Tag Archives: battery-electric drilling

Epiroc partners with Capital on SmartROC D65 battery-electric drill trial at Sukari

Environmental, Explosives and blasting, Mine operation news, Mining equipment, Power supply for mines, Precious metals, Sustainable mining, , , , , , , ,

Epiroc has partnered up with mining services company Capital Limited to field test the SmartROC D65 BE, a battery-electric surface drill rig for the mining and construction industry.

The battery-electric version of the SmartROC D65 surface drill rig will be tested at Capital Limited’s Sukari operation, in Egypt (owned by Centamin) during 2024. This mine already has a broad fleet of Epiroc drill rigs, according to the OEM, with Capital carrying out an earthmoving contract involving load, haul and associated drilling services.

Hakan Aytekin, Vice President, Epiroc Surface division, said: “This field test is an important step in our drive towards emission-free surface drill rigs. Capital Limited is always pushing the boundaries with new technologies, and that makes them an ideal partner for this field test.”

The field test is a major step in the mining service provider’s emission reduction and decarbonisation pathway, also representing its pledge to continue to provide a premium service to its clients, it says.

Peter Stokes, Chief Executive Officer, Capital Limited, said: “We are excited to be at the forefront of the transformation alongside Epiroc, bringing innovative electric drill rigs both to our fleet and to the broader market.

“Epiroc brings the supply of top-quality equipment, strong aftermarket support and competitive OEM financing options. Our close partnership ensures that we are appropriately prepared for the demand ahead of us.”

The autonomous SmartROC D65 MKII for production drilling applications became commercially available last year following testing in Australia, however this is the first public mention of a battery-electric version of the surface drill rig.

Epiroc has sustainability goals for 2030, which include halving the CO2 emissions from both operations and from sold products. The aim is to offer a full range of underground equipment in emission-free versions by 2025, and surface equipment by 2030.

Sandvik unveils second battery-electric concept surface drill rig

Automation, Environmental, Mining equipment, Power supply for mines, , , ,

As decarbonisation efforts accelerate across the surface mining sector, Sandvik has unveiled its second battery-electric concept surface drill rig.

The battery-electric vehicle is the first in its size class, capable of drilling DTH holes up to 229 mm in diameter, and blending the autonomy of battery with the continuous endurance of power cable, Sandvik says.

Electric surface rigs have long depended solely on a tethered cable as the power source. With its second battery-electric surface concept, Sandvik says it is showcasing the latest technology advancements to push the potential of more sustainable surface drilling.

“With the industry shifting towards intelligent, autonomous and emission-free equipment, surface drill rigs need to be reinvented,” Lauri Laihanen, Vice President, R&D, Surface Drilling Division, Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions, said. “This new concept rig elevates electric surface drilling.”

The intelligent DTH rig’s battery pack provides power for up to one hour of drilling or up to seven hours of tramming. The battery is primarily intended for tramming and drilling individual holes while the bulk of a pattern is carried out via power from its 180-m tethered cable.

“The battery means greater freedom and flexibility and more efficient use of time, as the rig can drill immediately while the cable is being set up,” Laihanen said.

Sandvik designed the cable setup to be as effortless as possible. The cable tightens itself automatically according to the direction the rig is moved and is wound on a single layer, which enables a thinner, more manageable tether, it says. An operating voltage as high as 1,000 V also helps enable a lighter cable.

While Sandvik’s latest pioneering concept introduces battery-electric operation to a larger size class DTH drill, its subsystems and technologies are all tried and tested, mine-proven and energy-efficient, according to the company.

Sandvik introduced its smaller top hammer battery-electric concept surface drill rig in May 2022, developed to support more sustainable drilling in construction applications.

“Testing of the smaller concept with our construction customers has been very successful and produced valuable feedback,” Laihanen said. “We’ve learned a lot, and now it’s time to apply these learnings to mining, which has its own unique challenges.”

Sandvik will test its latest concept drill rig in real-world surface mining environments in close collaboration with mining customers.

“We need to identify the challenges, learn from them and share the knowledge,” Laihanen said. “The shift towards more sustainable mining will change the entire operating environment, and with the learnings from our latest concept rig, we can produce more value for our customers on their decarbonisation journey. We’re excited to write the next chapter in surface drilling together.”

Swick Mining to pursue battery-electric, remote control diamond drilling

Environmental, IoT, Mineral exploration, Mining equipment, Mining safety, Mining services, Power supply for mines, Sustainable mining, , , , , ,

Swick Mining’s latest market update has indicated its postponed demerger of Orexplore should now go ahead by the end of the year, allowing it to concentrate on the development of new underground drilling technologies including battery-electric diamond drill rigs and remote control drilling.

In a release issued today, Swick said it was recommencing the demerger process for Orexplore with the appointment of Brett Giroud as Managing Director of the Mineral Technology business. Giroud, who joined Swick in May as General Manager, has been reviewing Orexplore’s technology and its future potential and will take on his new role as of July 1.

Back in February, Swick Mining Services said it as pushing back the delivery of Orexplore’s first in-field commercial agreement for its core scanning technology with St Barbara Ltd at the Gwalia mine in Leonora, Western Australia, following discussions with the gold miner, deferring the contract into the 2022 financial year (from July 1, 2021). This decision saw the ASX-listed company also push back the demerger process.

In the meantime, Swick, which reported unaudited financial year 2021 (to June 30, 2021) expected results of A$153-156 million ($115-117 million) of revenue and A$29-31 million of EBITDA, has established a Future of Drilling department. This newly established department includes its Gen3 E-Rigs and Remote Control Drilling (RCD) innovations.

These Gen3 E-Rigs have the capacity to reduce the power consumption per metre drilled by around 50%, leading to overall lower carbon footprint, Swick said. The underground diamond drilling rigs remove all diesel power and a large portion of the hydraulic components currently on the “Swick GenII drill rig”.

“The Gen3 E-Rig will have a large battery capacity allowing for electric tramming and will also utilise the latest in DC electric motor technology to power the drilling components,” the company said.

A research and development drill rig fitted with an electric drill head is nearing readiness for field testing and a prototype rig is expected to be test drilling at a Western Australian client’s operation within the next three months, the company said. A fully proven Gen3 E-Rig is expected to be available for commencing service by mid 2022.

Its RCD system allows drillers to perform automated drilling through video-linked controls from surface effectively and safely, with an additional four non-productive hours a day converted to drilling time, Swick claims.

The RCD system consists of three major components – automated drilling, high speed communications to surface and semi-automated robotic handling of tubes and rods. “Swick has developed an advanced automation capability and is working with specialist consultants on the communications and robotics to establish the final system,” it said.

While the company is talking up its Gen3 E-rigs, its GenII mobile drill rigs – offering the smallest footprint, but highest power on the mobile drill market, Swick says – have recently reached a milestone, with units built and sold to clients in Canada and Tanzania.

“This new division has enabled Swick to participate in significant mining markets and regions where it does not have a presence operationally,” Swick said of the Swick Engineering business which the rigs come under. “Rig sales in financial year 2022 of eight to 12 rigs are targeted and, with a growing global demand for high-quality mobile underground drill rigs, Swick is well placed to service this market.”

This demand will be served by an expanded engineering facility in South Guilford, the company said.