in a shop selling electronics until she lost that job when Ukrainian businesses closed their doors during the initial shock of the invasion.

    When Natalia decided to work in the mine, her 19-year-old son had already worked in a neighbouring mine for a year.

    “Actually I had been convincing him not to go and work there,” she recalled, but she said she was now happily working in the mine and planned to stay, even after the war.

  • Council and Parliament strike provisional deal to reinforce the supply of critical raw materials

    Council and Parliament strike provisional deal to reinforce the supply of critical raw materials

    The political agreement reached today keeps the overall objectives of the original proposal but strengthens several elements. It includes aluminium in the list of strategic and critical materials, reinforces the benchmark of recycling, clarifies the permitting procedure for strategic projects, and requires relevant companies to perform a supply-chain risk assessment on their sourcing of strategic raw materials.

    Ensuring the supply of raw materials locally and globally

    The Commission’s proposed regulation establishes a list of 34 critical raw materials (including 16 strategic ones) and sets targets to increase the EU contribution of these substances (10% for the extraction; 40% for the processing and 15% for the recycling). To achieve this, the proposal called for a quick and simplified permit procedure for strategic extracting projects, to be dealt by a single national contact point. It also called for risk analysis of possible dependencies, member states’ exploration plans, higher investment in research, innovation and skills; and protection of the environment by promoting the circularity and sustainability of raw materials.

    On the global stage, the regulation identified measures to diversify imports of critical raw materials ensuring that not more than 65% of the Union’s consumption of each strategic raw material comes from a single third country.

    Main elements of the agreement

    The provisional agreement adds one critical raw material (aluminium) to the list of strategic raw materials (hence, 34 critical raw materials and 17 strategic raw materials). The compromise text also considers that in addition to the natural graphite (which already in the list) the synthetic graphite will also be a strategic raw material during a period of three years, until the Commission makes the first revision of the list.

    Furthermore, the agreement allows that projects able to produce innovative raw materials that substitute strategic raw materials in relevant technologies can be candidates to become strategic projects

    Member states will have the possibility to object on whether a project will be developed on their territories.

    Realistic benchmarks

    The provisional agreement keeps the benchmarks of 10% for extraction of raw materials and 40% for processing but increases the benchmark for recycling to at least 25% of EU’s annual consumption of raw materials. In addition, there should be substantial increase on the recovery of raw materials present in waste.

    Promoting technologies to moderate consumption

    The co-legislators propose that 18 months after the entry into force of the regulation, the Commission shall present a report on the estimated consumption of each critical raw material for the next three decades.

    Points of single contact

    According to the different administrative systems of each country, member states will be able to designate one or several single contact points, at the level they decide (local, regional or national) and the different stages of the value chain (mining, processing, recycling). Promoters of strategic projects will have a “relevant administrative unit” in these points of single contact who will facilitate the permit granting process for the project.

    Permitting procedure

    The provisional compromise also unifies the timings of the permit procedure. The total duration of the permit granting process should not exceed 27 months for extraction projects and 15 months for processing and recycling projects. While the first step of the environmental impact assessment (the production of the report, which must be conducted by the project promoter) will be not included in the time-line for the project approval, the public consultation needed for an environmental impact assessment will be part of the total duration of the permit process.

    Company risk preparedness

    Large companies exposed to shortages of strategic raw materials in strategic technologies (i.e. battery manufacturers, hydrogen producers, renewable energy generators, data transmission and storage, or aircraft production) will have to regularly carry out a risk assessment of their supply chain of strategic raw materials, which they may present to their board of directors, mapping where the materials come from, what can affect their supply and what are the vulnerabilities to supply disruptions.

    Background

    The Critical Raw Material Act, together with the Net Zero Industry Act and the Reform of the electricity market design is one of the flagship legislative initiatives of the Green Deal Industrial Plan that the Commission presented on 1st February 2023. The three were presented as a package on 16th March. The Council adopted the negotiation mandate on 30th of June.

  • Nordic Iron Ore applies for additional exploration permit at Blötberget

    Nordic Iron Ore applies for additional exploration permit at Blötberget

    Initial exploration has given signals that the area is promising for expansion. A successful broadened exploration of the area could potentially increase Nordic Iron Ore’s mineral resources.

