Mining Global March 2021

March 2021 v| miningglobal.com

Newmont:

The Future of Mining CIO Luis Canepari is digitally transforming the mining life cycle FIND OUT MORE

Silvercorp: Mining a Bright Future in China READ NOW

AI: The Power to Discover, Operate, Maintain and Predict READ NOW

WOMEN IN MINING FIND OUT

READ NOW

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EDITOR'S LETTER

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

MANAGING DIRECTOR

EDITORAL DIRECTOR

EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT

CREATIVE TEAM

MEDIA SALES DIRECTOR

DOMINIC ELLIS SCOTT BIRCH

LEWIS VAUGHAN

JORDAN HUBBARD

OSCAR HATHAWAY MARK CAWSTON SOPHIA FORTE AND MARKETING HECTOR PENROSE SALES DIRECTOR SAM HUBBARD JASON WESTGATE MIMI GUNN JUSTIN SMITH CHIEF OPERATIONS PRODUCTION DIRECTORS

GEORGIA ALLEN DANIELA KIANICKOVÁ

OFFICER

STACY NORMAN PRESIDENT & CEO

GLEN WHITE

PRODUCTION MANAGERS

OWEN MARTIN PHILLINE VICENTE JENNIFER SMITH PRODUCTION EDITOR

JANET BRICE

VIDEO PRODUCTION MANAGER

KIERAN WAITE DIGITAL VIDEO PRODUCERS

SAM KEMP EVELYN HUANG MATTHEW EVANS TYLER LIVINGSTONE DIGITAL MARKETING EXECUTIVE

KAYLEIGH SHOOTER GRETA ANDREJEVAITE

PROJECT DIRECTORS

GLEN WHITE LEWIS VAUGHAN MICHAEL BANYARD STUART IRVING KRIS PALMER MIKE SADR

MINING GLOBAL MAGAZINE IS PUBLISHED BY

Is mining immune to COVID-19?

That’s not to diminish the impact that the pandemic has had on companies and staff, but written in the context of some eye-catching 2020 results recently released by Rio Tinto and BHP, and bumper dividend payouts to shareholders.

You would have to draw the conclusion that, compared with many industries, mining looks in good shape. Rising iron ore and copper prices have certainly played their part, fuelling cash flows, and operators have embraced remote monitoring and new technologies, such as wearables, which are enhancing efficiencies and safety.

Analysts at Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Fitch Solutions and Capital Economics are now warning prices are likely to fall in the second half of 2021 as policymakers de-prioritise growth in China’s commodityintensive sectors.

But then again, countries embarking on infrastructure-led post-pandemic recoveries will need plenty of minerals; as with so much of 2020, strategizing looks a difficult science.

Whether the economic momentum is maintained or reversed, the demand signs point towards production growth. With soaring demand for lithium with the boom in electric vehicles, and the rebound in Asia, there are grounds for more optimism and growth.

Yet with the industry responsible for 4-7 percent of greenhouse gas emissions globally, pressure from governments, investors, and society to reduce them will not let up. More electrification, decarbonisation and partnerships will be essential. The to-and-fro with the UK’s Cumbria coal mine project illustrates the challenges of squaring economic and environmental matters.

Smart executives will continue to prepare, not predict – and focus their attention on digital transformation, automation and analytics, ensuring they are equipped for all eventualities.

DOMINIC ELLIS dominic.ellis@bizclikmedia.com

© 2021 | ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

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CONTENTS

07 Big Picture

Move over Tesla – and say hello to the world’s largest EV Elektro Dumper

08 The Brief

By the numbers. Three of the best for Glencore. Cumbria coal mine.

Ups and downs

18

10 Global News

Mining news from around the world in the last month.

12 People Moves

Who is moving around the mining employment world

14 Timeline

Rio Tinto & BHP, profit and earning curves for the mining giants

16 Five Mins With...

Ren Zhengfei

28

36

16 4

March 2021

CONTENTS

48 72 18 Newmont

Making Technology the Future of Mining

28 Ai in Mining

AI: The Power to Discover, Operate, Maintain and Predict

36 Silvercorp Metals

Mining a Bright Future in China

48 Industry X.O

Autonomous Trucks Boost Productivity and Attract Funding

56 CRU Group

Data-driven commodities digital transformation

72 Technology

Smart mining era Benefits from Digital Solutions

82 Source to Pay

56

Automation and Digital Key to Post-COVID Procurement

88 Top 10

Women in Mining Miningglobal.com

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THE PROFESSIONAL DRILLING EXPERIENCE Drillon is a newly established drilling company with a globally experienced, highly focused and motivated multinational team from the drilling industry. With a success-oriented team our aim is to give our clients “the professional drilling experience”.

