Tag Archives: Epiroc

Epiroc receives third large equipment order from Kamoa Copper for Kamoa-Kakula

Base metals, Equipment maintenance, Mining equipment, Mining services, , , , , , , , , , ,

Epiroc says it is continuing its successful partnership with Kamoa Copper SA in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, with the OEM winning its largest-ever order to date tied to the expansion of the Kamoa-Kakula copper mining complex.

Kamoa Copper has ordered 65-t-payload Minetruck MT65 S haulers, as well as 18-t-payload Scooptram ST18 S loaders, Boomer 282 face drilling rigs and Simba E70 S production drilling rigs.

The machines will be used to expand operations at Kamoa-Kakula, which is projected to be among the world’s lowest greenhouse gas-emitting copper mines per unit of metal produced.

The order is valued at almost €60 million ($65 million) and was booked in the September quarter of 2023.

Kamoa-Kakula is set to become one of the world’s largest copper mines and will have one of the most favourable environmental footprints of all major copper mines, according to one of the major owners, Ivanhoe Mines.

“The customer’s focus on sustainability and productivity, coupled with the large size of the mine, makes it especially exciting to contribute to its success,” Helena Hedblom, Epiroc’s President and CEO, says.

Sami Niiranen, President of Epiroc’s Underground division, added: “We are proud and happy to be able to continue contributing to Kamoa Copper’s success as it expands its operations.”

Epiroc has had a local presence in the DRC since 2001, and currently has about 120 employees in the country, mostly Congolese nationals.

The new order is the third large order that Epiroc has received from Kamoa Copper for Kamoa-Kakula. In 2022, Kamoa Copper ordered SEK160 million ($14 million) worth of equipment, and in the June quarter of 2022, it ordered equipment valued at about SEK125 million. Epiroc will also provide service of the machines, as well as on-site technical support and operator training.

Jan Johannes Hough, Executive Engineering at Kamoa Copper SA, said: “Kamoa Copper SA chose Epiroc to be one of our strategic partners for the supply of trackless mobile mining equipment due to its proven and matured industry track record. The equipment selected proved to be reliable and feasible in various applications in the mining industry. It will play a critical role in achieving production targets in line with the expansion program of Kamoa Copper SA and the resulting guidance given to the market.”

The ordered machines have several advanced features, such as Epiroc’s telematics system, which allows for intelligent monitoring of machine performance and productivity in real-time. Delivery will begin in 2024.

Autonomous equipment commissioning ramps up at Côté gold project

Automation, Mineral project development, Mining equipment, Mining project news, Mining safety, Mining services, Precious metals, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

IAMGOLD has released its latest quarterly results, highlighting the significant progress it has made on its majority-owned Côté gold project in northeastern Ontario, Canada.

The company is the majority owner and operator of Côté, with the next biggest stake owned by Sumitomo Metal Mining. Côté has a mine life of 18 years, and will produce an average of 365,000 oz/y over this term. Some 236 Mt of ore will be mined, along with 568 Mt of waste, with an average processed grade of 0.96 g/t Au.

In the latest results, IAMGOLD said the project was estimated to be 85.7% complete as of the end of June. Since commencement of construction, $2.23 billion ($1.56 billion at the 70% held by IAMGOLD) of the planned $2.965 billion ($2.08 billion at 70%) of project expenditure has been incurred.

Autonomous operations have been incorporated into the Côté mine design with a focus on early operations readiness. The Autonomous Control Room equipped for Caterpillar Command for hauling was completed in mid-September and the project achieved a major milestone in January with the initial deployment of the autonomous 231 t Cat 793F CMD haul trucks working with Toromont Cat. On January 22, the mine saw the safe operation of a full load, haul, and dump cycle using autonomous dump trucks.