    Through Nordic Iron Ore’s own exploration work and its participation in the EU-financed project Smart Exploration, knowledge has increased of the geology in the area, as well as previously explored areas. It also worth noting that the area has historically seen several small-scale mining operations. In addition to Smart Exploration’s measures, performed magnetic measurements indicate that the mineralisation in Blötberget continues to the north-east and could potentially be more easily accessible for mining. This makes the area promising for additional exploration. The company has therefore made an additional application to Bergsstaten for an exploration permit, Blötberget nr 6. Following approval of the application, the plan is to undertake core drilling in the area.

    “It is pleasing to see that our exploration work is progressing and we have now made our second application for a new exploration permit during the past year. The purpose of the work is to expand upon the company’s mineral resources and thereby prolong the life of mine and improve profitability for the future mining operations at Blötberget,” said Ronne Hamerslag, VD at Nordic Iron Ore.

  • EU agrees mineral supply targets to cut reliance on China

    EU agrees mineral supply targets to cut reliance on China

    The European Commission proposed the Critical Raw Materials Act in March, a centrepiece of EU strategy to allow it to compete with the United States and China in making clean tech products.

    The proposal said the European Union should extract 10%, recycle 15% and process 40% of its annual needs by 2030 for 16 “strategic raw materials”.

    The European Parliament and the Council, the grouping of EU governments, needed to agree on a common text. They did this on Monday, parties from both sides said, paving the way for the law to enter force in early 2024.

    Negotiators upgraded the recycling target to at least 25%. Parliament negotiators also said the European Commission would pass a related act in 2027 that set a recycling target related to annual waste collected, rather than consumption.

    The negotiators also agreed to add aluminium to the list of strategic raw materials as well as synthetic graphite. Natural graphite was already in the list.

    The latter inclusion reflects China’s plan to tighten export controls for graphite. China refines over 90% of the world’s graphite into material that is used in almost all electric vehicle anodes, the negatively charged portion of the battery.

    The EU is also heavily reliant on China for rare earths and lithium, other vital materials for its green transition.

    The act’s aim is that no third country should provide more than 65% of any strategic raw material, which also includes cobalt, copper, magnesium and titanium.

    The act sets time limits on granting permits for strategic mining, recycling and processing projects, and requires large companies needing strategic materials in key technologies to do regular risk assessments of their supply chains.

    It also has provisions designed to moderate consumption.

    EU industry chief Thierry Breton said in a statement that, without action, Europe risked shortages and unwanted dependencies, and that the law would ensure high environmental and social standards.

    The bloc will work with EU members to identify strategic projects that will benefit from shorter and more efficient permitting procedures and easier access to finance, he added.

  • Norway reluctant to ban deep sea mining in the Arctic, despite French pressure

    Norway reluctant to ban deep sea mining in the Arctic, despite French pressure

    Thirty-one countries have pledged to stop all deep-sea mining in polar regions at the One Planet Polar Summit, which ended in Paris on Friday (10 November), in a deal that Norway still needs to sign amid criticism of its recent decision to allow Arctic mining.

    Paris held the world’s first summit to safeguard the poles and glaciers last week (8-10 November), at which host French President Emmanuel Macron stressed the importance of “putting an end to any prospect of deep-sea mining”.

    France, Germany, Spain, India and Chile – a major player in the Antarctic region – signed the summit’s conclusions, dubbed the “Paris Call for the Poles and Glaciers”.

    But Norway, represented by its Prime Minister, Jonas Gahr Støre, did not sign on the dotted line.

    In June, the country’s parliament gave its go-ahead for a deep-sea mining mission to explore 280,000 square kilometres of seabed around the Svalbard archipelago, part of which lies in the Arctic – a move for which the country has received much criticism.

    Criticism was particularly strong last week while the summit was ongoing.

    Besides a call in a letter signed by around 100 MPs all over in EU on Thursday calling on Norway’s parliament to halt the project and accept a temporary stop to sea bed mining, NGOs presented their own letter to the prime minister at the meeting in Paris, reiterating the call, Euractiv France reported.

