Canadian Mining Journal | September 2025

> Blue Lagoon reopens Dome Mountain > Hidden networks driving the future of mining > GOLD 2024: Boom, drills, and deals > WHY MINING SAFETY SYSTEMS FAIL > DO MINERALS DESERVE LEGAL PERSONHOOD?

SEPTEMBER 2025 | www.canadianminingjournal.com | PM # 44082538

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SEPTEMBER 2025 VOL. 146, NO.6

FEATURES

COMMUNICATIONS AND MINE SAFETY

14 Invisible threads: Hidden networks driving the future of mining.

41 Why mining safety systems fail.

10

GOLD IN CANADA

16 Gold 2024: Boom, drills, and deals.

21 A tale of two gold mines: Yellowknife’s mining history.

23 Blue Lagoon reopens Dome Mountain gold mine.

35 Canada’s gold rush: Fueling GDP and strengthening export markets.

TECHNOLOGY, MAINTENANCE, REPAIR, AND EQUIPMENT

26 Enhancing gold recovery with HPGR-based flowsheets.

28 How to tell if switching your PM to NOH is right for you.

14

UNDERGROUND MINING AND TUNNELLING

30 Resin consolidation of large block for longhole drilling: A case study.

TAILINGS AND WATER MANAGEMENT

33 Optimizing the performance of tailings thickeners.

CRITICAL MINERALS AND CIRCULAR ECONOMY

37 Copper is the new gold, and we are running out.

16

DEPARTMENTS

4 EDITORIAL | One precious metal to bring them all and in the darkness outshine them.

6 FAST NEWS | Updates from across the mining ecosystem.

10 INDIGENOUS AFFAIRS | Establishing the triangle of trust:

Integrating Indigenous values.

12 LAW AND REGULATIONS | Building trust and lowering risk

through JVs and partnership arrangements.

39 COMMENTARY | Do minerals deserve legal personhood?

23

41

About the cover: Founded in 2007, today, B2Gold has operating gold mines in Canada, Mali, Namibia, and the Philippines, and numerous development and exploration projects in various countries. Credit: B2Gold.

> Blue Lagoon reopens Dome Mountain > Hidden networks driving the future of mining > GOLD 2024: Boom, drills, and deals > WHY MINING SAFETY SYSTEMS FAIL > DO MINERALS DESERVE LEGAL PERSONHOOD?

SEPTEMBER 2025 | www.canadianminingjournal.com | PM # 44082538

Coming in October 2025

ESG related matters will dominate this issue as we focus on the innovations that will lower carbon output and reduce environmental footprint. Water management, closure, and reclamation will be a part of the discussion, with a special focus on mining in Quebec and the Maritimes.

note: please do not stretch, change colours or modify logo in any way if logo is required for unusual uses, please contact djdesign@jetstream.net for another version

For More Information

Please visit www.canadianminingjournal.com for regular updates on what’s happening with Canadian mining companies and their personnel both here and abroad. A digital version of the magazine is also available at https://www.canadianminingjournal.com/digital-edition/

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CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL | 3

FROM THE EDITOR

Tamer Elbokl, PhD

One precious metal to bring them all and in the darkness outshine them

F

rom the ground to global markets, Canadian gold leaves a glittering imprint on this country’s GDP and trade. Gold’s record-breaking run in 2024 underscored its role as both a safe-haven asset and a driver of global mining. Prices peaked above C$3,800 per oz. before ending just over C$3,600, supported by central bank buying, inflation pressures, and geopolitical uncertainty. Exploration spending surged to C$7.6 billion, with Canada leading at nearly a quarter of the total, while standout drill results in Australia, Canada, and West Africa highlighted a pipeline of high-grade deposits. On the production front, Uzbekistan’s Muruntau and Nevada’s joint Barrick-Newmont operations remained the world’s top mines, while Agnico Eagle’s Detour Lake and Canadian Malartic secured Canada’s presence among global leaders. The year also saw a wave of M&A worth billions, with Canada central to consolidation through deals like Gold Fields’ acquisition of Osisko Mining. Together, these forces reinforced gold’s resilience and strategic importance heading into 2025.

In Canada, gold mining continued to shine in 2024. The country produced about 198 tonnes of gold — a 2% gain over 2023. Employment in gold-and-silver ore mining is close to 20,000 workers, emphasizing the industry’s importance not just to the economy but to livelihoods. These direct jobs support local economies across regions with secondary roles in services, logistics, and support industries, further bolstering development.

These figures highlight gold’s role as a major driver — from high-value exports and global supply chains to supporting employment and regional growth. The strength of Canada’s gold industry, underpinned by production and export performance, underscores its contribution to our national prosperity as demand for critical minerals grows. Across the sector, mining continues to drive hundreds of thousands of jobs and support value chains in equipment, fabrication, and services. With production rising and employment stable in 2025, the sector is well-positioned to sustain contributions to GDP, trade, and labour markets.

The article on pages 16 to 20 of this issue offers a comprehensive review of the global gold industry in 2024, highlighting price trends, exploration spending, standout drilling results, leading producing mines, and the year’s most significant M&A deals.

Other features highlight emerging mine projects and trace the history of gold mining in Canada (pages 21 to 25 and 35 to 36). Featured articles on maintenance, equipment, technology, underground mining, and communications can be found in this issue. Additionally, our regular columns on law and regulations and Indigenous affairs discuss several interesting topics.

Finally, ESG related matters will dominate our October issue, as we focus on innovations that will lower carbon output and reduce environmental footprint. Additionally, there will be a special focus on mining in Quebec and the Maritimes. Relevant editorial contributions should be sent to the Editor in Chief no later than September 7, 2025.

4 | CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

SEPTEMBER 2025 Vol. 146 – No. 6 69 Yonge St., Ste. 200, Toronto, ON M5E 1K3 Tel. (416) 510-6789 Fax (416) 510-5138 www.canadianminingjournal.com Editor in Chief Dr. Tamer Elbokl telbokl@canadianminingjournal.com News Editor Joseph Quesnel jquesnel@canadianminingjournal.com Production Manager Jessica Jubb jjubb@northernminer.com Manager of Product Distribution Allison Mein 416-510-6789 ext 3 amein@northernminergroup.com Publisher & Sales Robert Seagraves 416-510-6891 rseagraves@canadianminingjournal.com Sales, Western Canada George Agelopoulos 416-510-5104 gagelopoulos@northernminer.com Toll Free Canada & U.S.A.: 1-888-502-3456 ext 2 or 43734 Circulation Toll Free Canada & U.S.A.: 1-888-502-3456 ext 3 President, The Northern Miner Group Anthony Vaccaro

Established 1882

Canadian Mining Journal provides articles and information of practical use to those who work in the technical, administrative

and supervisory aspects of exploration, mining and processing in the Canadian mineral exploration and mining industry.

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All rights reserved. The contents of this magazine are protected by copyright and may be used only for your personal non-commercial purposes. All other rights are reserved and commercial use is prohibited. To make use of any of this material you must first obtain the permission of the owner of the copyright. For further information please contact Robert Seagraves at 416-510-6891.

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FAST NEWS

Updates from across the mining ecosystem

• LANDMARK LAW | Government scores victory:

Bill C-5 passes House amidst divided Indigenous opinion

Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government successfully passed Bill C-5 through the House of Commons. Called in full, An Act to enact the Free Trade and Labour Mobility Act and the Building Canada Act, Bill C-5 is the new government’s keystone piece of legislation to break down internal trade barriers and allow for the expedited approval of projects deemed nationally significant.

The bill is largely in response the new trade environment created by tariffs imposed by the Trump administration.

Prime Minister Mark Carney commented: “Bill C-5, One Canadian Economy Act, will remove trade barriers, expedite nation-building projects, and unleash economic growth, with Indigenous partnership at the centre of this growth.

It’s time to build big, build bold, and build now. As Canadians, we can give ourselves more than any foreign nation can ever take away.”

• INDUSTRY HELPS | Mining sector unites

to support Manitoba wildfire relief

HudBay, Vale Base Metals, and Alamos Gold have come together to provide relief for those affected by wildfires in northern Manitoba.

In response to the devastating wildfires affecting communities across northern Manitoba, three leading mining companies — Hudbay Minerals, Vale Base Metals, and Alamos Gold — jointly contributed C$1.25 million to the Canadian Red Cross to support emergency relief and rebuilding efforts.

A joint statement from Hudbay, Vale Base Metals and Alamos reads: “This donation to the Canadian Red Cross reflects our deep commitment to the people and communities of northern Manitoba. We stand in solidarity with those affected, many of whom work with us, and we will continue to be here at this time of need to support long-term recovery efforts.”

Prime Minister Mark Carney.

CREDIT: PRIME MINISTER’S OFFICE.

• MILESTONE POUR | B2Gold pours first gold

at Nunavut’s Goose mine

B2Gold announced the first gold pour at the Goose mine. The Goose mine forms part of the Back River gold district located in Nunavut and is the company’s fourth producing mine in the current operating portfolio and is its first Canadian operating asset.

B2Gold expects the Goose mine to ramp up to commercial production in the third quarter of 2025. The company estimates that gold production in 2025 will range between 120,000 and 150,000 ounces and predicts average annual gold output for the initial full six years of operations (2026 to 2031 inclusive) to reach approximately 300,000 ounces per year, relying solely on existing mineral reserves.

Site of the Goose mine in Nunavut. B2GOLD.

6 | CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

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FAST NEWS

Updates from across the mining ecosystem

• NEW APPROACH | Horne Smelter shelves study and opts

for “optimized” environmental approach

Canada’s only copper smelter in RouynNoranda, Quebec is proposing a new approach to meet environmental targets.

The Horne Smelter, part of Glencore Canada, processes 210,000 tonnes of copper and precious metals annually.

A 2022 study by Quebec’s public health body revealed the smelter exposed Rouyn-Noranda to harmful arsenic and cadmium levels for decades. The Quebec government required the company to reduce emissions substantially, The nearly 100-year-old Horne copper smelter. CREDIT: GLENCORE. though without a defined timeline. mance purification systems, compatible with existing operaGlencore proposed an optimized approach to meet the arsetions, will complement this setup. This approach aims to imnic target of 15 ng/m³ annually, measured at the legal monitorprove air quality while ensuring the smelter’s safety, stability, ing station. This strategy includes encapsulating the smelting and sustainability. zone—covering equipment like the reactor, Noranda converter, and anodes—to control emissions at the source. High-perfor-

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INTRODUCING CANADA’S NEWEST GOLD MINE Goose Mine Commences Operations

8 | CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

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• PROJECT REVIEW | Ring of Fire passes

important milestone with early review period for First Nations Webequie First Nation, the Indigenous community closest to the Ring of Fire in Northern Ontario, has released the draft environmental assessment report/impact statement Logo for Webeque First Nation.

(EAR/IS) for the proposed Webequie CREDIT: WEBEQUE FIRST NATION. supply road (WSR). This release begins a 60-day early review period exclusively for Indigenous communities in the region, allowing them additional time and support to review the report before the formal public review.

This release marks a major milestone in the WSR project, showcasing Webequie’s commitment to an Indigenous-led consultation process. The approach gives Indigenous communities additional time to analyze the EAR/ IS report before the formal public and Indigenous review later this summer.

The Ontario government has provided funding and support to eligible First Nations to review the terms of reference, carry out Indigenous knowledge studies, and participate in the environmental review process over the past five years.

• NATION BUILDING | Ontario designates Canada

Nickel’s Crawford a nation building project

The Ontario government has designated Canada Nickel’s Crawford nickel sulphide project as part of its priority nation building initiatives.

In a joint letter to Canada’s minister of energy and natural resources, Ontario’s ministers of energy and mines, natural resources, and Indigenous affairs and First Nations economic reconciliation identified the Crawford project as one of five strategic critical minerals projects ready for near-term development as part of three transformational, nation-building projects.

In this open letter provided to media and the company on June 5, 2025, the ministers also highlighted additional provincial funding for the sector to fully realize the value of these resources, such as the $500 million Critical Minerals Processing Fund, as well as nearly $3.1 billion in loans, grants, scholarships and other funding to support meaningful Indigenous ownership and partnership in critical mineral development.