ADVERT PAGE MEDIA SALE

DRILLING

CONSULTANCY

EQUIPMENT SUPPLY VISIT OUR SITE CONTACT US

6

March 2021

BIG PICTURE

Elektro Dumper Move over Tesla – and say hello to the world’s largest EV. The Elektro Dumper is a converted mining truck and product of a partnership between Kuhn Schweitz and Lithium Storage, which can carry up to 62 tonnes of lime and marl when operating at a quarry in Biel, Switzerland.

The Komatsu HD605-7 base machine is powered by a 710 kWh lithium ion battery and in the current operation, records diesel savings of about 44.8t annually, equivalent to 140t CO2 reduction.

It produces its own energy through regenerative braking on downhill runs and can motor up to 38kmh, while its tyres alone are six foot high.

Turn to page 48 to read more on autonomous vehicles and how they are revolutionising mining.

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THE BRIEF “We will have to create deeper mines in the future. We can’t send humans to these depths and automation will be the only option” Prof. David Sjödin,

Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the Luleå University of Technology in Sweden 

BY THE NUMBERS

Kaz Minerals’ increased cash offer:

780p

640p

February 2021

October 2020

READ MORE

“The mining sector can only benefit from adopting digital technologies and data analytics to optimise the efficiency and effectiveness of mines” Boris Ivanov,

Global Commodities Expert  READ MORE

“It’s possible for any company to get a good amount of value from AI if it’s applied effectively in a repeatable way” Michael Chui,

Partner, McKinsey Global Institute  READ MORE

8

March 2021

Three of the best for Glencore Production dipped in most categories for the mining giant in 2020 but not:

Zinc Up 9% to 1,170.4kt

Gold Silver Up 3% to 916koz

Up 2% to 32,766koz

Did you know? 90% of mining executives continue to process data manually and only 11% use a digital platform (The State of Contractor Management in the Mining Industry report from MCi)

ACQUISITIONS  XIMEN MINING CORP. has acquired the Running Wolf gold property located 20kms west of Cranbrook in the Fort Steele Mining Division in southern British Columbia.

UPS AND DOWNS Cumbria coal mine Background Last October, Cumbria County Council voted 12-3 in favour of the Woodhouse Colliery in Whitehaven, which will generate 500 jobs, bring much-needed investment and mark the UK’s first coal mine in 30 years.

What’s the UK government’s position? They didn’t overrule the decision, saying planning decisions should be made at a local level wherever possible.

What’s been the reaction? Environmentalists say the mine is incompatible with Britain’s greenhouse gas emission targets – especially with the Cop26 conference coming up in Glasgow in November. That’s led Cumbria County Council to back track and reconsider its planning permission decision.

What’s lost in the noise? The mine will actually produce coking coal that will be used for steel production – so it could be more emissions-friendly than importing raw materials from overseas, plus have a knock-on effect in supporting operations and jobs at Port Talbot.

 GR SILVER MINING has signed a definitive binding Share Purchase Agreement to buy Marlin Gold Mining from Mako, with the transaction expected to close by the end of March.  TACORA RESOURCES, the iron ore and mineral processing company based out of Grand Rapids, Minnesota, has bought Sydvaranger Mining and its subsidiaries.

 $2BN FINE FOR NORNICKEL A Russian court has ordered MMC Norilsk Nickel (Nornickel), which was involved in a massive Arctic fuel spill last year, to pay approximately $1.96 billion in compensation.

U P S MAR21

D O W N S Miningglobal.com

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GLOBAL NEWS BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA Kore Mining spin off Kore Mining is to spin off its British Columbia exploration assets under Karus Gold Corp, following overwhelming shareholder approval, which will now raise seed capital in a rights offering.

MEXICO GR Silver Mining buys Marlin Gold Mining GR Silver Mining has signed a definitive binding Share Purchase Agreement to buy Marlin Gold Mining from Mako, with the transaction expected to close by the end of March.

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March 2021

NEVADA, WESTERN US Abacus starts diamond drilling Abacus Mining & Exploration Corporation is about to start a diamond drilling program at Jersey Valley, within the Battle Mountain trend of north-central Nevada. Four holes will be drilled, ranging in depth from 250-300 metres.

UK Controversial Cumbria coal mine gets go ahead but uncertainty remains A controversial coal mine in Cumbria is set to move forwards following the UK government’s refusal to intervene in the planning process for the project, meaning the country could have its first new colliery in 30 years.