During the June quarter 2023, up to seven Cat 793F haul trucks have begun operating in autonomous mode and a total of 14 haul trucks have been commissioned. Autonomous drilling with two Epiroc Pit Vipers began in this quarter, with a third nearing commissioning completion. In total, the company is expected to operate six autonomous Epiroc Pit Viper 231 blasthole drill rigs, complemented by two Epiroc D65 SmartROC crawler rigs, which will be remote operation ready.

In addition it will deploy electric Caterpillar hydraulic shovels – namely two 6060FS units, AC-powered via tethered cable.

The company said owner mining has progressed well with nearly 1.1 Mt mined in the June quarter. The stockpile has approximately 2 Mt of material on track to the target build-up of 5 Mt by the end of the year. The IAMGOLD mine operations team started operating 24/7 effectively in July.

The project timeline remains in place, with production expected to commence in early 2024.

Gold Fields, UFR collaborating on automated underground truck pilot at Granny Smith

Automation, Mine operation news, Mining equipment, Mining services, Precious metals, , , , , , , , , ,

Gold Fields will soon begin an autonomous truck trial at its Granny Smith underground mine in Western Australia, leveraging the robotic smarts of Universal Field Robots (UFR) and an existing Epiroc Minetruck MT65 it has within its fleet.

In the company’s recently released annual results, Gold Fields stated it was developing its first underground automated truck, ready for trials at Granny Smith in the second half of this year.

Later, the company told IM that this project involved Brisbane-based UFR, with the machine in question having already received the custom paint job (see photo above).

The purpose of this trial is to validate autonomous truck haulage over shift change when the mine is evacuated for blasting, the company said in its annual results, with Rob Derries, Unit Manager: Innovation & Technology at Gold Fields Australia, confirming the truck will initially be tested and validated in a separate area underground at Granny Smith.

“Once validated, we will be operating the automated truck on the main decline over shift change when the mine is normally evacuated for blasting activities, enabling further material haulage in time where activities are normally halted,” he told IM.

The initial truck pilot is expected to continue for up to 12 months with plans to retrofit further trucks in the Granny Smith fleet to operate autonomously over shift change after validation of this initial pilot.

Gold Fields says it is investigating and partnering to develop a number of automation solutions to ensure the safety of its people while also enabling increased productivity.

Derries said: “This trial aligns with Gold Fields’ approach to adopting agnostic technology and automation solutions. In the future, this technology can be adopted on a number of different machine manufactures and types and will integrate with existing teleremote guidance LHDs and Mine Operating Systems.”

UFR, for its part, has been involved in the development of several automation projects within mining, including BLAST DOG™ blasthole sensing and physical measurement technology – in collaboration with IMDEX – and a robotic application for zero-entry work on underground production blastholes – a project it is working on with METS Ignited and several mining companies, including Gold Fields.

Granny Smith produced 288,000 oz of gold at an all-in cost of $1,171/oz in 2022. It is currently mining four lenses from the Wallaby orebody (Z70, Z80, Z90 and Z100), accessed from a single decline. Mining administration and maintenance is located at the Wallaby mine, while ore is processed at the Granny Smith carbon-in-pulp processing plant, 15 km east of the Wallaby underground mine, under campaign milling conditions.

Back in October 2022, Epiroc confirmed an order from Gold Fields for a fleet of 65-t payload Epiroc Minetruck MT65 underground haul trucks with automation features to be used at Granny Smith.

Epiroc’s Erik Svedlund: ‘the answer…is always electrification’

Automation, Environmental, Mining equipment, Mining events, Mining people, Mining services, Power supply for mines, Sustainable mining, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Not a financial report goes by without Epiroc referencing its electrification offering. Whether it be new products, an uptick in customer demand or plans to roll out more battery-electric retrofit options for its customer base, ‘going electric’ has become a consistent quarterly theme for the Sweden-based OEM.

Epiroc’s development timeline for battery-electric machines started all the way back in 2012 – the first Scooptram ST7 Battery was produced in 2013 before a 2014 machine trial with Goldcorp’s Red Lake mines department (now owned by Evolution Mining). The Minetruck MT2010 battery-electric vehicle then came along in 2015.