Crawford project in northern Ontario. CREDIT: CANADA NICKEL.

| Electra and Three Fires advance Canada’s first Indigenous-led battery recycling venture

• HISTORIC FIRST

Electra Battery Materials and the Three Fires Group are making progress on the Aki Battery Recycling joint venture, the first Indigenous-led lithium-ion battery recycling initiative in Canada. Aki pioneers a low-emission, circular solution for managing battery waste, strengthens domestic supply chains, and reduces reliance on offshore processing.

Since launching the joint venture in 2024, the team has achieved several milestones and strategic developments, including: formally establishing Canada’s first Indigenous-led lithium-ion battery recycling venture; shortlisting technology partners following site visits and comprehensive due diligence on advanced battery recycling platforms; engaging government partners to secure funding for a bankable feasibility study; and evaluating prospective sites, with plans to co-locate or near-locate the facility alongside lithium-ion battery manufacturers and on or near First Nations lands to maximize regional impact.

Electra and Three Fires Group push first Indigenous-led battery recycling venture.

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CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL | 9

INDIGENOUS AFFAIRS

By Peter Bryant and Lana Eagle

Establishing the triangle of trust: Integrating Indigenous values

A small inukshuk along the side of a river in rural Ontario, Canada.

A traditional symbol of the Indigenous people who used to live here. CREDIT: ERIKA NORRIS/ADOBE STOCK

I

ndigenous communities play a critical role in developing the world’s natural resources. In this series of articles, we have touched on the importance of establishing a triangle of trust between Indigenous communities, companies, and the government. Our last piece went deeper into breaking down what that looks like from a practical standpoint. Now, as Indigenous communities — whether First Nations, Inuit, or Metis — actively redefine their roles in mining, becoming true development partners, how do companies go about understanding and incorporating their values into projects?

And how is that impacting the industry?

Recognizing Indigenous knowledge and skills in mine planning, development, and operation delivers significant value.

From an ethical standpoint, it aligns companies with global standards for engagement and helps to strengthen the triangle of trust referenced above, promoting community development while building strong relationships throughout the life cycle of the mine. Practicability speaking, integrating Indigenous knowledge results in more comprehensive environmental assessments, informed land stewardship, and sustainable resource management that can potentially de-risk projects

10 | CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

that conventional development approaches overlook. Cultural mapping, ecological surveys, community-led environmental monitoring, traditional knowledge on land use and management — these are just a few examples of the incredibly valuable tools that come directly from Indigenous engagement. The inclusion of Indigenous values, knowledge, and capabilities increases the sustainability of mining operations, while also aligning companies with current environmental, social, and governance (ESG) standards.

Our last column emphasized the establishment of governance models that enable Indigenous communities to make decisions over resource management and incorporate their knowledge and perspective in policies, which is a key factor in ensuring that their values are integrated right from the start of a project. Indigenous communities are stepping into roles as co-owners and board members. In Canada, Indigenous communities have started to establish equity partnerships in mining projects and have negotiated impact benefit (IB) agreements to ensure that profits are reinvested into community and infrastructure development, and we have also seen the emergence of Indigenous-led resource management

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boards, such as the Nisga’a Nation in British Columbia. This is part of a broader global evolution in Indigenous leadership in mining — in Australia, Aboriginal communities play leading roles in mining operations via Native Title Agreements. Indigenous leaders are actively involved in governance mechanisms and strategies in Antofagasta, Chile. Those are just two examples among many.

On the mining side, companies have a responsibility to incorporate Indigenous knowledge and skills into the entire life cycle of the mine — prospecting, planning, development, exploitation, closure, and rehabilitation — and integrate them into environmental management practices. A demonstrated commitment to Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) is crucial, as are intentional education and engagement efforts.

Investing in land-based and Indigenous-focused learning and increasing the recruitment and retention of Indigenous peoples in mining companies are ways to improve the natural inclusion of Indigenous values into company operations. An investment like BHP’s establishment of a $50 million Indigenous Development Fund in Australia created specifically to support Indigenous-led initiatives in education, employment, and business development, is one example.

Government also has a role to play here. It has a responsibility to see that Indigenous communities have access to the necessary expertise and financial resources to support fully informed decision making, enabling Indigenous communities to appropriately advocate for the inclusion of their values, knowledge, and skillsets in mining projects. This includes

mining-specific legal, financial, and environmental expertise, so that Indigenous communities are not bearing the costs of engaging with the mining industry. It is also responsible for developing and enforcing regulations that ensure Indigenous rights and knowledge are respected and utilized in mining industry engagements.

Ultimately, integrating Indigenous values into mining projects requires an active commitment on the part of the mining companies to respect Indigenous knowledge and ensure opportunities for its inclusion before day one of a project. Board participation and equity ownership are key to ensuring Indigenous leadership is represented in mining, as is ongoing investment into education and development of an Indigenous workforce. Not only does this continue to strengthen the vital triangle of trust between companies, Indigenous communities, and government, but also Indigenous value and knowledge inclusion lead to better outcomes for all stakeholders, so that the co-created shared vision of prosperity can come to fruition.

Peter Bryant is board chair of Clareo, an international strategy consulting firm focused on natural resources, energy, and food industries. He is also the board chair of the Development Partner Institute. Lana Eagle is an Indigenous relations strategist. She is currently on the board of the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) and Kodiak Copper. She is also a member of Whitecap Dakota First Nation.

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CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL | 11

LAW AND REGULATIONS

By Linda Misetich Dann and Jeff Taylor

Building trust and lowering risk through JVs and partnership arrangements

C

urrent market conditions are making mining joint ventures (JVs) and partnerships increasingly attractive structures. Across the mining industry, there is a lack of capital, and we are seeing more mining companies establish JVs and strategic partnerships to access capital and derisk mining projects. We expect the use of JVs and partnership structures in the mining industry to accelerate.

JVs and partnerships are inherently complex structures that involve a range of strategic considerations and offer significant potential benefits to the parties involved. When implemented properly, they can mitigate development risk, enhance supply

12 | CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

chain capabilities, and serve as a valuable interim step toward a merger or acquisition.

Partnering on developing a project Typically, JVs are struck between junior mining companies looking to partner with larger mining companies and/or private equity funds at key stages of development for the junior.

The main advantages for juniors include the following: • access to capital.

• sharing the risks and liabilities of developing a project.

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JVs and partnerships provide more than just financial solutions; they are strategic tools that can help unlock value and drive sustained growth.

• creating synergies between the two companies (JVs are particularly attractive to majors when projects are close geographically or when the major wants to enter the jurisdiction of the junior).

• access to the larger company’s expertise and resources and the potential for acceleration of exploration, development, or production timelines.

Key advantages for majors include the following: • building out their portfolio with projects that are close geographically or in new jurisdictions of interest.

• access to a team familiar with the resource and/or local communities, including First Nations communities, as well as governmental requirements.

• sharing the risks and liabilities of developing a project.

• creating a pipeline for future acquisitions.

JVs and partnerships allow companies to come together, develop projects as a team and demonstrate the long-term viability of a project. This can be a well-timed move when one company has progressed a project and achieved certain development milestones but is then faced with the need to raise significant additional capital to progress further or having to sell their interest in the project too soon. JVs and partnerships can also act as an interim step on the path to a merger or acquisition. In such situations, the parties work to further develop a project, and in doing so, they can become more familiar with the project and their counterparty, which can help prove out an investment thesis and de-risk larger merger or acquisition transactions.

Shareholder approval The potential need to obtain shareholder approval is a source of deal risk for companies in many transaction scenarios, and we see corporate boards have an increased appetite for exploring deals that are not subject to shareholder approval. Another potential benefit to JVs and partnership structures is that, in certain circumstances, they can be structured in ways that do not require shareholder approval.

Complexities in JVs and partnerships JVs and partnerships are complex by nature. When these deals are being negotiated, it is important that they are structured carefully and with due consideration to a vast array of topics, including with respect to governance rights, roles, contributions, IP rights and exit provisions. Consideration also needs to be given to the impact the arrangement might have on future merger and acquisition (M&A) deals, either involving the parties or the project.

We are also seeing mining companies form strategic alliances with players in other sectors, such as automotive and technology. These cross-sector arrangements introduce additional complexities given the distinct business objectives, resources, expertise, and risk tolerances of the parties. As a result, these arrangements require careful structuring and often lead to bespoke agreements.

Looking ahead JVs and partnerships provide more than just financial solutions; they are strategic tools that can help unlock value and drive sustained growth. Strong alignment between the JV partners is critical, and the structure must be carefully designed with both near-term milestones and long-term objectives in mind. As companies respond to evolving market conditions, we anticipate increased use of JVs and partnerships in Canada and throughout the global mining industry.

Linda Misetich Dann is a partner at Bennett Jones in Toronto. She practices securities and corporate law with a focus on corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, and transactional work in the mining sector.

Jeff Taylor is a partner at Bennett Jones in Vancouver. He advises both public and private companies on a range of matters including mergers and acquisitions, public and private financing, contested transactions, and complex mining transactions.

SEPTEMBER 2025

CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL | 13

COMMUNICATION

By Steve Gravel

Invisible threads:

Hidden networks driving the future of mining

I

n 2025, the foundations of mining are shifting away from purely mechanical and geological concerns toward something far more connected: the ability to move information instantly and reliably across every part of an operation. Communication networks now function as the nervous system of modern mining, enabling automation, enhancing safety, and providing the means to respond when disaster strikes. Their presence has begun to influence decisions far beyond technology procurement, shaping debates over who controls operational data, how risks are managed, and what kind of autonomy mine operators truly have.

The adoption of private wireless systems is a prime example of this shift.

High-performance, site-specific networks allow real-time transmission of video, telemetry, and control signals between deep underground and surface control rooms. In Finland, at Agnico Eagle’s Kittilä Mine, a dedicated private 5G network has been deployed in partnership with Nokia to support autonomous machinery, predictive maintenance, and immersive remote monitor-

14 | CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

ing, showcasing how edge computing and tailored network architecture can keep pace with the extreme demands of mining environments. Such systems do not just transmit data; they become embedded into safety protocols and operational workflows, forming the backbone of digital twins, adaptive safety zones, and autonomous equipment fleets.

But these capabilities are not confined to fixed infrastructure. Mining operations are rarely static, and portable private networks have emerged to fill that gap. Turnkey Communications’ rugged, rapidly deployable LTE and 5G platforms now allow operators to set up fully functional, secure networks wherever extraction or exploration moves next. This mobility means the same standard of communication, and thus the same level of safety, monitoring,

and automation, can now be extended to even the most remote or temporary sites without depending on fragile public networks.

The automation of haulage fleets makes the interdependence between communication systems and operational efficiency even more obvious.

Driverless trucks, loaders, and drills do not operate in isolation, they rely on split-second, uninterrupted connections to navigate, avoid collisions, and coordinate with control systems. Without high-bandwidth, low-latency communications, the promises of automation collapse into downtime and safety hazards.

When disaster hits, the value of these networks is tested in a different way.

The collapse of a tailings dam in Zambia earlier this year released millions of liters of toxic waste into a major water source, triggering an emergency response across multiple sectors. From deploying environmental countermeasures to issuing health advisories and coordinating evacuations, every action depended on the rapid flow of information through secure, functioning communication channels. In such crises, the network itself becomes an instrument of survival. Its reliability dictates the speed and coherence of the response.

All this technological progress exposes a deeper, less visible tension: ownership and control. While private 5G and portable networks are sold as tools for independence, many are still managed by third-party vendors. This arrangement can erode an operator’s sovereignty over mission-critical systems, from au-

The future of mining will not be determined solely by how much data can be moved or how fast; it will be defined by who controls that movement, how securely it is handled, and whether those systems remain functional in both the best and worst of circumstances. www.canadianminingjournal.com

tonomous fleet coordination to environmental monitoring.

Once integrated into a mine’s digital infrastructure, these networks are difficult and costly to replace, locking operators into long-term dependencies that may carry geopolitical and cybersecurity risks.

The problem is no longer theoretical either as ransomware attacks on industrial LTE networks have already brought mining operations to a standstill, underscoring the vulnerability of outsourced control.

As mining becomes more reliant on digital communication, the strategic stakes of network governance increase. These systems carry sensitive environmental data, high-definition video, and even biometric information from workers. Knowing who can access that data, where it is stored, and how it is protected will become as central to mining strategy as equipment procurement or ore grade optimization.

The path forward is not simply to build stronger networks but to embed trust, transparency, and resilience into their design. The future of mining will not be determined solely by

SEPTEMBER 2025

how much data can be moved or how fast; it will be defined by who controls that movement, how securely it is handled, and whether those systems remain functional in both the best and worst of circumstances. In this connected era, a mine’s true strength lies not only in its machinery or mineral reserves, but in the integrity of the invisible threads that bind its operations together.