INDIA India’s Larsen & Toubro lands largest mining equipment order The Construction and Mining Equipment business of Larsen & Toubro (L&T) has secured one of the biggest orders in its history to supply 46 units of Komatsu Mining Equipment to Tata Steel.

QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA New safety sensors New sensors made from silicon carbide, under development at University of Southern Queensland in Toowoomba, Australia, are 5-100 times smaller than the width of a single human hair. Six years in the making, they can withstand heat up to 600 degrees Celsius.

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PEOPLE MOVES "I am truly delighted and humbled to be given the opportunity to lead this tremendous company"

JAKOB STAUSHOLM FROM: RIO TINTO TO: RIO TINTO WAS: EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR & CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER NOW: CHIEF EXECUTIVE The 52-year-old Dane replaced incumbent Jean-Sebastien Jacques in January. Prior to joining Rio Tinto, Jakob was the Chief Strategy, Finance and Transformation Officer for the Maersk Group, with oversight of the Group’s strategy, digitisation, IT, legal as well as the transformation and shared services functions.

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March 2021

JACO CROUSE FROM: DETOUR GOLD CORP TO: AEX GOLD INC WAS: CFO NOW: CFO Jaco Crouse has replaced George Fowlie who has stepped down as the CFO but remains on the AEX Gold Board as a Director.

A seasoned mining executive with nearly 20 years’ experience, the board intends to propose Crouse as a director of the company at the next annual general meeting.

CYNTHIA CARROLL FROM: BAKER HUGHES AND PEMBINA PIPELINE CORPORATION TO: GLENCORE WAS: NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF HITACHI NOW: INDEPENDENT NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Cynthia Carroll has over 30 years’ experience in the resources sector. She began her career as an exploration geologist at Amoco before joining Alcan, and held various executive roles, culminating in CEO of the Primary Metal Group, Alcan’s core business. From 2007-2013 she served as CEO of Anglo American.

Miningglobal.com

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TIMELINE

BHP

RIO TINTO

RIO TINTO & BHP

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March 2021

Underlying earnings for 2016:

PROFIT AND EARNING CURVES FOR MINING GIANTS

Underlying earnings for 2017:

$5.1bn

$8.6bn

2016

2017

BHP Billiton full-year loss 2016:

$6.4bn

Full year attributable profit 2017:

$5.9bn

Underlying earnings for 2018:

Underlying earnings for 2019:

Underlying earnings for 2020:

2018

2019

2020

Full year attributable profit 2018:

Full year attributable profit 2019:

Attributable profit full year to June 30 2020:

$8.8bn $10.37bn $12.4bn

$3.7bn

$8.3bn

$8bn

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FIVE MINS WITH...

REN ZHENGFEI 16

March 2021

"In 2020, we illuminated one coal mine, one iron and steel plant, and one port. Over the next two to three years, we aim to illuminate hundreds of coal mines, iron and steel plants, and ports" Ren Zhengfei established Huawei with a capital of CNY21,000 in 1987. He became CEO in 1988 and has held the title ever since – and today has a net worth of around $1.5 billion While more synonymous with consumer tech, Huawei has bold plans for the mining sector – recently opening an Intelligent Mining Innovation Lab in Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, together with Jinneng Holding Group, Shanxi Cloud Era Technology Co and Shanxi ZhiChuang City Technology Development Co. The lab will be staffed with 220 ICT and coal mining experts, seeking to make breakthroughs in areas such as information networks, automation enablement, intelligent sensing technologies, and big data generated by coal mines, as well as related ecosystem collaboration opportunities.

In addition to promoting digital transformation of the global coal industry, Huawei has announced its intention to act as "a technology enabler", working with partners to create healthy industry and business ecosystems and helping its customers

Shanxi's mines reduce staffing in fully mechanized and intelligent mining scenarios by

60%

and the number of workers going down to mining pits each shift by

10%20%

in the coal industry deliver more social value (other novel commercial avenues the company is exploring include adopting AI for pig farming).

Huawei is also working with industry partners to develop compact wireless base stations that are resistant to dampness, dust, and explosions, and support a 3:1 uplink/downlink bandwidth ratio.

Envisioning a more digitized era for coal mining, Zhengfei foresees workers “will wear suits and ties at work, with fewer workers, greater safety and higher efficiency.”

The lab ultimately aims to help Shanxi's mines reduce staffing in fully mechanized and intelligent mining scenarios by 60% and the number of workers going down to mining pits each shift by 10%- 20%.