    Big debate in Norway

    “Norway is in the process of redefining its strategy. There’s a big debate in the country right now, and the authorities will not launch any new Arctic-wide deep-sea mining operations until they have evidence that the impact on the environment is low”, the French presidential office said after the summit.

    “The country is not reluctant to discuss the issue,” it added, noting that “this does not mean that the country dares to commit to a moratorium at this time”.

    However, this stance should not come as a surprise as Oslo has also been at odds with the EU on the issue of fishing in the polar areas for several years, arguing over the definition of fishing quotas and sovereignty over exploiting the areas surrounding Svalbard.

    Krill fishing, which takes place in the Antarctic and for which Norway is the global leader, has aroused a great deal of concern among NGOs who point to the species being essential to the oceans’ food balance and note how farming the species at a wide scale makes no economic sense.

    Krill is mainly fished to feed farmed fish, explains Geneviève Pons, the director-general of the Europe Jacques Delors think tank and former director of WWF Europe.

    The challenge now is to “demonstrate the economic irrationality of its exploitation,” she added. “Chartering boats, equipping them with cutting-edge technology, etc. – from a cost-benefit point of view, this is far less interesting than developing insect-based food, which is more suited to the traditional diet of farmed fish such as salmon”, Pons said.

    Double talk

    But scientists at the summit also called for “a risk-benefit approach to the costs of cryospheric degradation”, says Pascal Lamy, vice president of the European Jacques Delors think-tank and former EU Trade commissionner (1999-2004).

    And Norway, which is involved in several initiatives to protect the polar regions, is “double-talking”, says Pons, who fears this may be encouraged by the European Union.

    The EU has indeed increasingly turned to its Norwegian partner for gas supplies in the wake of Russia’s war in Ukraine and doesn’t want to upset those good relations.

    At the Nort Sea Summit in April, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen declared that she was “particularly pleased that, in the years to come, Norway will maintain its high level of gas supplies”.

    However, this type of ‘double speak’ worries environmental associations.

    “We know that the Norwegian government is trying to use the EU to justify the construction of new oil and gas infrastructure, especially in the Arctic,” commented Gina Gylver, President of Young Friends of the Earth Norway.

    Fishing relations between the EU bloc and Norway – from whom the EU currently absorbs 75% of its exports – have recently reached new heights as the two partners signed several agreements on fishing quotas and reciprocal access to waters earlier this year.

    Because of this, “the most urgent priority is to translate the One Planet-Polar Summit’s leadership on cryosphere protection into political action at the COP28 in Dubai”, the NGOs concluded in their recommendations to the summit’s stakeholders.

  • Resilience Can’t be Imported: European Steel Makes the EU Stronger

    Resilience Can’t be Imported: European Steel Makes the EU Stronger

    Policymakers know that the stakes are high at this moment of transition in Europe. Will they realise how important it will be for that growth to ‘come from within’? Prioritising European-made steel will help ensure resilient EU clean tech value chains.

    Axel Eggert is the Director General of the European Steel Association (EUROFER).

    In a local shop the other day, I saw one of those decorative quote boards. It read, “Resilience comes from within”. While I most definitely was not in the market for such an object, the word ‘resilience’ caught my eye because recently we’ve been hearing that term a lot around Brussels. Resilient and secure EU clean tech value chains are key to cutting CO2 emissions and achieving carbon neutrality.

    But the conversation also must focus on what it will take to build a clean energy supply chain for the EU. Steel is, quite literally, the foundation of Europe. To ensure that the EU meets its ambitious Green Deal climate goals and remains prosperous and autonomous, the steel that builds the backbone of Europe’s growth must ‘come from within’ – and be made in Europe.

    As they consider impending policies, European policymakers need to know what’s at stake. Simply put, prioritising European-made steel will make the EU clean tech value chains more resilient.

    With more than 60 decarbonisation projects underway, and with its first breakthrough technologies to implemented at industrial scale already in 2025 and 2026, the European steel industry is paving the way for a truly net-zero emissions economy. If implemented successfully in Europe, these projects will deliver dual benefits: 1) they will create demand for clean hydrogen and electricity, and 2) they will supply the green steel that is needed to build windmills, electrical vehicles, modern buildings and  infrastructure.