Steve Gravel is the manager of the Centre for Smart Mining at Cambrian College.

CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL | 15

GOLD

By Tamer Elbokl, PhD

GOLD 2024:

Boom, drills, and deals

The 2024 global gold report — Exploration, drilling, production, and major M&As

G

old prices in 2024 glittered at historic highs, fuelled by stubborn inflation, central banks’ buying, and heightened geopolitical risks. The metal averaged near record territory for much of the year, breaking through $3,350 per oz. in the spring before easing on a stronger U.S. dollar and shifting interest-rate expectations. Safe-haven demand stayed robust, with central banks — led by China — adding to reserves, while investors used gold as a hedge against economic uncertainty and market volatility, thus leading to the precious metal breaking the $3,800 per oz. threshold by the end of October before ending the year at just above $3,600 per oz.

Volatility marked the year’s trading pattern: sharp rallies followed by profit-taking pullbacks kept the market on edge.

Even so, gold closed the year well above its 2023 average, reinforcing its status as a resilient store of value. The persistent combination of macroeconomic headwinds, geopolitical flashpoints, and steady physical demand set the stage for continued strength heading into 2025.

This article offers a comprehensive review of the global gold industry in 2024, highlighting price trends, exploration spending, standout drilling results, leading producing mines, and the year’s most significant M&A deals.

Exploration budgets Global gold exploration budgets reached $7.61 billion in 2024 (Table 1), with Canada leading at $1.78 billion, or 23.35% of the total, followed by Latin America ($1.46 billion), Australia ($1.25 billion), and the U.S. ($1.16 billion). Africa and the rest of world category each recorded just over $837 million, while Pacific/ Southeast Asia had the smallest regional total at $286.48 million.

16 | CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

Kiena mine complex, Val-d’Or, Québec.

CREDIT: WESDOME GOLD MINES

Canada, Australia, and the U.S. together accounted for 55% of global spending (Table 2), underscoring their dominance. Canada and Australia each had more than 300 active companies (373 and 322, respectively), reflecting broad exploration bases, while the U.S. operated with fewer than half as many companies as Australia, resulting in a higher average budget per company.

Mexico ranked fourth among individual countries at $399.37 million (5.25%), followed by China at $279.63 million (3.68%).

Argentina, Peru, Côte d’Ivoire, and Chile each captured between 1.98% and 2.45%, while Brazil, Ecuador, Ghana, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Mali rounded out the top 15 with between 1.20% and 1.93%. Notably, major historical gold producers such as South Africa were absent from the top tier, indicating a shift in exploration priorities.

Spending intensity varied widely. Saudi Arabia led with an average of $26.58 million per company across just four operators, followed by China ($13.32 million) and Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana (both over $9.3 million). Russia, Ecuador, and the U.S.

Table 1. The 2024 global gold exploration budgets by location.

Location

Budget ($ million)

Canada

1,776.0

Latin America

1,456.8

Australia

1,251.1

U.S.

1,157.6

Rest of world

840.1

Africa

837.5

Pacific/Southeast Asia

286.5

Total

7,605.6

www.canadianminingjournal.com

Table 2. The top 2024 global gold exploration budgets in perspective.

Global rank

Global gold exploration budget trend 2020-2024.

CREDIT: S&P CAPITAL IQ PRO DATABASE

also posted high per-company averages, ranging from $6.73 million to $9.11 million. In contrast, Canada and Australia’s large number of operators diluted their averages to $4.76 million and $3.89 million, respectively.

These trends reveal a clear divide between countries fostering large, capital-intensive projects and those with broad-based exploration ecosystems driven by many smaller operators.

By project stage (Table 3), mine site exploration dominated spending with $3.46 billion, accounting for almost 46% of the total budget. Late-stage and feasibility work attracted $2.67 billion (35%), while grassroots exploration received $1.47 billion (19%).

Major mining companies were the biggest spenders, committing $4.17 billion, or 55% of the total. Junior companies accounted for $2.51 billion (33%), while intermediates spent $846.4 million. Government agencies and other entities contributed less than 2% combined (Table 4).

In general, the 2024 exploration data underscore a market heavily weighted toward advanced-stage projects and mine site work, with majors maintaining the largest share of global spending. Canada’s top position reflects its mature mining ecosystem and strong pipeline of both operating mines and exploration properties.

Top 20 drill results When ranked purely by gold grade equivalent (Table 5), 2024’s drill results read like a roll call of bonanza-grade hits that would quicken any geoloSEPTEMBER 2025

Country

Exploration budget ($ million)

Global budget share (%)

Companies (count)

1

Canada

1,776.0

23.35

373

2

Australia

1,251.1

16.45

322 172

3

U.S.

1,157.6

15.22

4

Mexico

399.4

5.25

74

5

China

279.6

3.68

21

6

Argentina

186.1

2.45

32

7

Peru

164.4

2.16

44

8

Côte d’Ivoire

161.7

2.13

17

9

Chile

150.8

1.98

37

10

Brazil

146.7

1.93

25

11

Ecuador

124.7

1.64

16

12

Ghana

121.3

1.59

13

13

Russia

109.3

1.44

12

14

Saudi Arabia

106.3

1.40

4

15

Mali

91.1

1.20

15

Table 3. The 2024 global gold exploration budgets by project stage.

Project stage

Budget ($ million)

Grassroots

1,473.0

Late stage & feasibility

2,669.8

Minesite

3,462.8

gist’s pulse. At the top of the list, Southern Cross Gold’s Sunday Creek project in Australia delivered all four top results, and three more out of the top 20, starting with an eye-watering 7,333 g/t over 0.3 metre — the kind of intercept that becomes a company-maker overnight. The same project struck again with 4,887.637 g/t over 0.3 metre, proving lightning can indeed strike twice in the same core. Serbia’s Coka Rakita, in the hands of Dundee Precious Metals, stunned with 3,025 g/t over an impressive one metre interval, blending skyhigh grade with mine-shaping scale. Not to be outdone, Perseus Mining’s Yaoure mine in Côte d’Ivoire drilled 3,009 g/t over one metre in 6th place, while Emerald Resources’ Snoul project in Cambodia produced a dazzling 2,090 g/t over one metre in 10th place.

Canada’s highest gold grade equivalent intercept in 2024 came from Pan American Silver’s Whitney project in Ontario, which returned 1,940 g/t from diamond drilling at the reserves stage.

Close behind was Wesdome’s Kiena

Table 4. The 2024 global gold exploration budgets by company type.

Company Type

Budget ($ million)

Major

4,167.9

Junior

2,512.1

Intermediate

846.4

Government

73.4

Other

5.8

mine in Quebec, an operating asset that delivered 1,920 g/t. New Found Gold’s Queensway project in Newfoundland added three entries to the list: 1,910 g/t from diamond drilling, along with 1,808 g/t and 1,494 g/t from channel sampling during the prefeasibility/scoping stage.

These results span producing mines, development-ready deposits, and advanced exploration projects, highlighting the strength of Canada’s high-grade gold pipeline. From Ontario’s historic gold belts to Quebec’s established mining camps and Newfoundland’s emerging district, the assays point to a mix of near-term production opportunities and significant resource growth potential, all anchored by world-class grades. Together, these results show the diversity of Canada’s gold bounty.

In general, while some of the top 20 intervals were narrow flashes of extreme grade and others were long runs of rich mineralization, all point to ore zones with the power to redefine mine plans and spark market excitement.

CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL | 17

GOLD

Visible gold from 97.6 metres down hole NFGC23-1848 in the newly discovered Vegas zone at the Queensway project in Newfoundland; 1,920 g/t over 0.3 metre.

of Uzbekistan’s Almalyk Complex at 1.11 million oz. Combined, the top five projects contributed nearly 7.9% of world production, underscoring the high concentration of output among a small group of mines.

Canada’s presence in the top tier came from Agnico Eagle’s Detour Lake and Canadian Malartic operations, which produced 672,000 oz. and 656,000 oz., respectively, together representing 1.19% of global output. Other notable producers included Ghana’s Ahafo mine, Kazakhstan’s Kazzinc Consoli-

CREDIT: NEW FOUND GOLD

From Australia’s goldfields to Canada’s frozen frontiers, and from West Africa to Southeast Asia, 2024’s top assays prove that the hunt for truly exceptional gold is far from over.

Top 20 producing projects in 2024 Muruntau in Uzbekistan retained its position as the world’s top gold-producing project in 2024, delivering 2.68 million oz. valued at $8.78 billion and accounting for 2.4% of global output (Table 6). Nevada Operations, run jointly by Barrick and Newmont, followed closely in volume at 2.68 million oz., while Indonesia’s Grasberg produced 1.86 million oz. worth $6.11 billion. Russia’s Olimpiada placed fourth at 1.44 million oz., ahead

The Muruntau mine in Uzbekistan provides most of the output by a miner you may not recognize, Navoi Mining and Metallurgical Co. CREDIT: NAVOI

Table 5. Top 20 drill results in 2024 globally.

Company

Type of drilling or sampling

Depth (meters)

Gold grade equivalent (g/tonne)

Southern Cross Gold

Diamond

604.55

7,333.056

Active

Southern Cross Gold

Diamond

563.53

4,887.637

Active

Southern Cross Gold

Diamond

604.22

3,514.056

Reserves

Active

Southern Cross Gold

Diamond

643.83

3,419.358

Feasibility started

Active

Dundee Precious Metals

Diamond

161.51

3,025.000

Operating

Active

Perseus Mining

Diamond

103.36

3,008.890

Australia

Operating

Care and maintenance

Spartan Resources

Diamond

576.60

2,807.000

Australia

Reserves

Active

Southern Cross Gold

Diamond

563.34

2,550.302

Sunday Creek

Australia

Reserves

Active

Southern Cross Gold

Diamond

604.22

2,320.690

Snoul

Cambodia

Reserves

Active

Emerald Resources

Diamond

112.58

2,090.000

Global rank

Hole or sampling ID

Country

Development stage

Project

1

SDDSC107

Sunday Creek

Status

Australia

Reserves

Active

2

SDDSC145

3

SDDSC107

Sunday Creek

Australia

Reserves

Sunday Creek

Australia

Reserves

4 5

SDDSC144

Sunday Creek

Australia

RIDD052A

Coka Rakita

Serbia

6

YRC2382D

Yaoure

Côte d’Ivoire

7

DGRC1400-DT

Dalgaranga

8

SDDSC145

Sunday Creek

9

SDDSC107

10

DD24MMT243

11

TW24-793

Whitney

Canada

Reserves

Active

Pan American Silver

Diamond

144.62

1,940.000

12

N127-6894

Kiena

Canada

Operating

Active

Wesdome Gold Mines

Diamond

NA

1,920.000

13

NFGC-23-1848

Queensway

Canada

Prefeas/ Scoping

Active

New Found Gold

Diamond

94.08

1,910.000

14

DDH1218

Haile

U.S.

Operating

Active

OceanaGold

Diamond

NA

1,835.000

15

KM-24-01-17

Queensway

Canada

Prefeas/ Scoping

Active

New Found Gold

Channel Sampling

NA

1,808.000

16

ST-1181

Kettle RiverBuckhorn

U.S.

Reserves

Active

Kinross Gold

NA

NA

1,610.000 1,568.550

17

TGC-0163

Tuvatu

Fiji

Operating

Active

Lion One Metals

Diamond

5.89

18

TGC-0237

Tuvatu

Fiji

Operating

Active

Lion One Metals

Diamond

10.09

1,517.790

19

KM-24-01-64

Queensway

Canada

Prefeas/ Scoping

Active

New Found Gold

Channel Sampling

NA

1,494.000

20

SDDSC107

Sunday Creek

Australia

Reserves

Active

Southern Cross Gold

Diamond

505.84

1,409.927

18 | CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

www.canadianminingjournal.com

Table 6. Top 20 producing projects in 2024.

Global rank

Project

Location

1

Muruntau

2

Grasberg

Current controlling company(s)

Production – (gold oz.)*

Production value ($ million)

Global production share (%)

Uzbekistan

Navoi Mining and Metallurgical

2,676,656 E

8,783.37

2.405

Indonesia

PT Mineral Industri Indonesia, FreeportMcMoRan

1,861,000

6,106.81

1.672

3

Nevada Operations

U.S.