"Workers will wear

suits and ties at work, with fewer workers, greater safety and higher efficiency" Miningglobal.com

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NEWMONT

Luis Canepari CIO, Newmont

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March 2021

NEWMONT

Newmont:

MAKING TECHNOLOGY

THE FUTURE OF MINING

How the world’s leading gold miner is digitally transforming to rethink the mining life cycle, unlock productivity, improve safety, reduce costs and support sustainability

N

WRITTEN BY: DAN BRIGHTMORE

ewmont’s considered implementation of technology is a key part of the digital journey towards operational efficiency and sustainability across its global operations. Chief Information Officer, Luis Canepari, is championing the company’s digital transformation efforts as it seeks to embrace automation and electrification.

Automation “The era of manual processes in mining is over,” states Canepari. “Blasting, drilling, hauling, the processes at mills – all will become increasingly automated over the next 20 years. Whether we like it or not as an industry, that's where we're going to have to go if we want to remain competitive.”

PRODUCED BY: GLEN WHITE The process of automation is well underway at Newmont’s Boddington Mine in Australia, which will be the first open pit gold mine in the world with an autonomous haul truck fleet (AHS). Boddington’s autonomous haulage trucks feature rigorous safety controls to reduce employee exposure to potential vehicle interactions. Newmont is also executing a robust people strategy at Boddington, providing opportunities for reskilling and redeployment of haul truck drivers to other roles supporting the AHS. Artificial Intelligence “Artificial intelligence and predictive analytics go hand-in-hand with automation,” adds Canepari. “Access to data is key for our Miningglobal.com

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NEWMONT

Luis Canepari: Newmonts biggest challenges

operations. Correlating our drill data with the block modelling allows us to make faster decisions based on real insights. If you look at the success ratio for exploration in mining, it's pretty low; if we can improve that by a couple of percentage points, it will have a significant impact on our reserves. With data being generated across our organization, the ability to use artificial intelligence to tell us where our next drill site should be is a game-changer.”

Digital Transformation Compared to other industries, mining has been slow to adapt to new technologies. Canepari pledges Newmont is aiming to rethink the mining lifecycle. “We’ve had a huge success with our first electrified mine at Borden, and we’re taking all the lessons learned from projects like these, and making them part of our Newmont mining model. Every new mine we're building, we're trying to re-create that digital transformation experience from our other mines.”

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March 2021

Rapid Discovery with IBM Digital transformation has been a major undertaking for the IT department at Newmont. “The partnership with vendors like IBM, supports our work to consolidate our systems and further realize the synergies we have across the business since the acquisition of Goldcorp in 2019.”

IBM was brought in through a rigorous RFP process. “We demonstrated to Newmont that we would bring top talent, and keep them there, to effect the changes needed successfully and bring these two companies’ systems together across finance, master data and supply chain management,” recalls Gene Allen, a Partner at IBM Global Business Services.

“We had to learn how to dance together. We are both 100-year-old companies, but we used Rapid Discovery, an Enhance Program Launch and Agile methodology to help us deliver successfully together smoothly and efficiently.”

IBM implemented Rapid Discovery to support this delivery. “We were looking at

NEWMONT

the five-year roadmap for Newmont to plan how everything should be sequenced and budgeted to accelerate this digital journey together,” explains Allen. Because change is rapid in the mining industry, it was important to identify the different constituencies in Newmont and how the move to a digital core should be sequenced to modernize, eliminate redundancies and sequence their systems changes in years to come.”

Canepari highlights that Newmont piggybacked on IBM’s M&A experience to place all systems into one single landscape.

“Rapid Discovery was about bringing our key stakeholders together across every business function for the most optimal outcome.”

LUIS CANEPARI TITLE: CIO INDUSTRY: MINING LOCATION: USA

“ With the migration of all our systems to the cloud, we’ve managed to shut down five data centers already.”

LUIS CANEPARI CIO, NEWMONT

EXECUTIVE BIO

Operational & Technological Alignment Canepari’s team are focused on catering to all stakeholders, from the mining sites to the back office. “We build trust and reliability. For us to enable automation, AI and push forward with this digital transformation our system needs to be reliable, even during a global pandemic, and our networks need to remain operational at all sites, no matter how remote their locations,” he says.

Luis Canepari joined Newmont in April 2019 as Vice President and Chief Information Officer; having most recently served as Goldcorp’s Vice President, Technology since 2012.

As CIO, Luis leads Newmont’s information technology organization and is responsible for driving and overseeing enterprise-wide plans to further realize value from Newmont’s strategic business and technology investments.