Its electrification roots go back even further though thanks to Atlas Copco’s acquisition of GIA Industri AB in 2011; a transaction that brought the renowned Kiruna electric trucks into the portfolio.

Over this timeframe, Epiroc has also deployed cable-electric large blasthole rigs across the globe, removing diesel from the drilling process at surface mines.

A constant throughout this period has been Erik Svedlund, Senior Zero Emission Manager at Epiroc, who has helped steer the company’s electrification direction from its first generation battery-electric vehicles to the position it is in now: having integrated automation into the battery-electric mix with the Scooptram ST18 SG and, on the retrofit side, having the resources in place to offer mid-life rebuild options to convert its diesel-powered Scooptram ST7, Scooptram ST1030 and Scooptram ST14 loaders, plus its Minetruck MT436 and Minetruck MT42 trucks, to battery-electric vehicles.

Ahead of his keynote presentation at this month’s The Electric Mine 2023 conference in Tucson, Arizona (May 23-25), IM put some questions to Svedlund on the evolution of the market since he started ‘selling’ the electrification concept to stakeholders.

IM: You have been heading up Epiroc’s electrification efforts since 2010; how have you seen the reception to these solutions and developments change in that 13-year period? Has the speed of the transition surprised you?

ES: The speed is both fast and slow; I estimate that we are in the beginning of the steep part of the S-curve. Previously the drive was more on improved safety and health or a lower total cost of ownership. Now I notice a bigger drive towards low-carbon solutions. But the answer to all these focus areas is always ‘electrification’.

IM: Epiroc has some very ambitious targets when it comes to electrifying its fleet – both underground and on surface with drills. Given the various applications you are serving, how are you able to create a platform that can cater to all the specific parameters at mining operations?

ES: Indeed, Epiroc was quite early in developing battery-electric machines and has set very ambitious sustainability targets that go hand in hand with our customer’s targets. Making one or a few models is not too difficult but enabling everything to go electric required us to develop a new technology platform that would allow all models to become electric. This platform has allowed us to scale up to meet our targets.

IM: Is this why you are pursuing so many different development avenues with customers – diesel-electric trucks, battery-trolley, new battery solutions, BEV retrofits, etc?

ES: There is no one silver bullet to solve all models and applications. As a base there will be an energy-efficient electric driveline. However, how to get energy to that machine will vary depending on application. We will need many solutions in the future.

Erik Svedlund, Senior Zero Emission Manager at Epiroc

IM: How important do you see Batteries as a Service (BaaS) being as your BEV rollout accelerates? What level of interest or uptake have you had so far, and do you see the majority of BEV fleet users opting for this?

ES: The majority of our batteries go out with BaaS but not all; some customers like to own their assets. The setup of these agreements may be tailored to the customer’s needs.

IM: The combination of automation and electrification have been spoken about in the last few years as BEVs have started to be rolled out at a faster pace, with the development of your ST14 SG and ST18 SG representing key milestones in this area. Are mining companies continuing to push you to further automate your BEVs and remove all people from the process? What avenues are you pursuing for this in terms of automating the battery swapping process, recommending trolley charging, leveraging BluVein’s dynamic charging solution, etc?

ES: The trend for safer and more efficient operations will continue. Autonomous machines will have to be supported by autonomous chargers. Dynamic or stationary charging will be dependent on the type of machine and application. But we must not forget the solutions we as OEMs introduce must be able to work together with the grid. When it comes to surface mining, we have already seen that automation and electrification are a perfect match. We already have a complete range of cable-electric large blasthole rigs with a large number of drills in operation in all continents, some of which are automated.

IM: Your keynote presentation is titled, ‘The green transition is a material transition.’ Could you explain what is meant by this, and how Epiroc is involved in this material transition as a mining OEM?

ES: Zero-emission vehicles and renewable energy require metals; we in the mining industry have a special responsibility to do our part. Adopting a ‘green mining’ concept will prepare and position our industry as adding value to our solutions.