Barrick Mining, Newmont.

2,682,927

5,414.43

1.482

4

Olimpiada

Russia

PJSC Polyus

1,441,300

4,729.58

1.295

5

Almalyk Complex

Uzbekistan

Almalyk Mining Metals

1,114,000 E

3,655.57

1.001

6

Batu Hijau

Indonesia

Services Indonesia

1,009,000 E

3,311.00

0.907

7

Kazzinc Consolidated

Kazakhstan

Kazzinc

1,000,000

3,281.47

0.898

8

Ahafo

Ghana

Newmont

798,000

2,618.61

0.717

9

Detour Lake

Canada

Agnico Eagle Mines

671,950

2,204.98

0.604

10

Canadian Malartic

Canada

Agnico Eagle Mines

655,654

2,151.51

0.589

11

Tasiast

Mauritania

Kinross Gold

622,394

2,042.38

0.559

12

Lihir

Papua New Guinea

Newmont

614,000

2,014.82

0.552

13

Kumtor

Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyzaltyn OJSC

592,142 E

1,943.10

0.532

14

Boddington

Australia

Newmont

590,000

1,936.07

0.530

15

Loulo

Mali

Barrick Mining, Mali

722,888

1,897.72

0.520

16

Tarkwa

Ghana

Gold Fields

537,200

1,762.81

0.483

17

Paracatu

Brazil

Kinross Gold

528,574

1,734.50

0.475

18

Meadowbank

Canada

Agnico Eagle Mines

504,719

1,656.22

0.453

19

Fruta del Norte

Ecuador

Lundin Gold

502,029

1,647.39

0.451

20

Blagodatnoye

Russia

PJSC Polyus

499,800

1,640.08

0.449

Note: *E Indicates the data point is an estimate. Estimated volumes are derived by S&P Global Market Intelligence analysts when a company does not report actual or forecast property production figures.

The Grasberg open-pit mine in Indonesia at 4000 metres with the mountains in the background.

CREDIT: GR8PH1CS/ADOBE STOCK

dated, and Indonesia’s Batu Hijau, each yielding around one million oz. Kinross Gold’s Tasiast mine in Mauritania rounded out the top 11 with 622,000 oz. The data highlights the geographic diversity of the largest gold mines, with operations spanning North America, Africa, Central Asia, and Southeast Asia, but also shows how a handful of massive projects disproportionately influence global supply.

SEPTEMBER 2025

The remainder of the top 20 features a broad mix of regions and operators.

Newmont’s Lihir mine in Papua New Guinea led this group with 614,000 oz, followed closely by Kyrgyzaltyn’s Kumtor mine and Newmont’s Boddington in Australia, each producing just under 600,000 oz. Mali’s Loulo complex, Ghana’s Tarkwa, and Brazil’s Paracatu each yielded more than 520,000 oz. Agnico Eagle’s Meadowbank in Canada and Lundin Gold’s Fruta del Norte in Ecuador both topped 500,000 oz, while Russia’s Blagodatnoye and China’s Qulong mines completed the list with just under 500,000 oz each. Collectively, these 10 operations contributed over 4.8% of global output, reinforcing the role of mid-tier high-volume mines in sustaining worldwide gold supply.

Top M&As Finally, in 2024, the gold sector saw a surge in merger-and-acquisition (M&A) activity (Table 7), led by Australia’s NorthCANADIAN MINING JOURNAL | 19

GOLD ern Star Resources buying De Grey Mining for $3.95 billion — the year’s largest gold deal.

Other high-value transactions included Zijin Mining Group acquiring Newmont Golden Ridge in Ghana for $1.36 billion, and a series of Australian consolidations such as Westgold Resources’ $1.05-billion purchase of Karora Resources and Red 5’s $705.78-million takeover of Silver Lake Resources. Activity was geographically diverse, with deals spanning Africa, South America, and the Asia-Pacific, underscoring a global appetite for reserve growth and production scale amid strong gold prices.

A drone view of the processing facility at Magino mine in the Island Gold District. CREDIT: ALAMOS GOLD Canada was at the heart of the M&A wave, claiming nine of the top 20 deals. The larglion, G Mining Ventures’ $553.02-million takeover of Reunion est Canadian transaction was Gold Fields’ $1.82-billion acGold, and Silvercorp Metals’ purchase of Adventus Mining for quisition of Osisko Mining, followed by Premier Gold Mines $215.01 million. This flurry of Canadian transactions reflects Hardrock taking a 40% stake in Greenstone Gold Mines for a focus on both expanding domestic production and acquir$1.35 billion and Orla Mining’s $1.20-billion purchase of the ing strategic assets abroad, reinforcing Canada’s position as a Musselwhite Joint Venture. Other notable deals included Alleading hub for gold-sector consolidation. amos Gold’s acquisition of Argonaut Gold for $705.64 mil-

Table 7. Top 20 gold companies M&A deals announced in 2024, ranked by transaction value.

Global rank

Target

Buyer

Acquired %

Country

Announced transaction value ($ million)

1

De Grey Mining

Northern Star Resources

100.00

Australia

3,950.63

2

Osisko Mining

Gold Fields

100.00

Canada

1,817.03

3

Newmont Golden Ridge

Zijin Mining Group

100.00

Ghana

1,360.66

4

Greenstone Gold Mines

Premier Gold Mines Hardrock

40.00

Canada

1,348.58

5

Musselwhite Joint Venture Mine

Orla Mining

100.00

Canada

1,196.50

6

Karora Resources

Westgold Resources

100.00

Australia

1,054.17

7

Silver Lake Resources

Red 5

100.00

Australia

705.78

8

Argonaut Gold

Alamos Gold

100.00

Canada

705.64

9

Blyvoor Gold Operations Pty/ Blyvoor Gold Resources

Rigel Resource Acquisition

100.00

South Africa

557.47

10

Reunion Gold

G Mining Ventures

100.00

Canada

553.02

11

Hummingbird Resources

Nioko Resources

58.19

U.K.

428.36

12

La Arena

Jinteng (Singapore) Mining

100.00

Peru

405.45

13

Osino Resources

Shanjin International Gold Co.

100.00

Canada

367.40

14

Adventus Mining

Silvercorp Metals

100.00

Canada

215.01

15

OreCorp

Perseus Mining

80.10

Australia

176.74

16

Condor Gold

Metals Exploration

100.00

U.K.

158.38

17

O3 Mining

Agnico Eagle Mines

100.00

Canada

157.01

18

Calibre Mining

Undisclosed Buyer

10.10

Canada

139.04

19

AXF Gold Ridge

Wanguo Gold Group

20.22

Australia

129.22

20

G Mining Ventures

RBC Dominion Securities

5.15

Canada

97.35

Disclaimer

• All monetary figures presented in the tables are expressed in millions of Canadian dollars.

• Total national mine production figures are compiled independently by the World Bureau of Metal Statistics (WBMS) and may differ from production totals in the S&P Global Market Intelligence database, owing to the

20 | CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

absence of reliable mine-level information for certain countries.

• The datasets, expressed in Canadian dollars, were extracted, refined, reviewed, and analyzed by the author using the S&P Capital IQ Pro database, to the best of the author’s knowledge and professional judgment.

www.canadianminingjournal.com

GOLD IN CANADA: HISTORY

A tale of two gold mines:

By John Sandlos and Arn Keeling

The headframe at Giant Mine in 2013 in the process of being dismantled and eventually demolished. CREDIT: JOHN SANDLOS

Yellowknife’s mining history

W

hen the Robertson headframe was slated for demolition after Con Mine had closed in 2003, Yellowknifers fought to preserve a structure that, at 76-metres tall, had become an important monument to the city’s gold mining history.

Although the mining heritage advocates lost their battle in 2016, when the headframe was destroyed with a controlled explosion, the debate reflected Yellowknife’s indelible pride in its gold mining history. Other signs of the city’s mining heritage are everywhere, including the relatively new Yellowknife Historical Museum (located on the old Giant Mine site with lots of mining heritage displays), plaques commemorating local history, and a bookstore full of oral histories and other popular works that concentrate on the vibrant local community and esprit de corps that grew along with the mines. So intwined is Yellowknife with the geological formations that contained the gold, a local saying refers to it as the “city where the gold is paved with streets.”

But Yellowknife’s mining history also has a darker side. Most notoriously, in the early 1990s Giant Mine was the scene of a bitter and divisive labour dispute that included the murder of nine replacement workers. Recent podcast series and a new edition of Lee Selleck and Frances Thompson’s classic investigation of the strike, “Dying for Gold,” have brought new attention to this tragic episode. Since Giant’s closure in 1999, it is SEPTEMBER 2025

gold mining’s long-term environmental legacies in Yellowknife that dominate public concern and debates. Beginning in 1942, Consolidated Mining and Smelting Co.’s Con Mine began to roast arsenopyrite ore, spreading toxic arsenic trioxide dust throughout the local landscape.

Although this was a small operation, and roasting ceased as the gold mines shut down during World War II, arsenic trioxide pollution accelerated greatly when Giant Mine began roasting in 1949 because most of this mine’s ore required roasting prior to cyanide treatment. At its peak between 1949 and 1951, the two gold mines were emitting as much as 22,000 lbs. of arsenic trioxide dust from their roaster stacks. Con started treating its emissions with a wet scrubber in 1949, an approach that dramatically reduced air pollution but created a more concentrated water pollution problems as contaminated liquid seeped out of a holding pond. Even the oral histories that celebrated the early days of the community contained testimony from several people recalling the loss of the local dairy supply as Bevan family’s cattle herd died in 1949 from drinking contaminated water because of Con Mine.

The advent of gold mining in Yellowknife also carried dire consequences for the areas original inhabitants — the Yellowknives Dene First Nation (YKDFN).

Elders from the YKDFN communities of N’dilo and Dettah recall the sudden arrival of prospectors and exploration crews in the 1930s, and the eventual,

rapid development of the mines proceeding without any consultation. The gold mines disrupted important hunting, fishing, and berrying areas, but it was the arsenic that carried the greatest danger because the Yellowknives Dene still relied on snowmelt for their water in winter. Although public health specialists within the federal Department of Health and Welfare warned their counterparts in Northern Affairs about the danger, the latter refused to act, citing the economic impact of a roaster shutdown. In April 1951, however, the impact of the arsenic pollution burst into plain site with the poisoning death of a child (the community says three more passed away), and reports indicated widespread sickness in the communities.

At the government’s urging, Yellowknife proceeded to install a Cottrell Electrostatic Precipitator to capture the arsenic dust.

However, it took six months to complete the project owing to shipping delays, while arsenic pollution continued unabated. The Cottrell only captured about half the arsenic, though the installation of a second Cottrell and a baghouse greatly improved the pollution control system by 1959.

The pollution problem may have improved (though it did not disappear), but there was one major problem with the control system: the arsenic trioxide dust did not disappear but was deposited in fifteen abandoned stopes and purpose-built chambers, leaving 237,000 tonnes of the material by the time roasting ceased in 1999. Currently the federal government, which inherited most of the environmental liabilities at the mine, is freezing the arsenic chambers so the arsenic cannot be mobilized by underground water. Initially a “freeze it and leave it” project, the City of Yellowknife triggered an environmental assessment that mandated the government remove the material when a safe approach to doing so can be developed.

The Giant Mine Remediation Project is no small undertaking — the freezing and surface cleanup will cost a staggering $4.3 billion, and the project has a mind-boggling 100-year to find a permanent solution to the underground arsenic problem.

CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL | 21

GOLD IN CANADA: HISTORY

The roaster stack at Giant Mine in 2013. CREDIT: JOHN SANDLOS

Yellowknifers, and indeed all Canadians, are still reckoning with this environmental legacy and our new book, “The Price of Gold: Mining, Pollution and Resistance in Yellowknife,” aims to contribute to this dialogue. Our goal with this work was not to diminish the more celebratory histories produced in the community, but to paint a more complex picture. As at many other mining sites, Yellowknifers were not just mining boosters, but often among the biggest critics of the companies. Through their unions, workers pushed back on high levels of occupational exposure at Giant Mine, and the broader problem of arsenic pollution. Indeed, anti-pollution activism led to a remarkable collaboration between Indigenous and non-Indigenous residents in the 1970s, as the unions at Con and Giant, the United Steelworkers of America, worked closely with the National Indian Brotherhood to conduct a research program and national media campaign on arsenic exposure at Giant Mine. Yellowknife’s proud mining heritage includes a history of local activism devoted to mitigating pollution and improving public health.