Luis has a history of leading major transformation and innovation initiatives.

He was honored with a 2017 CIO 100 Award for business and technology innovation, and the 2014 Business in Vancouver Forty Under 40 Award.

Before joining Goldcorp, Luis was Director of Engineering and Construction at AES Corporation, responsible for leading major capital projects in Latin America and recognized for his significant community contributions. Prior to that, he held various IT leadership roles at AES and ExxonMobil Corporation. Luis holds an MBA from Georgetown University. He also holds a Bachelor in Science in Systems Engineering from Universidad Metropolitana. He is also a Certified Information Security Manager and a Certified Information Security Auditor.

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NEWMONT

The pressure of the global pandemic has allowed Canepari’s IT team to test out new ideas. “With so many of us working remotely it's been the biggest experiment for remote operations that we’ve ever had as a company,” he notes.

“We have thousands of employees working from home. It has completely shifted the mindset from the idea that we all needed to be sitting at the mine site. This past challenging year has given us the opportunity to learn how to make our operations more efficient.

Everything we’ve invested in, is beginning to pay off. We have resilient networks and a reliable infrastructure backbone that allows us to work remotely. And now that we have tested them to the fullest, we can factor these into our operations.

Working remotely is also enabling Newmont’s IT organization to attract a more diverse workforce and overcome the challenge of what Canepari identifies as the misconceptions around the risks of a job in the mining industry. “By widening the net for outsourcing we’ll be able to attract even more talent to our IT organization.”

SUSTAINABILITY

22

March 2021

DID YOU KNOW...

Technology will continue to support Newmont’s sustainability efforts as the business looks to develop onsite renewable power generation and energy efficiencies. It’s all part of a new ethos for the business spearheaded

by CEO Tom Palmer. The work from home/work from anywhere paradigm prompted by the global pandemic has seen Newmont, like many other businesses, embrace proven methods of business interaction offering the flexibility that connects the boots on the ground to the boardroom. How the business is powered, both by people and fuel, is under constant review.

“Both new and existing mines are going to significantly reduce our emissions in the future. We have committed to a 30 percent reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2030, with an aspiration of reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2050,” says Canepari.

“It’s one of our biggest priorities and will be supported by the continued electrification of our mines.”

Strategic Partnerships Consolidating the approach to partnerships since the merger with Goldcorp has been vital for Canepari and his team. “At the end of the day, more than half of my IT organization is outsourced,” he says. “Therefore, it’s really important to work with the right partners to create lasting collaborations that can support ERP and our business transformation. Our partners are helping us drive the outcomes we’re expecting in the short term. They allow us to scale and de-scale, depending on our needs. Just as important is how they culturally fit with our organization. We aim to work with companies who can easily adapt to our style and understand our requirements for a higher

NEWMONT

Luis Canepari: Newmonts Digital transformation

level of detail. It is that higher level of detail that keeps our employees safe.”

To leverage automation and artificial intelligence, a robust and stable network is key. Newmont is working with Starlink and other private LTE providers to enable connectivity across all areas of its mines and at remote exploration sites across the globe.

“Starlink doesn’t rely on traditional ground infrastructure,” says Canepari. “This type of satellite connectivity can deliver highspeed broadband internet ensuring the low latency that can support our efforts in remote locations.”

Innovation in the cloud “The migration to SAP S/4HANA and bringing our infrastructure to the hybrid cloud - has given us more agility; we can deliver projects faster and move more rapidly,” reveals Canepari. “It also gives us the opportunity to experiment with proven tools from other industries. We’re getting out of the

“ Blasting, drilling, hauling, the processes at mills – all aspect of mining will become increasingly automated over the next 20 years.”

LUIS CANEPARI CIO, NEWMONT

Miningglobal.com

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NEWMONT

Luis Canepari: Newmonts Latest Achievements

“ Borden’s electric underground fleet eliminate diesel particulate matter from the underground environment and lower greenhouse gas emissions.”

TOM PALMER CEO, NEWMONT

24

March 2021

NEWMONT

infrastructure business and re-training our team to move away from supporting servers to focus on finding opportunities to make our operations more efficient.”

Canepari adds that cloud adoption is driving value by allowing him to deploy his team on more meaningful projects. “With the migration of all our systems to the cloud, we’ve managed to shut down five data centers already.

We're starting to explore the possibilities of Edge Computing and what that means for our mines.”

BORDEN – ‘MINE OF THE FUTURE’

DID YOU KNOW...