Erik Svedlund, Senior Zero Emission Manager at Epiroc, will present: ‘Keynote: The green transition is a material transition’ at The Electric Mine 2023 conference in Tucson, Arizona, on May 24 at 9:00-9:30. For more information on this three-day event, head to www.theelectricmine.com

Epiroc to use SSAB’s new fossil carbon emission-free recycled steel for BEVs

Environmental, Mining equipment, Mining industry recognition, Mining services, Steel and iron ore, Sustainable mining, , , , , , , ,

Epiroc has become the first company in the mining industry to sign a delivery agreement with Swedish steelmaker SSAB for SSAB Zero™, a product made of recycled steel and produced with fossil-free electricity and biogas.

The steel will be used in Epiroc’s battery-electric range of underground mine trucks and loaders, set to be introduced as soon as the September quarter of 2023.

Sami Niiranen, President of Epiroc’s Underground division, said: “We are very excited to utilise SSAB’s pioneering low-carbon solutions. This is one of many ways that we are accelerating the transformation of the mining industry – while also helping our customers to reach their sustainability goals.”

SSAB Zero will be used in the production of Epiroc’s Smart and Green series of battery-electric mine trucks and loaders, enabling, it says, zero-emission underground operations. The partnership with SSAB is part of Epiroc’s long-term commitment to produce the world’s greenest machines and to halve CO2e emissions by 50% by 2030 compared with 2019, as well as SSAB’s aim to help create fossil-free value chains.

Thomas Hörnfeldt, Head of Sustainable Business at SSAB, said: “SSAB Zero broadens our zero emission portfolio and strengthens the business offering, allowing us to bring zero-emission steel to our customers already this year,. There is a large demand for this kind of steel; it is satisfying to have such an offer in place.”

Epiroc has now signed a delivery agreement for both of SSAB’s zero-emission steel types: SSAB Zero, based on recycled steel, and SSAB Fossil-free™, based on iron ore without fossil fuels. At the end of 2022, Epiroc showcased the world’s first underground mine truck made using fossil-free steel from SSAB, which is set to be available on a commercial scale during 2026.

SSAB Zero has zero fossil carbon emission (less than 0.05 kg CO2e emissions per kg steel in Scope 1 and 2 calculations) in operations, including purchased energy and transportation. The quality and properties of SSAB Zero will be equal to the steel currently used in Epiroc’s products, Epiroc says.

Epiroc to strengthen rock drill quality with new Örebro heat treatment plant

Mining equipment, Mining services, , ,

Epiroc is today inaugurating a new heat treatment plant for rock drills in Örebro, Sweden, which, it says, will benefit customers by further strengthening rock drill quality and performance, lowering their total cost of ownership.

Heat treatment is an essential part of rock drill manufacturing. The new heat treatment plant is built through an expansion of the current workshop building. It will also enable higher production volumes.

Production at the 1,400 sq.m heat treatment plant will be able to run 24 hours a day thanks to automation. Energy efficiency is a key focus for the design – for example, residual heat will be recycled internally to heat buildings as well as externally to Örebro’s local heating system. The building also has solar panels.

Helena Hedblom, Epiroc’s President and CEO, said: “This new heat treatment plant is a key step towards ensuring that our world-class manufacturing site in Örebro will remain as productive and competitive as possible for the long term, and it was designed to optimise energy efficiency.”

Örebro is one of Epiroc’s global manufacturing hubs. The company employs about 2,900 people in the city, out of a global workforce of around 17,000.

RCT equips Northern Star’s Ramone mine with autonomous and digital tech

Automation, Communications in mining, IoT, Mine operation news, Mining equipment, Mining safety, Mining services, Precious metals, , , , , , , , , , ,

RCT says it has partnered with Northern Star Mining Services (NSMS) to implement a digital autonomous mining fleet at the Ramone gold mine in Western Australia.