Why do these stories matter today? Some in the industry suggest places like Giant Mine represent the “bad old days,” hardly indicative of the improved community consultations, environmental performance, and occupational health records of today’s mines.

While it is true that there has been important progress in all these areas, sober reflection on the legacy of Giant Mine carries important lessons about the long-term costs and consequences of short-

term thinking, the fundamental importance of environmental assessments, and the potential for community oversight bodies to help mitigate potential negative consequences of development. Places such as Giant Mine also help to explain the opposition of many Indigenous leaders to Bill C-5, their negative experience with past developments stoking the fear that contemporary “fast-tracked” developments in the national interest might turn their lands into environmental “sacrifice zones.” In this sense, our book underlines the importance of cautionary tales alongside commemorations of mining history and heritage.

John Sandlos is a professor in the History Department at Memorial University of Newfoundland and the co-author (with Arn Keeling) of “Mining Country: A History of Canada’s Mines and Miners,” published by James Lorimer and Co. in 2021. His new book, “The Price of Gold: Mining, Pollution and Resistance in Yellowknife” (also co-authored by Arn Keeling), will be released with McGill-Queen’s University Press in September 2025.

Arn Keeling is a professor in the Department of Geography at Memorial University of Newfoundland and the co-author (with John Sandlos) of “Mining Country: A History of Canada’s Mines and Miners” and “The Price of Gold: Mining, Pollution and Resistance in Yellowknife.”

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GOLD IN CANADA

By Bruno Venditti

Blue Lagoon reopens Dome Mountain gold mine

Blue Lagoon chief geologist Bill Cronk “cuts” the cake during the mine reopening ceremony.

CREDIT: BRUNO VENDITTI

L

ast July, Blue Lagoon Resources reopened the Dome Mountain mine in British Columbia, more than 30 years after the last major exploration activity at the gold-silver property. Located just 50 minutes from Smithers in northwestern B.C., the project restart marks a significant shift for the company from exploration to production.

In February 2025, Blue Lagoon received its mining and effluent/discharge permits from the B.C. government, making it one of only nine companies to receive such approvals in the province since 2015.

Following the opening ceremony, shares of Blue Lagoon Resources rose 3.13% to $0.66 apiece, giving the company a market capitalization of $92.91 million (~US$67.87 million). Once the water treatment plant is fully operational, Blue Lagoon expects to produce approximately 150 t/d, totalling 55,000 t/y, with an expected recovery of around 15,000 oz. of gold in the first year.

SEPTEMBER 2025

First blasting is expected this August, with initial gold production anticipated in September. The company aims to reach full capacity before the end of the year. Mining will begin at the Boulder Vein above the 1290 metre level using a mechanized cut-and-fill method.

“Over the past few years, we have strategically invested more than $30 million into Dome Mountain, ensuring that when we reached this milestone, we would be ready to move forward with minimal additional capital requirements,” President and CEO Rana Vig said in a February 12 shareholder letter.

“Now, with just approximately $3 million in additional CapEx, we will be in a position to begin mining operations — a remarkably low cost compared to industry norms,” Vig noted.

Ore will be brought to the surface and stored before being trucked to Nicola Mining’s toll-milling facility in Merritt under an active agreement. Waste rock will remain underground.

CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL | 23

COLUMN

Community engagement and upside Local support has been central to Dome Mountain’s revival.

Four of the ten current site workers are members of the Lake Babine First Nation, on whose traditional territory the project is located. As part of its agreement with the Indigenous community, the company will provide scholarships to train Indigenous youth for underground mining roles.

According to chief geologist Bill Cronk, the property has substantial “blue sky” potential. CREDIT: BRUNO VENDITTI

The project benefits from year-round road access and a newly commissioned water treatment plant.

Blue Lagoon remains debt-free, with the upcoming ramp-up funded in part through a recently closed financing of nearly $5 million. The company also has $3.6 million in the money warrants and access to an unsecured credit line from its toll mill partner, Nicola Mining.

Blue Lagoon CEO Rana Vig (centre) with staff members at the opening ceremony. CREDIT: BRUNO VENDITTI

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GOLD IN CANADA

Members of the Lake Babine Nation during the opening ceremony of the Dome Mountain mine. CREDIT: BRUNO VENDITTI

“It is a great opportunity to learn underground for the First Nations… There is a great opportunity to teach our young people what underground is so we can all work together as one,” said Brenda Patrick, a Lake Babine Nation employee at the site.

Pathway to expansion The current mine plan spans five years, focused solely on the permitted Boulder Vein area. Blue Lagoon plans to pursue additional permits to mine deeper zones below the 1290 metre level and expand into the nearby Argillite Vein. This next phase could significantly increase production if exploration results prove favorable. The mine’s existing infrastructure and regulatory progress position it well for phased growth.

According to chief geologist Bill Cronk, the property has substantial “blue sky” potential, with 15 high-grade quartz carbonate veins identified and 90% of the 210-km2 site still unexplored.

Legacy project revived Gold mineralization on the property dates to the late 1800s, and considerable surface and underground work had already been completed by 1923–1924. Renewed exploration in the 1980s led to the discovery of the Boulder Vein system in 1985 by Noranda. Underground mining occurred briefly in the early 1990s under a joint venture between Timmins Nickel and Habsburg Resources. When operations ceased in May 1993, the mine had produced approximately 43,900 tonnes of ore at an average grade of 0.35 oz. gold per tonne.

The most recent project owner, Gavin Mines, held the property for 12 years, completing much of the infrastructure and underground development. In total, more than $80 million has been spent on the project by previous owners, including Gavin Mines, Timmins Nickel, and Noranda. Blue Lagoon acquired the project in 2020 and has since focused on drilling and developing the Boulder Vein system.

Exploration began as early as 1898, when mineral occurrences were first staked by W.B. Forrest. CREDIT: BRUNO VENDITTI

SEPTEMBER 2025

Bruno Venditti is a writer with MINING.COM.

CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL | 25

TECHNOLOGY: CRUSHERS AND SCREENS

By Weir Group’s technical staff

Commissioning of the ENDURON HPGR at Côté Gold project. CREDIT: WEIR

Enhancing gold recovery with HPGR-based flowsheets

R

ecord gold prices are an important impetus for mine expansion and the commencement of several major projects, many of which are leveraging new technologies to optimize recovery, as well as to ensure their operations are as sustainable as possible, in line with stakeholder and shareholder expectations.

For greenfield high tonnage gold projects, miners are increasingly opting for HPGR-based solutions over traditional tumbling mills to minimize their energy consumption, improve recovery and, ultimately, maximize the project’s economic viability.

As a case in point, Weir Group was recently awarded a £53 million (approximately C$99 million) contract to provide Barrick’s Reko Diq’s copper-gold project in Pakistan with a transformational flowsheet solution that includes ENDURON HPGR and ENDURON Elite vibrating screens.

A project that is more mature, the Côté Gold project in Ontario, Canada, provides some interesting insights about the benefits of HPGRs compared to traditional tumbling mills, as well as how to optimize their operation.

Bjorn Dierx, Weir’s director of HPGR and process said, “Weir was involved with the project from early on, and there are some key take-aways from each stage of the project — from

26 | CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

the test work to scale up and flowsheet design and validation, through to operational observations during commissioning and ramp-up — that will streamline the implementation of HPGR-based solutions in other high tonnage gold projects.”

A comprehensive review of the samples drilled from 2009 to 2015 provided insight into the comminution characteristics and indicated a nominal Axb of about ~26 and a bond abrasion index of 0.55. During additional composite work, bond abrasion was measured at an increased value of 0.68.

Based on these metrics, the nature of the ore can be classified as highly competent and abrasive, which requires a robust and flexible processing plant to handle these geological feeding conditions. During the techno-economic evaluation of the comminution circuit, both SABC and HPGR-ball mill-based scenarios were compared prior to gravity concentration and cyanide leaching.

Because of the overall energy limitation at the site, the tradeoff was based on the configuration that could give the highest tonnage for the same amount of energy.

Comparative OPEX modelling between both circuits was conducted based on the conclusions derived from test work and equipment scale-up simulations and indicated a 15% OPEX reduction in favour of the HPGR-based circuit. Considering other

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recent studies and the nature of the ore competency, these estimates now seem

The owners expect the Côté Gold opAs miners increasingly adopt HPGR eration to exit the year at approximately technology, Weir is also building ser90% of nameplate vice networks to ensure it can support throughput.

Dithis growing demand. For the Côté Gold erx said, “The Côté project, this involved a long-term serGold project revice agreement that included dedicated affirmed the imHPGR services on site. portance of roller Another example is Weir’s recently skewing to acopened Port Hedland Service Centre, commodate load which is strategically located to supbalancing and to port its customers in the Pilbara region maximize size reof Western Australia. The centre feaduction. The ENtures facilities for ENDURON HPGR serDURON HPGRs’ vicing, including tire roller assembly. In bearing arrangeaddition to Fortescue’s Iron Bridge opment skews with eration, it will support De Grey Mining’s the roller, ensurflagship Hemi Gold project among othing the seals are ers, allowing the miners to benefit from not opened up product training near the mine site.

The ENDURON HPGR installed at Côté Gold project. CREDIT: WEIR and thereby preSimilarly, the Reko Diq site in Pakiventing contamistan is very remote, so as part of the rather conservative. nant ingress. This is achieved with the contract to supply ENDURON HPGRs, The HPGR-based flowsheet was sefully controlled oil lubrication system, Weir will also resource the service cenlected because it delivered better on which ensures the lubrication remains ter on site to enable the miner to utilize the main success metric (i.e., to maxiclean and the bearings remain at a conthe technology they need, rather than mize tonnage within the available enstant temperature.” simply opting for legacy solutions they ergy supply), and, as a result, the CAPEX He added, “Moreover, the internal might be more familiar with. trade-off was deemed unnecessary. knuckle joint within the single side hyDierx concluded, “As more high tonThere were also advantages regarding draulic cylinder aligns during roll skew, nage gold assets come online in the recovery since leaching kinetics are ingenerating hydraulic press force, while next few years, OEMs have an importfluenced by particle permeability. Since the rubber thrust pad distributes the ant role to play to ensure production is HPGRs introduce microfractures in the loads evenly across the bearing aroptimized and aligned with the indusgangue matrix, particularly in the coarser rangement and avoids hard contact. Ratry’s shift towards more sustainable size fractions, with up to 60% higher rock dial and axial loads are separated and operations so that miners can take admatrix fracturing compared to tradidistributed across both four-row cylinvantage of the record high prices and tional crushing, this is another factor that drical bearing configuration and axial squeeze every last bit of value out of will help deliver higher recoveries. thrust bearing.” their asset.”

Notably, the importance of durable dynamic skew became apparent during the ramp-up. The moveable roller skewed almost permanently owing to the high degree of fines combined with coarser harder particles being fed to the operating gap. Should skew be limited or completely disabled, this would either cause frequent machine trips or exert excessive and potentially destructive loads into the bearings.

Moreover, having a multidisciplinary Weir team integrated into Côté Gold’s Noah Rain Builders…tackling extreme conditions in daily operation allowed them to navigate remote locations, overcoming tough terrain and weather through teething issues and optimize the to build essential infrastructure safely and efficiently. circuit beyond nameplate capacity. For Effectively and efficiently maintain operational mines example, shortly after ramp-up comto ensure smooth flow of production and operations. menced, the team identified that redesigning the HPGR discharge chute with www.noahrainbuilders.com rock box style baffle plates would provide significant wear improvements.

MINE CONSTRUCTION AND MAINTENANCE

SEPTEMBER 2025

CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL | 27

MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR

By Roger Young

How to tell if switching your PM to NOH is right for you

P

reventative maintenance (PM) might seem like a minor line item with only minimal value to be gained from optimization, but the truth is that it can be a gamechanger when it comes to keeping your fleet competitive.

When you add up the compounding differences, it is clear that an effective maintenance plan is essential to minimizing downtime, maximizing efficiency, staying on schedule, reaching the metrics you are aiming for, and keeping your team safe in even the most extreme environments. So naturally, your PM plan is a good place to start when optimizing your operation.

PM schedules fall roughly into the following three categories: • Calendar-based schedules: where PMs are scheduled routinely and independently of any individual piece of equipment’s operating hours.

