Sidney Resources Corp says it has reached an agreement with the Colorado School of Mines for testing of its new laser mining technology.

Founded in 1874 with specialties in mining and metallurgy, Colorado School of Mines is a public university focused on science and engineering. Over the years, its scope and mission have expanded to meet the needs of industry and society, becoming a world leader in advancing sustainable use of the Earth’s resources.

The testing of the Sidney’s new laser mining technology has been coordinated with the assistance of IPG Photonics and will use the 4 kW IPG Photonics laser housed at the university. With the assistance of the Colorado School of Mines team, Sidney’s engineering team will test its newly designed and configured unit so that a variety of specialty directional laser pointing devices and their inherent custom software control are interchangeable for use in various mining operations. Testing will evaluate the ability to cut, facture and spall various samples of geologic materials.

The patent-pending technology is designed for use in mining operations such as explosive installation preparation, rock bolting operations, drifting, expanding raises, winzes and stope mining.

Testing at Colorado School of Mines is a major step forward for Sidney Resources in its pursuit of technology that will provide tremendous value for not just Sidney Resources itself but for the mining industry as a whole with the ability to be deployed across multiple vertical industries, it said.

“We are exploring additional transformative and disruptive technologies to expand our impact on the mining industry while reducing the impact on the environment,” it added.

Sidney anticipates testing will take place late this year. Its team is continuing work to complete the testing protocols with the team at the university and IPG Photonics.