The Ramone mine, near Wiluna, is owned by Northern Star Resources, the parent company of NSMS. It is 35 km southeast of the Jundee Gold Mine, which Northern Star also owns.

The technology has significantly advanced autonomous fleet production activities and sets the underground operation on a pathway to full mine digitisation, according to RCT, which is now owned by Epiroc.

The rollout represents the latest in a long line of successful projects that has seen RCT automate NSMS’s underground mining fleets across the Kalgoorlie and Yandal regions.

At Ramone, machine operators will use RCT’s ControlMaster® Automation Centre and supervise two Sandvik LH517i underground loaders commissioned with the latest ControlMaster digital solution.

The technology significantly enhances production by enabling faster autonomous loader cycles and greatly reduces maintenance downtime associated with machine damage, RCT said.

Once RCT’s ControlMaster Automation Centre is relocated from underground to the surface on site, it will allow for fast “hot seating” and enable site managers to capture the time previously lost over the shift changes and continue production cycles during firing activities, it added.

The NSMS team at Ramone is benefitting from the rollout of RCT Connect, the only mine site communications network designed to accommodate autonomous mobile machine fleets, according to RCT.

RCT Account Manager, Scott Phillips, said: “Our digital automation technology will provide the Ramone operation with every advantage to mine safely, efficiently and continue to make solid advancements for years to come. Northern Star Mining Services’ investment in our specialised communications technology provides a strong foundation from which to grow autonomous operations as the mine evolves and site needs change.

“Our experienced Goldfields team has worked very closely with the Ramone site team to ensure this initial rollout goes smoothly and we are very pleased with the successful outcome.

“This is just the first chapter in what we hope will be a long and very productive working relationship between RCT and the Northern Star Mining Services crew at Ramone.”

Epiroc to deliver automation-ready drill rigs and LHDs to Hummingbird’s Komana mine

Automation, Equipment maintenance, Explosives and blasting, IoT, Mine operation news, Mineral project development, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining services, Precious metals, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Epiroc says it has won a large equipment order for a new underground mine at the Hummingbird Resources-owned Komana mine in southern Mali.

Hummingbird, through its subsidiary Société des Mines de Komana, has selected Epiroc drill rigs and loaders with advanced automation features for the development of a new underground mine at Komana, which is part of Hummingbird’s wider Yanfolila operation. Epiroc is to also provide drilling consumables as part of the agreement.

The equipment is made up of Boomer M2 face drilling rigs; Simba M6 production drilling rigs; and Scooptram ST18 loaders. The loaders will come equipped with Scooptram Automation, which lets an operator control the vehicles tele-remotely from a safe distance.

Additional automation features for the machines include Epiroc’s telematics system Certiq, which allows for intelligent monitoring of machine performance and productivity in real time, and Epiroc’s Rig Control System, RCS, which makes them ready for automation and remote control.

Sarah Hoffman, Vice President Sales & Marketing at Epiroc’s Underground division, said: “We look forward to contributing to Hummingbird Resources’ success at their new underground mine, where our machines and first-rate automation solutions will help achieve optimal productivity and safety, and we thank them for placing their trust in Epiroc as their partner of choice.”

Dan Betts, CEO of Hummingbird Resource, added: “With Epiroc’s specialty and experience in underground mining equipment supply, Hummingbird has a partner of choice in the industry. As Epiroc’s equipment arrives on site, we are increasingly progressing our underground mine development at our Yanfolila, Mali operation to underpin the future production pipeline at that asset for the company.”

Epiroc equips 18-t Scooptram ST18 SG with bigger battery capacity, automation capabilities

Automation, Environmental, Mining equipment, Mining services, Power supply for mines, Sustainable mining, , , , , , ,

Epiroc says it has advanced even further on safety, sustainability and productivity goals with the launch of the battery-electric, automation-ready Scooptram ST18 SG.

This 18-t loader is the most powerful loader yet in Epiroc’s growing fleet of battery-electric vehicles.