• Service meter unit (SMU)-based schedules: where machines are serviced individually, based on their operating hours, regardless of whether those hours were spent under high stress or simply idling.

• Nominal operating hours (NOH)-based schedules: where PM is scheduled as needed, based on data collected remotely for each piece of equipment and sometimes for individual components.

Choosing the right one is a delicate decision, based on your equipment’s age, your operation’s size, and your team’s preferences. However, once you calculate every factor and variable, NOH-based routines emerge as the most advantageous method — and those advantages only increase with the size of your fleet and operation.

How NOH works To provide the level of highly specific care that allows NOH to

28 | CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

stand out, this PM strategy requires advanced telemetrics that constantly analyzes your equipment’s performance and delivers comprehensive data to your team. Once collected, this information is cross-referenced with decades of data to provide a comprehensive analysis of how that equipment functions.

Simultaneously, data from oil analysis — which can inform decisions to extend oil drain intervals (ODIs) — complete the picture by providing data about the lubricants that unlock your equipment’s potential and allow it to operate at peak levels.

Essentially, NOH uses the latest technology to provide a peerlessly comprehensive glimpse of your equipment’s innermost workings, empowering you to make the most informed decisions possible for your mining operation and team.

The challenges of PM No matter what strategy they use, PM planners face a few basic challenges in overseeing a PM routine. The first is that different machines suffer wear at different rates dependent on their age, their environment, and their role in an operation — for instance, a loader is unlikely to need maintenance at the same time as an excavator — so multiple schedules need to be juggled at once. PM routines also need to be flexible to deal with unexpected breakage or extra work required by leaks, contamination, or other factors that cause lubricants or other ancillary products to break down sooner than expected. And, of course, PM schedules must successfully perform the balancing act of not assigning maintenance too frequently, thereby wasting products and causing unnecessary downtime.

The advantages of NOH-based routine address all those concerns. By tailoring the maintenance routine to the specific equipment or even components, each incident of PM downtime is narrowly focused on the challenge that needs to be addressed, resulting in more efficient maintenance that gets the

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equipment back in the pit more quickly while still ensuring optimal performance. Similarly, the telemetric technology that makes NOH possible also monitors unexpected complications like contamination or leaks, allowing rapid maintenance response for these challenges before they cause unnecessary wear or structural damage to the equipment. Onboard oil sensors, which are necessary for real-time used oil analysis, ensure that NOH accurately determines necessary PM by analyzing the lubricant currently flowing through your equipment. This way, you can be sure your ODIs are happening neither too early nor too late but right on time — meaning you are getting the most out of every drop of lubricant you buy.

not guaranteed and may differ based on individual system variables.

How to determine if NOH is right for you Embracing a NOH strategy for preventative maintenance can seem daunting because of the cost, the change to your workflow, and the complexities that come with interpreting new data. But the truth is that the advantages compound both with time and with the size of your operation — which means the more you have at stake, the more it be-

hooves you begin investigating what this change would entail and begin preparing to make the switch.

Mobil lubricants experts, in many cases the same teams that will provide continuing support to NOH-driven operations, can consult to provide a more detailed explanation of the necessary investment — as well as the savings and operational improvements you can expect.

Roger Young is senior field technical advisor, Western Canada, at Imperial Oil.

Further advantages of NOH Beyond addressing immediate challenges, NOH allows you to improve performance in all kinds of exciting new ways while opening even more strategies for creative managers. Because your maintenance is based on performance rather than time, you can build your maintenance routine around the job rather than the equipment. In periods where certain equipment is used more than others, you can prioritize lubricants and other maintenance products for that equipment, freeing up storage space and employee hours for other tasks.

You also avoid the unnecessary wasted time performing maintenance on components that do not need it — greatly reducing the total downtime for individual machines and allowing you to reconfigure your entire operation strategy to prioritize performance, efficiency, or any other metric that is most highly prioritized by your operation.

More importantly, these decisions can be made specifically for each project, season, or priority. With NOH opening up so many new avenues of flexibility in your scheduling, the possibilities become difficult to measure accurately.

The potential savings and improvements depend on your schedule, your team, and how creatively you can use this new information. It is important to note that results may vary depending on environmental factors, operating conditions, and the type of lubricants previously used. Performance outcomes are SEPTEMBER 2025

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CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL | 29

UNDERGROUND MINING AND TUNNELLING

By Anthony Ferrenbach

Resin consolidation of large block for longhole drilling: A case study

I

n one of Mexico’s deep hard rock mining operations, a highvalue mineral block was located between unstable zones marked by fractured geology, historical collapses, and existing cavities. The block’s geometry made it difficult to split, and geotechnical conditions rendered traditional support strategies insufficient. The mine’s objective was to recover the full block in a single operation to improve productivity and avoid delays, but only if it could be done without compromising operational safety.

To achieve this, a consolidation campaign was designed and executed before initiating any longhole drilling. The goal was to reinforce not only the pillars adjacent to the block but also the overhead rock mass where cavities had formed. This case study details how a targeted resin injection solution enabled the safe extraction of a very large block under structurally complex conditions.

both sides of the block. Each line consisted of four injection points per side: three angled downward to consolidate beneath the block and one angled upward to stabilize the overhead cavity zones. This configuration ensured that both the base and roof of the block were reinforced, effectively creating a shell of consolidated ground. The borehole distribution was calibrated to account for different lithologies and void spaces, ensuring no critical zones were left untreated.

Injection plan. CREDIT: WEBER MINING AND TUNNELLING

Technical performance of MARISIL E Block to mine surrounded by collapsed zone.

CREDIT: WEBER MINING AND TUNNELLING

Engineering strategy Weber Mining and Tunnelling proposed a pre-consolidation plan using injection of MARISIL E, a two-component organo-mineral resin. The engineering plan accounted for the unique risks posed by the block’s position and surrounding conditions — especially the presence of cavities above the block and poor-quality fractured ground along its flanks. The approach had to be both structurally robust and adaptable to varied rock mass responses during mining.

Twelve injection lines were designed, running parallel along

30 | CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

MARISIL E is designed for extreme underground environments, and its performance in this case proved essential. Once injected, the resin displayed high reactivity and consistent flow, even in variable humidity and fractured conditions.

Structural flexibility with high compressive strength The resin forms a resilient matrix that absorbs localized deformation without delaminating. Unlike brittle grouts, MARISIL E adapts to the natural stress redistributions during drilling and caving cycles, maintaining the internal bond that holds fragmented rock masses together.

Deep and targeted penetration Its optimized viscosity enables the resin to infiltrate tight discontinuities and microcracks. This behaviour ensures that not only large voids but also invisible internal weaknesses are

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structurally unified. The result is a transformation of disconnected rock into a continuous, load-bearing body.

Stable and reliable in wet conditions Unlike systems that degrade or underperform when exposed to moisture, MARISIL E cures fully in wet or saturated rock. Its chemical bonding to damp surfaces remains unaffected, making it suitable for conditions with groundwater inflows or residual moisture.

in non-critical zones.

• Optimization of logistics: resin was supplied and applied in predictable, manageable volumes.

• Rapid progression from line to line with minimal setup time.

• This disciplined execution method enabled complete coverage while maintaining tight control over time and cost.

Predictable reaction time and no expansion The four-minute working time balances flow and cure: long enough to allow migration and short enough to minimize down time. Additionally, its non-expanding formulation ensures that injection does not trigger new fractures in the already unstable rock.

Execution Execution began from an upper gallery with precise borehole installation using self-drilling anchors (SDAs). The injection grid followed a 12-line pattern, with injection lines spaced at fixed intervals based on the block length. Each borehole was pre-planned for a specific target zone: downward to consolidate below the block and upward where cavities had been mapped through geotechnical surveys.

The team operated using a multi-compact 1:1 pneumatic pump system, designed for accurate mixing and controlled pressure. For each borehole, resin flow was monitored in real time. Injections continued until a rise in pressure indicated full saturation of the surrounding matrix; at which point the system was purged and moved to the next point.

Upward injection toward sided cavity. CREDIT: WEBER MINING AND TUNNELLING

Outcome The pre-consolidation allowed the mine to recover the entire block in a single extraction sequence. This brought substantial gains in operational efficiency: fewer delays, higher recovery, and no need to leave ore in place. Most importantly, the operation proceeded without structural incident: no roof collapse, no pillar failure, and no unexpected ground movement.

Post-mining inspection confirmed the integrity of both the side pillars and the previously weakened overhead section. The mine’s technical team recognized the project as a benchmark for how complex blocks can be mined safely and efficiently through intelligent use of resin consolidation.

Conclusion

Gallery after injection. CREDIT: WEBER MINING AND TUNNELLING

Crucially, injection was compartmentalized and sequenced, meaning no overlap or uncontrolled migration occurred. This allowed for the following: • Focused reinforcement of structurally sensitive areas.

• Minimization of resin usage, avoiding unnecessary material SEPTEMBER 2025

This case demonstrates the value of an engineered consolidation approach tailored to geological conditions and operational needs. Careful planning, controlled injection execution, and the unique properties of MARISIL E enabled the safe extraction of a challenging block that would otherwise have required compromise or been abandoned.

By extending reinforcement not only around but also above the extraction zone, the solution addressed three-dimensional instability while delivering measurable gains in productivity, cost control, and operational safety.

Anthony Ferrenbach is general manager Americas at Weber Mining and Tunnelling, a division of Jennmar.

CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL | 31

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TAILINGS AND WATER MANAGEMENT

By Amir Emami and Maria Aguirre

Optimizing the performance of tailings thickeners

W

ater scarcity and climate risk have become central concerns in the mining industry over the past decade. This is especially true in regions like Chile, Peru, Indonesia, and parts of Africa, where severe drought conditions are creating significant environmental challenges.

Copper and lithium mining have been identified as contributors to groundwater depletion and ecosystem disruption.

Industry experts warn that nearly onethird of global semiconductor production relies on copper sourced from areas projected to be water-stressed by 2035.

In Peru and Indonesia, local communities have reported drying water sources, contaminated supplies, crop failures, and health issues, many of which are tied to mining water use and pollution. In response, water recovery and tailings reclamation have emerged as essential components of responsible mining practices. Mining companies, stakeholders, and sustainability researchers are increasingly focused on innovative solutions that both recover water used in mining processes and restore land impacted by tailings and mineral extraction.

One of the most widely adopted technologies in water recovery and tailings management is the tailings thickener. These large, cylindrical tanks are designed to concentrate tailings slurry by reducing its water content. Through gravity sedimentation, thickeners allow water to be recovered and reused in processing, while the solids are collected and prepared for safe disposal.

A conventional thickener operates SEPTEMBER 2025

if solids do not settle evenly; flocculant inefficiency, where poor mixing leads to the carryover of solids in the overflow; blockages, towing to issues with the underflow discharge or rake mechanism; and complete system shutdowns, caused by premature wear on the main

on the principle of gravity, typically using slow raking to settle and Left: Discharge line of a copper tailings thickener showing a damaged internal compact solceramic liner. Right: Damaged pinch valve sleeve, installed at a copper thickener ids. High-rate discharge — lifespan: two weeks. CREDIT: SPECIAL ALLOY FABRICATORS thickeners underflow level control device. This lat(HRTs), on the other hand, incorporate ter challenge is a persistent operational optimized feedwell designs and floccuproblem that many mines across the lant chemistry to accelerate the settling world face daily, and the losses in proprocess. While different thickener types cess water recovery are countless. are suited to different applications, the These problems are especially critoperational challenges they face are ical when it comes to the underflow similar. These challenges not only aflevel control device, a key component in fect water recovery and tailings manmaintaining proper thickener operation. In many mines around the world, underflow device failure is a daily reality. The losses in water recovery caused by these failures are often substantial.

The role of technology in addressing wear and control While progress has been made in areas Simplified diagram of the location of the underflow control valve in a like smart sensors, standard thickener. CREDIT: SPECIAL ALLOY FABRICATORS automation, and improved flocculant chemistry, controlling agement but can also lead to high operthe thickener underflow remains one ational costs, and in some cases, health of the most difficult challenges in minand safety hazards for operators. ing fluid control. Thickeners are among Common thickener challenges the most abrasive applications in the inAmong the most common challenges are dustry, and unfortunately, many of the rake torque overload, which can occur valves and orifice plates used in these CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL | 33

TAILINGS AND WATER MANAGEMENT systems were never designed for such demanding conditions.