    However, this successful transition cannot – and should not – be taken for granted. Production costs for EU steel companies are increasingly uncompetitive compared to those in third countries, where energy costs are 2-4 times lower than in the EU. Global overcapacities, often fuelled by state subsidies, result in unfair trade practices that undermine the economic sustainability required for the decarbonisation investments.

    In the last decade alone, Europe has lost 26 million tonnes of steel production capacity and a quarter of its workforce. Thus the EU has become a net importer of cheaper and highly carbon-intensive steel from China and other countries. In fact, imports into the EU have reached a historical record of 28% market share.

    This time things are different. As other strategic clean tech sectors, such as wind and electric vehicles, start experiencing the same vicious circle, there is a growing understanding that the EU must change course.

    We face two game-changing factors. First, the geopolitical and economic system we have relied on since the end of the Second World War is now under question. Second, Europe is losing its competitive edge to the US, China and other countries. Commenting recently on the EU’s eroding global competitiveness, former president of the European Central Bank and former Italian prime minister Mario Draghi said the EU should be very worried about competitiveness, and cited high energy costs as a key issue to be addressed.

    If the global race for clean technologies is now the new engine of Europe’s prosperity, we must lead it. We need to thrive, not just survive. The EU can no longer rely on systemic dependencies, whether they are with friends, frenemies or rivals.

    Today, open strategic autonomy lies at the heart of the clean tech value chain. What does this mean in practice? As European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen rightly stated in her 2023 State of the Union Address, ‘from wind to steel, from batteries to electric vehicles, our ambition is crystal clear: the future of our clean tech industry has to be made in Europe.’ Without a clean tech value chain in Europe – that is, without windmills, solar panels, electrolysers, batteries, and electric vehicles – we risk losing our prosperity and our autonomy.

    And each one of those technologies, and so many more, are forged with steel. Steel forms the backbone of the entire clean tech value chain, and the material has underpinned the EU’s economy since the Schuman Declaration in 1950. Today, nearly 75 years later, steel accounts for 2.5 million jobs (direct, indirect and induced) and generates €143 billion in Gross Value Added annually across sectors. Steel and other industries that are essential for clean tech value chains must be at the top of the EU agenda today and after the 2024 elections.

    So, how to put von der Leyen’s words into practice and ensure the transition to a sustainable European steel industry? EU policymakers should focus on five priority areas, as outlined in the Manifesto of the European Steel Industry:

    • Industrial policy: streamline a joint green industrial policy across all policy areas to spur investments and create lead markets for green products, under the coordination of a Commission Executive Vice-President.
    • Energy: urgently deliver internationally competitive energy prices for the industry, while accelerating the production of clean electricity and hydrogen as well as prioritising its use in sectors with the highest CO2 abatement potential.
    • Trade: establish an effective EU-US Global Arrangement on Sustainable Steel to tackle global emissions and address excess capacity, while enforcing a robust trade policy as well as implementing an effective Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM).
    • Raw materials: ensure access to both primary and secondary raw materials including steel scrap, which are essential for the green transition, while saving natural resources and emissions.
    • Skills: attract young talent to support the sector’s transition, and upskill and reskill the workforce to ensure a just transition.

    Resilience is key, and it comes from within our borders. Europe’s future can only be stronger with European steel.

  • Euro Sun Mining sees Romania copper project benefitting from EU’s critical materials deal

    Euro Sun Mining sees Romania copper project benefitting from EU’s critical materials deal

    Euro Sun Mining Inc (TSX:ESM, OTC:CPNFF) has welcomed the announcement that the European Parliament and Council have reached an agreement on the Critical Raw Materials Act, in particular, that the act recognizes copper as both a strategic and critical raw material.

    The act aims to increase the European Union’s domestic capacities for critical raw materials by identifying, streamlining and facilitating access to finance for strategic projects.

    It lists 34 critical raw materials and sets targets to increase the EU’s contribution of these substances being 10% for extraction, 40% for processing and 15% for recycling.

    The act is provisional, pending final approval by the European Parliament and Council.

    “We welcome the passing of the act and applaud the EU’s recognition of the importance of increasing domestic production of critical materials, in particular copper,” Euro Sun CEO Grant Sboros said.

