Tag Archives: rock knowledge

IMDEX aims for directional drilling leadership with Devico acquisition

Mineral exploration, Mining equipment, Mining mergers and acquisitions, Mining services, , , , , ,

Global mining-tech company IMDEX has entered a binding agreement to acquire Norway-based Devico AS in a A$334 million ($230 million) deal that, it says, will reinforce its market-leading position in mining technology and deliver increased market penetration.

The proposed acquisition of Devico AS, a provider of advanced sensors and directional drilling technologies, is expected to be completed by late February.

IMDEX Chief Executive Officer, Paul House, said the proposed acquisition was a highly significant investment that extended IMDEX’s core business in both geographical reach and technology capability. It follows on from a recent heads of agreement to acquire a 40% interest in Krux Analytics, a developer of drilling analytics software focused on the collection and analysis of exploration and production drilling data in real time, for $6.42 million in cash.

The addition of Devico would strengthen IMDEX’s position as the leading provider of advanced rock knowledge sensors and establish the business as the number one directional drilling technology company globally, the company said, with Devico’s portfolio of rock knowledge sensors complementing IMDEX’s existing technology.

IMDEX said: “Through increased scale and market penetration, particularly in Europe and South America, IMDEX would further expand its presence on mine sites, opening further opportunities for its solutions to be delivered to established customers.

“Devico services mining and civil industries globally, has world-class facilities located in a key hub in the Scandinavian mining market, and strong research and development capabilities.”

Alongside this, it has a track record of commercialising innovative mining technologies and a commodity-agnostic product offering which complements IMDEX’s core business, it added.

House said IMDEX saw significant value in combining the complementary product portfolios, market-leading R&D capabilities and global presence.

“Devico’s flagship facility in Trondheim will become a key asset for IMDEX – providing us a new innovation and manufacturing hub for the European market,” he said. “Devico’s expertise, professionalism and their relentless customer focus matches our own and we are excited about what our teams can achieve together for the mining industry. We have commenced integration workstreams and are confident in a smooth transition.”

Devico has a workforce of 200 personnel across 15 locations around the world, with the existing management and technical team seen as a key asset for IMDEX.

Devico is expected to deliver 2022 revenue of about $61 million and EBITDA of $29 million and has demonstrated its ability to scale its business over the past three years with a revenue compound annual growth rate of 17% per year. About 46% of Devico’s revenue is generated from its sensors and 56% from its directional drilling technologies, according to IMDEX.

IMDEX bolsters real-time rock knowledge with Datarock investment

IoT, Mineral exploration, Mineral processing, Mining mergers and acquisitions, Mining services, Mining software, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

IMDEX says it has boosted its rock knowledge capabilities with a deal to acquire an initial 30% stake in image analysis company Datarock for A$5.5 million ($4 million).

Datarock has, IMDEX says, extensive geoscience and data science expertise that has led to the development of a cloud-based platform which applies artificial intelligence and machine learning to automate the extraction of geological and geotechnical information from core imagery, videos, and point clouds. This automation creates high value datasets that drive efficiency within mining operations, IMDEX added.

IMDEX has an exclusive option to acquire the remaining interest in Datarock over the next four years in a two-tranche process, subject to Datarock achieving agreed strategic milestones.

The partnership will enable IMDEX and Datarock to work together to accelerate growth plans, including product development and market expansion, it said.

IMDEX Chief Executive Officer, Paul House, said Datarock’s existing and planned products complemented IMDEX’s existing software including ioGAS™, aiSIRIS, MinePortal, and its cloud-based platform IMDEXHUB-IQ™, and strengthened the company’s ability to deliver real-time rock knowledge answer products.

“The Datarock team and the products they have built are strongly aligned with our strategy, our existing product offering and our value proposition for clients,” House said. “Data collected by geologists and engineers inform operational and financial decisions throughout a mine’s life cycle. This data is commonly collected manually, which is slow, laborious and can be prone to human error. Datarock aims to eliminate this error and deliver high quality and auditable data that provides value for the entire life of the mine.

“We are looking forward to working with the Datarock team. Its members are experts in the field of geoscience, data science and AI, and like IMDEX, have a drive for developing technologies to solve the mining industry’s biggest challenges.”

Datarock is an Australia-based mining technology company servicing the global exploration and mining sector. It is owned by two private companies, Solve Geosolutions Pty Ltd and DiUS Computing Pty Ltd. Solve Geosolutions and Datarock recently combined to both operate under the Datarock name. Solve is one of Australia’s leading geoscience machine learning and data science consulting businesses. DiUS is an Australia-based consultancy that helps organisations build the future using its expertise in AI, machine learning, IoT, cloud computing and product development.

Datarock’s products are applicable across the mining value chain, from geotechnical analysis of drill core during drill out, through to the mining and extraction phase, according to IMDEX. It has an existing customer base with major mining companies globally.

Datarock Chief Executive Officer and Director, Liam Webb, said there were clear synergies between Datarock’s products and several of IMDEX’s offerings.

“By working together, we will add considerable value to both companies,” Webb said. “When we started seeking investment our primary goal was to align ourselves with a company who saw the future the same way we did and could help us achieve our goals. I feel by entering into this agreement with IMDEX, who we believe are one of the world’s leading mining technology companies, we have achieved this.”