Most traditional control devices are standard valves originally developed for clean service or much lower solids concentrations. However, thickener underflow often contains 55% to 80% solids by weight and slurries with viscosities up to 5000 mPa·s. In such extreme

Copper tailings thickeners, top view — Northern Mexico. CREDIT: SPECIAL ALLOY FABRICATORS

Real-world results

Copper tailings thickeners, underflow (bottom view) — Northern Mexico. CREDIT: SPECIAL ALLOY FABRICATORS

content, contributing to extreme abrasiveness, and relies instead on a manual level control system with fixed orifices. This method not only raises operational costs but is highly inefficient in terms of water recovery, ultimately increasing the mine’s water consumption.

A new approach: Custom-made control valves for abrasive slurries A technology that has proven successful in these environments involves the use of custom-engineered control valves specifically designed for abrasive slurry applications. These valves offer a flow characteristic (e.g., equal percentage) aligned with the requirements of thickener applications. This approach centers the flow path and ensures that only replaceable components

conditions, improper discharge control not only leads to accelerated equipment failure but also to critical water losses.

More attention is now being given to the custom design of discharge control devices tailored specifically to thickener applications. The challenge is twofold: not only must these devices withstand extreme abrasion, but they must also offer a wide range of controllability. In the event of overflow, caused by environmental or operational factors, the control device must allow for enough flow capacity to prevent choking while still maintaining control over the tailings level.

In many current inRecommended operating range for slurry control valves (Curve based on stallations, mines rea Slurryflo valve). CREDIT: SPECIAL ALLOY FABRICATORS sort to manually swapare exposed to abrasive media. ping fixed orifice plates, a stopgap meaThis solution involves a custom orsure that lacks responsiveness and ifice plate, designed to meet the full leads to operational inefficiencies. For range of required flow conditions. The example, sometimes no control valve is plate is integrated into a specially deused in the underflow piping system of signed knife gate valve shell, with a cusa thickener because none have lasted tomized gate that allows for controlled longer than 10 hours in operation. Cervariability across the flow range. tain applications include high quartz

34 | CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

The use of these custom designed valves for thickener level control has shown significant benefits over conventional methods.

Mines adopting these solutions have reported a 95% reduction in shutdowns owing to underflow valve failures, resulting in

Thickener discharge featuring a Slurryflo knife gate control valve in operation. CREDIT: SPECIAL ALLOY FABRICATORS

marked improvements in process efficiency and water recovery.

Tailings thickeners play a critical role in the sustainable operation of modern mines. As water scarcity continues to pressure the industry, optimizing thickener performance, particularly at the underflow control level, is not just an operational priority but an environmental necessity. The development of application-specific control technologies is helping mines around the world improve water recovery, reduce downtime, and meet their sustainability goals more effectively.

Amir Emami, P.Eng., is a mechanical engineer and the current vice president of engineering at Special Alloy Fabricators (SAF). He has 14 years of experience in valve design, flow analysis, and product development. Over the past nine years, he has been leading a growing engineering team at SAF with a dedicated approach in custom designing flow equipment for some of the most challenging applications around the world.

Maria Aguirre, P.Eng., M.Eng., is a mechanical engineer and current business development manager at Special Alloy Fabricators (SAF), she holds a master’s degree in engineering and has 14 years of experience in the valve and automation industry.

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GOLD IN CANADA

By Dean Braunsteiner

Canada’s gold rush:

Fueling GDP and strengthening export markets

The Côté Gold mine poured its first gold in March 2024.

CREDIT: IAMGOLD CORP.

A

s the global demand for gold escalates amid fraught geopolitical tensions, market volatility and fickle trading partners, the significance of Canadian gold production to the national economy has never been clearer.

Gold mining is not just a historical pillar of Canada’s economic framework; it is a crucial driver of future prosperity, and it is time to double down.

To maintain and enhance this vital sector, it is imperative more than ever for stakeholders — including industry leaders, policymakers, and investors — to reprioritize growth, innovation, and global leadership in gold production. The economic contributions of gold mining to Canada’s (Gross Domestic Product) GDP and export market continue to underscore its role in bolstering the current economy while laying SEPTEMBER 2025

the groundwork for long-term success in an increasingly turbulent and inward-looking competitive global landscape.

The contribution of gold mining to Canada’s GDP Gold mining continues to be a pivotal cornerstone of the Canadian economy, contributing significantly to the nation’s GDP. According to the Mining Association of Canada (MAC), the mining sector contributed approximately $117 billion to Canada’s GDP in 2023, accounting for about 4% of the total economic output. This marks a notable increase from previous years, showcasing the resilience and growth of the mining industry even amidst global economic challenges.

In 2023, gold production alone was valued at over $10 billion, making it one of the top contributors within the mining CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL | 35

GOLD IN CANADA

sector. The industry not only provides direct employment for approximately 430,000 individuals but also supports an additional 281,000 indirect jobs, reflecting the extensive economic footprint of gold mining across Canada. The ripple effect of these jobs extends to local communities, where mining operations stimulate economic growth through the creation of ancillary businesses and services. As Canadian miners continue to explore and develop new projects, the potential for further contributions to GDP remains robust, positioning gold mining as an essential component of Canada’s economic framework for years to come.

Export market dynamics: Gold as a key commodity And while its domestic contributions remain central, particularly in a global context pressurized by increasingly nationalistic and isolationist policies, Canadian gold production plays a crucial role in the country’s export market. Canada is one of the largest exporters of gold globally, with significant shipments to markets in the U.S., Europe, and Asia. The export of gold not only generates substantial revenue for the nation but also strengthens Canada’s position in the global commodities market. In 2023, mineral exports reached a staggering $151 billion, with gold accounting for a significant portion of this figure.

The latest statistics from Natural Resources Canada further indicate that, in 2023, the value of Canadian gold exports reached $30.2 billion, a 34% increase from $22.5 billion in 2022. As Canadian miners seek to replenish their reserves and expand their operations abroad, the potential for increased gold exports presents a singularly unique opportunity for economic growth. By leveraging the country’s rich mineral resources, Canadian miners can strive to enhance their global competitiveness while contributing to the nation’s overall economic prosperity.

The integration of innovative technologies, such as automation and data analytics, will allow miners to continue optimizing production processes and reduce costs. This not only allows for enhanced profitability but also positions Canadian gold miners as leaders in the global mining sector. As the demand for responsibly sourced gold continues to grow, it is incumbent upon Canadian gold miners to set industry standards that prioritize both economic success and environmental stewardship.

Moreover, the Canadian government has recognized the importance of the mining sector in achieving a low-carbon economy. Investments in critical infrastructure and mine development are essential to support the growth of the industry and meet the increasing demand for minerals. By fostering a regulatory environment that encourages investment and innovation, Canada can ensure that its gold mining sector remains competitive on the global stage, ultimately playing a decisive role in the country’s long-term economic success.

Simply put, the economic impact of Canadian gold production is undeniable, with significant contributions to the nation’s GDP and export market. As Canadian miners continue to explore new opportunities both domestically and internationally, the potential for growth and prosperity remains strong. By embracing sustainability and innovation, the industry can ensure its long-term viability while enhancing its role as a key driver of economic success in Canada. As we look to the future, it is abundantly clear that gold will continue to shine brightly as a cornerstone of Canada’s economic landscape, crucial for navigating the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.

Gold will continue to shine brightly as a cornerstone of Canada’s economic landscape, crucial for navigating the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.

The future of gold mining: Sustainability and innovation Looking ahead, the focus on sustainability and innovation will be paramount for the mining industry, particularly as the energy transition continues to build momentum. Canadian gold miners are already at the forefront of adopting environmentally responsible practices and leveraging technology to enhance operational efficiency. By investing in sustainable mining practices, companies must continue striving to minimize their environmental footprint while maximizing economic returns.

36 | CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

Dean Braunsteiner is the assurance mining leader for EY Canada’s Metals and Mining sector. A senior leader with two decades of experience providing assurance and consulting services, Dean has worked extensively with large multinational public companies on corporate governance, mergers and acquisitions, and initial public offerings. His expertise spans IFRS, US GAAP, and SEC reporting.

As a Chartered Professional Accountant in Ontario and Illinois, he serves on several industry and community boards, including the Prospectors and Developers Association and the Canadian Mining Innovation Council.

www.canadianminingjournal.com

CRITICAL MINERALS AND CIRCULAR ECONOMY

By Devan Pillay

Copper is the new gold, and we are running out Calls for circularity to power the future with critical minerals nce considered mere industrial staples, metals such as copper, nickel, and lithium have become crucial resources for technologies that drive both the global energy transition and digital transformation.

Copper, particularly, is the unsung hero of the digital and energy revolutions. It powers everything from artificial intelligence (AI) and electrification to renewable energy and the data centres expected to nearly double by 2030. Electric vehicles, solar panels, semiconductor chips, and energy storage systems all depend on it, making copper the foundation of industrial innovation.

But here is the reality: global copper demand is set to double by 2050, and supply is already under pressure. Copper is the new gold, but unlike gold, we cannot afford to stockpile it.

More generally, the anticipated demand for critical minerals is expected to surge by nearly 500% by 2050 according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). The IEA’s Global Critical Minerals Outlook 2025 reports that, in 2024, demand for lithium increased by nearly 30%, and 6% to 8% for nickel, cobalt, graphite, and rare earths. The energy sector accounted for 85% of total demand growth for these battery metals over the same period, underscoring the urgent need to secure these minerals sustainably while mitigating environmental and social risks.

Without urgent action, a copper shortfall could derail the very transitions we rely on for economic growth, digital innovation, SEPTEMBER 2025

and climate resilience. The answer lies not in extraction alone, but in innovation and circularity.

Embracing circularity is key to the solution One of the most significant challenges facing the mining sector is balancing increased demand with sustainability. Mining operations contribute up to 7% of global CO2 emissions, with Scope 3 emissions accounting for most of their carbon footprint. Addressing this issue requires adopting principles focused on reducing waste, reusing materials, and recycling resources to minimize reliance on primary mineral extraction.

However, according to the Global Circularity Gap Report 2024, the global usage of secondary materials dropped from 9.1% in 2018 to 7.2% in 2023, even as material consumption increased. Reversing this trend by designing for re-use is essential to mitigate global resource scarcity and reduce the requirement and environmental impact of mining in the medium and longer term.

Driving sustainable supply chains Schneider Electric is demonstrating how businesses can integrate the practices of circular economy into their operations to build plants for efficiency (Scopes 1 and 2) and design sustainable supply chains through initiatives like the “Materialize Program” and the “Zero Carbon Project,” which target reductions CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL | 37

CRITICAL MINERALS AND CIRCULAR ECONOMY

in supply chain (Scope 3) emissions.

A notable and long-term collaboration between Schneider Electric and Glencore focuses on decarbonizing copper production by integrating circular economy principles, automation, and digitalization. Schneider supports Glencore in adopting high-efficiency, low-carbon procurement specifications for their capital equipment, and Glencore deploys Schneider’s advanced hardware and software systems with analytics to monitor and improve energy consumption reporting. Leveraging tools like the AVEVA PI System and ETAP electrical simulation, Schneider Electric supports Glencore’s industrial digital transformation by optimizing “power and process,” targeting the interoperability of high energy processes like furnace efficiency/modernization and power plant fuel switching to reduce overall CO2 output. Together, they are also developing a copper and electronic waste take-back program that enables the recycling and reuse of materials, further embedding circularity into the supply chain.

By sourcing raw materials directly from Glencore and distributing them through its network of sub-suppliers, Schneider Electric ensures that European factories prioritize responsibly sourced and highly reusable materials. This model proves how partnerships and technological innovation can address both environmental sustainability and supply chain resilience. Only through bold, cross-sector collaboration and a sustainability-first mindset can we rewire copper’s future — from scarcity to security, from crisis to resilience.

Outlook for critical minerals In only two years, between 2022 and 2024, both solar output and battery storage capacity more than doubled, with wind technology and electric cars not far behind (IEA). While this growth poses challenges, it also presents significant opportunities to advance and embed sustainable practices with OEMs and equipment manufacturers. Emerging trends, such as resource recovery and material efficiency by design, are paving the way for the required progress. More innovation in this space is happening naturally as material flows — worth recycling — are ever increasing. We just need to look at the increase in recycling of wind turbines, solar cells and batteries, for example.