Technology is the future of mining Mining companies are becoming technology companies and Canepari is excited by the chance to both boost production levels as well as ensure the safety of employees across the globe. “With more and more sensors and

In 2019 Newmont inaugurated its Borden Gold Project, Ontario’s mine of the future, featuring state-of-the-art health and safety controls, digital mining technologies and processes, and low-carbon energy vehicles.

Anchored in a mutually beneficial partnership with local communities, Borden achieved commercial production on schedule within budget.

At 1,000 square kilometres, Borden’s land package represents additional exploration upside, as the deposit remains open at depth in a favourable mining jurisdiction.

“Borden opened a new gold mining district in Ontario and profitably extended operations at the Porcupine complex near Timmins,” explains Newmont CEO Tom Palmer. “In addition, Borden’s electric underground fleet eliminate diesel particulate matter from the underground environment and lower greenhouse gas emissions.

This will help reduce energy costs, protect employee health and minimize impacts to the environment.”

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NEWMONT

CYBERSECURITY

26

March 2021

DID YOU KNOW...

Cybersecurity has taken on greater significance for Newmont in the age of autonomous trucks and drills.

Canepari points out that, unlike securing SAP or payroll data, safety is at stake.

“As CIO, I’m focused on how we ensure the right controls in place to secure this new technology, when just ten years ago it wasn’t even on the agenda. We need to provide true segmentation across the network with innovation and compartmentalization so we don't have the entire company exposed at any given time. A production system in Africa needn’t be exposed to a risk that we may have in Australia and so forth. We’re trying to contain risk to smaller components and manage it better.”

Canepari measures success more in his team’s ability to respond rather than their ability to prevent. “It’s not just about firewalls,” he says. “We must develop the ability to quickly identify the risk, any breaches, and respond rapidly to them.

That’s the biggest change in culture that I see from a cybersecurity perspective.

It’s about really focusing on the response time, and the recovery is paramount.”

NEWMONT

“We had to learn how to dance together.

We are both 100-year-old companies, but we used Rapid Discovery, an Enhance Program Launch and Agile methodology to help us deliver successfully together smoothly and efficiently.”

GENE ALLEN

PARTNER, IBM GLOBAL BUSINESS SERVICES

devices connected to our operations we can analyze the data via the cloud in real time to improve efficiencies and safety at every level.

The role of a CIO has changed significantly; from providing systems to providing the value that delivers safer working conditions.”

Canepari also sees it as his team’s responsibility to enable the company to meet its emissions reduction targets and allow operations to become more environmentally friendly. “As CIO, system abilities are part of my DNA and I believe as a company, we need to leverage technology to develop our systems to better harness energy management, emissions controls and water management as they will be significant drivers in terms of the success of a mining company over the next 20 years.”

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AI IN MINING

AI: The Power to Discover, Operate, Maintain and Predict 28

March 2021

AI IN MINING

Artificial intelligence is no longer in the realms of sci-fi but an invaluable technology tool for mining companies WRITTEN BY: DOMINIC ELLIS

C

ontrary to the stereotypical image of a traditional mine characterised by a large workforce and slow-moving processes, modern mines are quickly becoming complex, machineintensive environments that centre their operations around heavy equipment and computer-driven technology.

Driving much of the changes are rapid advances in analytics and AI tools, which are improving planning and operational efficiencies, mine safety and workflow productivity as well as stimulating the integrated supply chain and predicting future outcomes.

For example, by using smart data and machine learning, a single operator can now remotely control several drill rigs simultaneously, with autonomous vehicles taking over pit-to-pit operations.

AI can also be used to identify new and potentially valuable areas to mine. By using pattern matching and predictive analysis, AI programmes can analyse significant quantities of geological data and identify where to find resources.

Another major benefit of AI’s use in mining operations is minimizing the ecological impact of mining operations and lowering the environmental footprint. Mining sites can be easily monitored and environmental parameters such as temperature and groundwater tracked to assess the impact of mining operations.

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Change is hard. The truth is that many mining companies are still very hesitant about furthering their digital mining transformations in fear of cost of implementation, risk and uncertainty.

However, digital solutions from AVEVA can help mining companies reduce complexity and optimize business and operational performance. aveva.com @avevagroup linkedin.com/company/aveva

For more information, read our free E-Book on Digital Mining Transformation.

“ The starting point of any organisational strategy should never be the technology. Instead, it has to begin with identifying the business problems, corporate objectives, and strategic goals.”