“By featuring market-leading battery autonomy and a complete battery safety system, Epiroc’s customers can now go the extra mile when it comes to safety, sustainability and productivity in the 18-t loader segment,” the company said.

According to Erik Gert, Global Product Manager – Scooptram at Epiroc’s Underground division, the interest from customers for this new machine has been extensive, with several loader orders already booked.

The very first of these machines will be delivered to Boliden’s developing Rävliden mine in Sweden. This is part of a wider order –  confirmed in June –  which included battery-electric versions of the Boomer face drilling rig and Boltec rock bolting rig to go to the Rävliden, Kristineberg and Renström mine sites in northern Sweden.

“Scooptram ST18 SG is a great fit for their high ambitions regarding sustainability and automation,” Gert said.

Scooptram ST18 SG is the answer to the rising demand for large segment loaders in underground operations as well as the need to reduce greenhouse gases from the mining industry, according to Epiroc. The loader features up to 50% higher installed battery capacity compared with other OEMs, resulting in longer autonomy with fewer stops for charging or battery swapping. The high energy-density battery also comes with both active and passive safety systems.

Gert added: “Compared to using a fossil-fuelled loader with similar capacity, the Scooptram ST18 SG eliminates 365 t of CO2 emissions annually. It also reduced heat, noise, and the need for ventilation – which is crucial as mines become increasingly deeper.”

The Scooptram ST18 SG uses Epiroc’s second-generation battery-electric drivetrain, which, it says, has been proven in field by the Scooptram ST14 SG. This drivetrain, the company says, provides outstanding acceleration, manoeuvrability and responsiveness for the operator.

Sarah Hoffman, VP Sales & Marketing at Epiroc’s Underground division, said: “With the Scooptram ST18 SG, we’re bringing our leading zero-emission technology to large-size underground mines. This is an important step in our ambition to drive the industry forward – to a more sustainable, productive and safer future.”

The Scooptram ST18 SG is part of the Smart and Green series (SG), combining battery-electric driveline with Epiroc’s Rig Control System (RCS). It is prepared for 6th Sense functionality such as automation and remote control.

Vale, Epiroc planning for automation shift with battery-electric loaders at Creighton

Automation, Base metals, Environmental, Mine operation news, Mining equipment, Mining safety, Mining services, Mining software, Power supply for mines, Sustainable mining, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The industry has been told continuously that there are plenty of synergies between automation and electrification when it comes to loading and haulage, yet the hard evidence of this complementary nature has not yet surfaced. That could be about to change if a trial at Vale’s Creighton mine in Sudbury, Ontario, proves successful.

Vale has been a key electrification partner for mining OEMs and service providers, testing out a whole host of battery-electric equipment from light utility vehicles to 42-t-payload trucks at its deep mines in Sudbury. This builds on its experience of running diesel-electric Kiruna trucks since the mid-1990s at the Coleman mine (also in Sudbury).

The miner has also commenced trials on surface with battery-electric trucks and is set to commence trolley assist operations at its massive Carajas iron ore mining complex in Minas Gerais, Brazil, later this year.

The variety of testing the company has carried out – in terms of the types of mining operations, vehicle setups, charging methods and electrical infrastructure – means it can be considered an electrification pioneer.

Now, it is looking to combine this experience with its knowledge of autonomous loading operations – again an area of the technology space it is considered a leader in.

In partnership with Epiroc, a battery-electric and automation project is in the planning stages at Vale’s Creighton underground mine.

The two companies commissioned four Epiroc ST14 Battery Scooptram and two MT42 Battery trucks at the operation in preparation for the deepening of the mine in the December quarter of 2022. Full-scale operation is ramping up with a first charging bay already commissioned and new ones coming in the next months, a Vale spokesperson told IM.

“The next steps will be to leverage the autonomous capability of those battery-electric scoops to enable operations between shifts depending on the application at the mine,” the spokesperson said.

Vale has previously said it will transition to an all-electric fleet at Creighton as part of its plans to develop the orebody down to circa-3km below surface.