Circular economy strategies in these areas, for instance, have the potential to reduce primary mineral demand by 30% to 50% by 2050 (Source: World Economic Forum), unlocking economic value while conserving precious resources. However, for innovators, it is access to ESG capital, geopolitical tensions, price fluctuations, and supply chain bottlenecks that re-

38 | CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

main obstacles. These must be addressed to create such sound circular business models.

Innovations in digital technologies are also transforming the mining sector, offering solutions that optimize operations and improve sustainability. Advanced tools such as AI, machine learning (ML), digital twins, and quantum computing enable better identification of mineral deposits and streamlined planning. Blockchain technology enhances supply chain transparency, tracing responsibly sourced materials for application in green technologies, linear or circular.

A call to action for sustainable practices Critical minerals are not just commodities; they are strategic assets vital to shaping the future of energy, technology, and economic stability. In a world increasingly defined by resource scarcity and environmental challenges, integrating sustainability into every link of the supply chain is no longer optional; it is an imperative.

Organizations must act now to transform their operations and adopt practices that prioritize resource efficiency for their highest-level application, circularity, and collaboration. Governments and industries must align policies and funding with targeted innovation, ensuring access to critical minerals without compromising environmental or social standards.

The partnership between Schneider Electric and Glencore showcases how digital tools, collaboration, and circular economy practices can drive progress. By setting new commercial business models, fostering public-private collaboration, and embracing technological innovation, we can secure a reliable and resilient supply of critical minerals.

As the demand for these materials continues to rise, the need to work together and educate your wider ecosystem becomes more urgent. Companies that lead the way in sustainable supply chain transformation will be best positioned to navigate the challenges ahead, ensuring long-term resilience and competitiveness in the global market.

Devan Pillay is global segment president, heavy industries, industrial automation, at Schneider Electric.

www.canadianminingjournal.com

COMMENTARY

By Al Shpyth

Do minerals deserve legal in personhood?

4: M ra “P art

e

ls hav e righ ts”

A c mentary o n om

W

hen Donna Beneteau asked if I could be a potential contributor to this article (one night at the start of a CIM event), I believe I said the premise — that mineral deposits could be granted legal personhood, was both intriguing and complex, and that I would be happy to investigate the matter. Further review of the article and others around the topic of extending legal personhood further into the natural world (i.e., beyond rivers, glaciers, and waves) has confirmed my initial reaction.

Downing and Beneteau propose that mineral deposits be granted legal recognition and the special status of personhood.

Legal personhood has roots in Roman and English law and has evolved over time and is a foundation of “Western law.” At least one author (Ripkin 2019) has described the power to make and define a legal person as perhaps the most powerful act of law. For her, a legal person is the subject of legal rights and duties and only those who are legally recognized as persons have the capacity to participate in legal relations. She notes that legal personhood has never been a self-evident classification that applies only to living human beings, with one’s status as a human SEPTEMBER 2025

being neither necessary nor sufficient to be a person in the eyes of the law. Non-human organizational entities are treated as legal persons for some purposes, while human beings like infants and mentally impaired individuals are not regarded as fullfledged legal persons for other purposes. The question of legal personhood has been the subject of legal cases involving natural persons (e.g., slavery, women) and artificial persons (e.g., corporations). In corporate law, cases have influenced the degree to which corporations may be found liable, how they may be regulated, whether they are beholding to shareholders or stakeholders, and even political contributions (in the U.S.). It is a question still being debated today, in context of both nature (as noted by the authors) and artificial intelligence (AI).

When first approached, I assumed the reason for exploring the question was a defensive one, raised in response to the rights of nature and environmental personhood being sought to protect natural values from resource development activities, including mining. I took this to be a reasonable basis as some would say that legal personhood is being utilized to challenge the current governance systems for natural resource developCANADIAN MINING JOURNAL | 39

COMMENTARY ment and increasingly influence the political agenda around development. However, the argument advanced instead is that mineral deposits should be recognized for their intrinsic right to be mined and practical right to be processed to provide sustenance to mankind. Why? Because minerals form the foundation of all sustainable life and are essential to human existence.

Both individual and intrinsic reasons are also apparent in the case of Rights of Nature and AI legal personhood. For instance, Rights of Nature and environmental personhood can be seen as motivated by the ultimate value of nature or some natural entities, but it can also be seen as a tool for preserving some natural entities for future human generations. The rights of nature are said to encompass “the right to exist, persist, maintain, and regenerate its vital life cycle” for all forms of life in nature.

In a law review article from 2021, entitled “Constructing legal personhood: corporate law’s legacy,” Worthington and Spender aimed to sound a warning in confirming legal personality upon new categories of non-human persons such as natural systems (e.g., rivers) or algorithmic systems (e.g., AI). They cautioned that “emerging enthusiasm for new forms of legal personality must be tempered by an understanding of the risks that inhere in the development and activation of legal persons.”

This caution has raised the following questions with respect to operationalizing this concept for mining and minerals: • What could be the added value of seeking legal personhood for mineral deposits?

• What legal pathway would be followed to grant personhood (I am not aware of any country that has established a systematic process that would allow private individuals or groups to apply for the registration of a particular natural entity as a legal person, even while this is possible for the establishment of companies, charities, and other non-human entities)?

• Technically, when could/should/would personhood be recognized? At staking? At discovery? When a reserve is delineated?

• How would rights associated with personhood be effectively implemented and upheld? For example, would the deposit have the right to define and enforce contracts for its development?

• Which human representative would advocate for the right of the deposit or mineral? How would counter claims making be addressed (e.g., over what is the best interest of the deposit)? Could a deposit oppose a new public policy?

There will also be questions for governments and companies.

Under common law tradition, minerals rights belong to the crown (the government), and in Canada, the provinces, as both fee simple owner of Crown lands and due to mineral reservations from historic Crown grants. How would companies, who have traditionally acquired rights to minerals from governments, acquire development rights from a deposit as a private legal person? Would companies have or own obligations to deposits where legal personhood has been expanded (the authors suggest this could be a positive obligation for the deposit)? Could a deposit own shares in a private company and

40 | CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL

how might their interests be represented on that company’s board? What happens when the private property rights of corporations clash with rights of the deposit? How would human representatives who exercise discretion on behalf of a deposit be held accountable if they make decisions which may be considered short-sighted, self-serving, or even fraudulent?

In reviewing the recent article by Downing and Beneteau, I appreciate them for bringing forward the fact that emerging categories of legal personhood (e.g., for rivers, glaciers, and waves) have upset traditional boundaries of legal personhood. Asking whether such legal status could/should be extended to mineral deposits brings our sector into the debate underway as scholars, activists, and policymakers debate the legal personhood of animals, ecosystems, and AI systems. As recognized, the Rights of Nature movement — demanding that nature or some parts of nature be given rights or legal personhood — has been quite successful in some parts of the world (though this success has been place-based and not sectoral). This success could either present a challenge to the mining and minerals industry or provide an avenue for a new way to support sustainable mineral development. When presenting the case of the conferral of legal personality on the Whanganui River in New Zealand as an exemplar, Worthington and Spender conclude that: “However, consistent with our view that legal personality is best described as designated legal processes or functions, the new institutional framework developed by the Whanganui River Act changes the way in which decisions will be made about the environment. As expressed by Sanders, the grant of legal personality provides a forum for disagreement and compromise and the opportunity for relationships between peoples, land, and authority to be reframed. The legal person will therefore evolve over time — perhaps iteratively — with the development of further explicit and implicit conditions.”

I am unsure if minerals deposits should become legal persons, or remain legal nonpersons, things, or objects without rights. I tend, however, to think that moral and practical reasons are not necessarily legal reasons. In other words, the practical reasons for mining a deposit (i.e., to provide the minerals needed for life) does not necessarily mean that a deposit should, practically, be treated as a legal person.

On the matter of could they, one set of authors proposed a set of three questions for AI that could pertain to legal personhood for mineral deposits: “(1) Under what conditions is an entity considered a person in law (trigger conditions)? (2) What consequences follow from having personality (legal implications)?

(3) What set of facts explains/justifies why the trigger conditions activate the legal justifications (background reasons)?”

I do not have or offer answers to these questions but still do find them intriguing. And complex too.

Al Shpyth is the soon to be retired executive director of the International Minerals Innovation Institute (IMII). He has master’s degrees in environmental studies (York University) and in environmental law and policy (Vermont Law School). The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are his, and do not represent the views of the IMII or its members.

www.canadianminingjournal.com

COMMUNICATIONS AND SAFETY

By Nathan McKenzie

Why mining safety systems fail

M

ining is getting smarter. From autonomous haul trucks to real-time fleet management systems, digital transformation is reshaping how mine sites operate. But despite this wave of automation, some of the industry’s most serious safety risks remain stubbornly present.

“Struck-by” and “caught-in/between” incidents continue to account for a significant share of mining injuries and fatalities, particularly those involving heavy mobile equipment. While new technologies and processes have raised the floor on safety, they have not eliminated blind spots altogether.

Lack of data or intelligence is not a problem, but applying it effectively remains a persistent roadblock. We have alert systems, but they tend to overwhelm operators rather than support them. According to recent university backed research, consistent exposure to audible alerts is one of the primary contributors to mental fatigue in the industry, impacting miners’ performance and their ability to do their jobs safely. Where safety automation does exist, it is often designed in a way that disrupts workers rather than support them, and technologies like video monitoring tend to be too primitive to cope with such a busy environment. All these shortcomings conspire to allow risk to hide in plain sight, and a solution is long overdue.

SEPTEMBER 2025

The limits of traditional safety systems

Mining is such a unique environment that few traditional safety systems were designed to deal with the pace and pressure that come with it. Machine vision exists, but object detection tools are often so generic that they are unable to distinguish between a person and a piece of equipment with the reliability required in such fast-moving, high-risk zones. Meanwhile, alert systems tend to overcompensate, issuing frequent warnings that do not always reflect real danger. Over time, this can train operators to dismiss or mute alerts altogether, creating a dangerous gap between what the system sees and what the worker perceives. This is not a worker problem, but a systemic one.

This “alert fatigue” is particularly acute in mining environments, where dust, vibration, poor lighting, and constantly shifting activity make precision more difficult to achieve.

A well-intentioned alert that triggers needlessly, especially during peak work cycles, can break concentration, delay progress, or be seen as a nuisance. And when alerts are ignored or overridden, the entire safety net starts to unravel. Mining needs safety technology that reacts, but it also needs safety technology that understands the environment it is working in.

CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL | 41

COMMUNICATIONS AND SAFETY

and of itself. What works best in mining tends to be simple: clear visual cues like LED indicators, or voice alerts — used sparingly — that cut through background noise without overwhelming the operator. When systems stay quiet until something truly demands attention, workers are more likely to trust what they hear.

Lessons from the pit

Speedshield Technologies prioritizes industrial safety. CREDIT: SPEEDSHIELD TECHNOLOGIES

Why visual intelligence needs simple, rugged design

In theory, artificial intelligence (AI) can make split-second decisions with superhuman accuracy. Advances in machine vision can allow AI to distinguish between humans and other objects with overwhelming accuracy. But in mining, theory does not count for much unless the system can survive the real world.

That means hardware that holds up in dust-choked air, on vibrating machines, in low-light tunnels and open pits alike. It also means software that does not rely on remote servers or constant connectivity. Decisions need to happen at the edge — on the vehicle, in the moment, and without latency or dependency on external infrastructure.

Equally important is how the system communicates with the operator. In a cab already filled with gauges, radios, and movement, a new screen or complex dashboard might seem helpful on the surface but could unintentionally become a hazard in

AI safety systems are already being used across a growing number of mining operations, often as fully embedded tools on everything from underground loaders to light vehicles. But rather than rely on off-the-shelf object recognition models, which can easily mistake a shadow or a cone for a person, they are trained specifically to detect pedestrians using stereoscopic vision and edge-based neural processing. That narrows the focus to what truly matters, making the system and any alerts it produces more impactful and trustworthy.

This is important because false alerts are perhaps one of the biggest hazards of all. One false alert and workers will continue, but two or three false alerts in quick succession will lead most workers to power down the safety system. Again, it is important to note that this is not about blaming workers themselves — it is about designing technology and safety protocols that support them rather than hinder them.

In a mining environment, safety should never be the sole responsibility of operators and “boots on the ground” — it should be built into the working environment as standard.

Nathan McKenzie is chief technology officer at Speedshield Technologies.

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