AI IN MINING

BILL SCUDDER,

GM OF AIOT SOLUTIONS, ASPEN TECHNOLOGY

Mining is a highly disruptive activity, operating in hostile environments, which requires significant investment and precise drilling to achieve ROI. Cognilytica analysts Kathleen Walch and Ronald Schmelzer, discussing the merits of AI in a podcast, said AI can help at the outset by separating valuable minerals from debris, saving time and money.

“One area where AI is already being used is in gold – it helps improve data targeting for new deposits, analyse previous data collected, and improve geologists’ planning skills and capture new information from existing data,” said Walch.

AI Today Podcast #80: AI in Mining -Use Case Series | Cognilytica

Schmelzer said related to AI is the growth in digital mining, instrumenting mining equipment with IoT and devices. Autonomous devices can make 24/7 inspections and raise site safety. “We see the use of AI systems helping to make mines safer, in the way inspections are happening. They can provide more frequent inspections and save a lot of time in the inspection process.”

Walch said while we can’t “sugar coat” the environmental damage that mining occurs, cognitive technologies can help reduce the impact and focus minds on future land use strategies. On a day-to-day, AI computer vision solutions can spot discrepancies in real time, avoiding serious environmental or operational issues.

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AI IN MINING

Artificial intelligence – is the mining industry ready?

Early days but adoption rising fast McKinsey’s Global Survey on AI in 2020 found more organizations are using AI as a tool for generating value, with highest percentages allocated to product and service development and service operations (24 percent).

Michael Chui, partner, McKinsey Global Institute, said it’s clear we’re still in the early days of AI use in business with less than a quarter of respondents seeing significant bottom line impact. “However, those seeing AI contribute more than 20 percent to earnings before interest and taxes are not just from the tech sector. So it is possible for any company to get a good amount of value from AI if it’s applied effectively in a repeatable way. We do think AI is worth the investment, but it requires effective execution to generate significant value, particularly at enterprise scale.”

Tim Brooks, VP of Sales and Vendor Management at PSA Security Network, 32

March 2021

believes 2021 will be the year AI becomes more mainstream. “There will be increased deployment in edge devices, including cameras, thermographic cameras, radar and LIDAR sensors and entry point readers.

Additional algorithms will be developed, greatly expanding the use and function as video surveillance transitions from a forensic tool to real-time analytics,” he said.

In its Future of mining with AI paper, Deloitte/Norcat concludes: “The growing evidence of their benefits indicates AIbased technologies in the mining industry are here to stay, allowing companies to make more accurate decisions faster, improve health and safety, boost efficiency and ensure human errors are almost negligible, all while helping create smaller environmental footprints.”

Bill Scudder, GM of AIoT Solutions at Aspen Technology, said there has been much investment in AI technologies in recent years among capital intensive industries as they look to improve

AI IN MINING

efficiencies and enhance processes. But the challenge can be bridging theory and practical application.

“Across the capital intensive industries, this disconnect between an appreciation of the benefits AI can bring, and a lack of understanding of how to extend those benefits across an entire organisation has been especially acute. There is often a divergence between the well-understood theoretical benefits of AI and the challenge of putting these into practice across a whole organisation,” he said.

“Over 2021, however, we would expect to see this beginning to change. We will see industrial organisations begin to move to a more business first mindset. We expect to see them increasingly applying AI technology to domain-specific industrial challenges with

BOX AI’s wide-ranging benefits: • Discovery processes and drilling operations • Detecting defects and predictive maintenance • Detecting driver fatigue, distracted behaviour and lane positioning • Analyzing the energy buyer market and predicting operational outcomes • Improving workplace safety and monitoring the workplace

a focus on business outcomes. Yet, even though exploring and identifying industrial AI-enabled use cases may be a source of fascination to some, the starting point of any organisational strategy should never be

Miningglobal.com

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AI IN MINING

the technology. Instead, it has to begin with identifying the business problems, corporate objectives, and strategic goals.”

Sandvik recently acquired a minority stake in the privately owned American software company Oqton, a leading provider of AI-powered manufacturing solutions that allows manufacturers to manage, optimize, and automate their workflows.

“This investment is in line with our strategic agenda to broaden our offering in digital manufacturing. We are looking forward

Case studies: RockMass Technologies has deployed the latest generation of sensors to capture realtime data to identify potential failure planes on rock surfaces, using handheld hardware to analyze rock surfaces and providing the data to the user within minutes (18 times faster than current manual methods).

Leveraging AI capabilities is at the core of ThoroughTec’s simulator based training platform, where wearable sensors continuously monitor worker behaviour, generating data that is then automatically analyzed to spot problematic behavioural trends and recommend highlyfocused remedial training in a simulatorbased environment.