    “Euro Sun believes the Rovina Valley project is a perfect candidate for the act given that it is situated in Romania and its sizable copper deposits. We look forward to working with the government of Romania to streamline the permitting and financing of the Rovina Valley project under the act.”

    Euro Sun is a Toronto Stock Exchange-listed mining company focused on the exploration and development of its 100%-owned Rovina Valley gold and copper project located in west-central Romania, which hosts the second-largest gold deposit in Europe.

  • Rio Tinto filed nine lawsuits against Serbia

    Rio Tinto filed nine lawsuits against Serbia

    Rio Tinto’s Serbian subsidiary Rio Sava has filed nine lawsuits against the country’s government in connection with the abolishment of its Jadar project.

    News of a legal dispute between Rio Tinto and the state of Serbia is a new twist regarding the company’s lithium mining and processing project. Serbia halted it in January 2022, but environmental activists and residents of the Jadar area believe that both Rio Tinto and Serbia’s authorities have not given up on the investment.

    Information about the lawsuits emerged two weeks after a media report that Serbia and the European Commission signed a letter of intent in September to initiate a strategic partnership for batteries and critical raw materials including lithium.

    The Nova news outlet learned that under the jurisdiction of the Administrative Court, there are four cases against the decision of the Government of Serbia to abolish the project, two suits against the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Management, and three against the Ministry of Finance.

    Of note, Rio Tinto said on several occasions that it plans to sue Serbia.

    With two lawsuits, Rio Tinto is disputing the government’s decision to annul the approval of environmental impact assessments, issued by the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the court revealed.

    The state Administrative Commission has rejected Rio Sava’s appeals, which resulted in the two remaining cases, the report reads.

    Since the beginning of October, Rio Sava fired about 80% of its employees

    Two lawsuits concern the Ministry of Agriculture’s inspection measures, according to the article. The cases that the Anglo-Australian mining giant launched against the Ministry of Finance are related to tax issues, it adds.

    In addition, Nova.rs reported, without identifying its source, that Rio Sava fired 80% of its workers since the beginning of October.

    The plan is to keep twenty employees only until the administrative procedure for the layoffs is completed and then to close the firm, which means Jadar project is finished, the website wrote.

  • Sandvik to explore surface drilling automation, digitalisation, electrification advances at new testing facility

    Sandvik to explore surface drilling automation, digitalisation, electrification advances at new testing facility

    In support of the shift towards electrification and the advancement of autonomous and optimisation technologies in surface drilling, Sandvik has acquired a new testing facility in Finland to develop and prove future surface drilling technologies.

    The surface test mine is 40 km northwest of Tampere and Sandvik’s underground test mine. The area, which has previously served as a quarry, will be developed by its own drilling plan. The site is Sandvik’s first dedicated exclusively to surface drilling on such a large scale.

    Petri Virrankoski, President, Surface Drilling at Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions, said: “The development of comprehensive solutions that not only harness the latest technologies but also deliver productivity and reliability in our customers’ real-life applications and conditions requires a real-life test environment. The surface test mine will facilitate the exchange of our deep know-how in equipment manufacturing, rock tools, automation and digitalisation, supporting the design and development of even more new products and solutions in the future.”

    Sandvik is currently developing the site, officially known as Sandvik Test Pit, and testing its first drills there. Over the next two years, the company plans to construct permanent office buildings and designated customer facilities at the location.

    Sandvik will use the test mine for R&D as well as hosting customers for technology demonstrations, particularly those related to automation, digitalisation and electrification of surface drills. The site will enable technology development and training for both surface boom and rotary drill rigs, as well as rock tools, parts and services and related digital technologies such as automation and fleet telematics and monitoring solutions.

    The test mine will also allow Sandvik to explore and demonstrate power source alternatives in a real-world environment, in which infrastructure to support both boom and rotary drilling electrification can be provided.

    Dave Shellhammer, President, Rotary Drilling at Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions, said: “Decarbonisation is accelerating across our industry, and the role of electrification in surface mining sustainability will help guide our development of new systems and solutions. Testing is a major part of our R&D cycle. This new test mine will help us shorten time to market and verify even more swiftly that we’re delivering the safest, most reliable and productive drill rigs to our customers.”