Ionic Engineering’s use of machine learning to vastly enhance image recognition used in identifying the copper grades reduces “to negligible” the error rate compared to employees doing the work.

Drawing on more than six years of data, Shyft Inc. is using machine learning to forecast energy peaks.

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March 2021

to working with Oqton and finding ways to expand our offering for increased customer productivity by creating new products that take advantage of Sandvik’s extensive know-how about manufacturing processes and Oqton’s AI-powered manufacturing solutions”, said Stefan Widing, President and CEO of Sandvik, which completed the previously announced acquisition of US-based CGTech, a leader in software for numerical control simulation, verification and optimization, at the end of last year.

AI IN MINING

“ Those seeing AI contribute more than 20 percent to earnings . . . are not just from the tech sector. So it is possible for any company to get a good amount of value from AI if it’s applied effectively in a repeatable way.”

MICHAEL CHUI,

PARTNER, MCKINSEY GLOBAL INSTITUTE

Five phases to Rare Earth Elements mining There are five phases within REE mining: prospecting, discovery, development, operation/production, and reclamation. In the operation/production phase companies answer the question of how to mine, mill, and process the discovered ores. It is here that AI has the most impactful presence.

According to a recent research paper from Pixeplex, The Kore Geosystems company won $500,000 in funding for their idea of leveraging AI in combination with installing measurement instruments onto drill rigs for real-time automated geological data acquisition and decision making. This will fast-track exploration campaigns and vastly reduce costs. For Chinese mining companies, this equates to efficiency and informed decisions about which plots of land they will use for drilling and which plots they will reserve.

Ozius Spatial, a company utilizing machine learning, has figured out practices to better prevent environmental destruction – the root cause of Chinese restraints on mining, the paper adds. By deploying satellite imagery and drones, companies don’t have to be on-site and can use remote-sensing algorithms, supported by machine learning, to enable them to assess large tracts of land.

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SILVERCORP METALS INC.

Mining a Bright Future in China How the Canadian miner is balancing profitability, social and environmental responsibility, employee wellbeing and sustainable development WRITTEN BY: DAN BRIGHTMORE PRODUCED BY: RICHARD DEANE

S

ilvercorp is an innovative and unique Canadian mining company with roots in the far east. Founder Dr. Rui Feng took his early geological studies in China before completing his doctorate in Saskatchewan, where he was drawn to Canada’s mining industry. After settling in Vancouver, and working on technical reports for junior mining companies that were going public, Dr. Feng fell in love with the idea of building an entrepreneurial mining company. By taking control of a listed shell company, and using his network of contacts in China, he set about finding attractive assets to put in it.

Dr. Feng is a successful entrepreneur and explorer with over 25 years of global industry experience acquiring mining opportunities worldwide. He was integral in discovering Jinshan Gold’s CSH Gold Mine in China in 2002, which was acquired by China Gold International. Dr. Feng founded Silver-corp in 2003 and acquired early-stage projects in China’s Ying mining district. Through Miningglobal.com

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SILVERCORP METALS INC.

discovery and development, Silvercorp has become one of the most profitable Canadian mining companies, with multiple mines in China.

“The Ying Mining District was well-known for having high-grade mineralization at surface,” recalls Silvercorp’s Vice President Lon Shaver. “But, until Dr. Feng assessed its potential, nobody had ever really cracked the code to determine how to address what were effectively nest-like swarms of ore bodies with many narrow, very high-grade veins. Silvercorp brought a new perspective to the project in terms of how to explore and delineate enough material, in substance and size, to begin a profitable, sustainable operation. And that’s what the Ying project was founded upon.”

RUI FENG TITLE: CHAIRMAN AND CEO COMPANY: SILVERCORP METALS INC. INDUSTRY: MINING

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March 2021

Maximising opportunities at Ying A joint venture was originally established

EXECUTIVE BIO

Dr. Rui Feng is a successful entrepreneur, explorer, and mine builder with over 25 years of global mining industry experience. His passion for discovery has led him to explore and acquire mineral opportunities worldwide. He was integral in discovering Jinshan Gold’s CSH Gold Mine in China in 2002, which was acquired by China Gold International. Dr. Feng founded Silvercorp in 2003 by acquiring early-stage properties in China. Through discovery and development, Silvercorp has become one of the most profitable Canadian mining companies, with multiple mines in China. As a director and former CEO of New Pacific Metals, Dr. Feng led the company to Bolivia in 2017 and acquired the Silver Sand project which has recently led to a significant discovery. In addition to delivering value to employees and shareholders through discovery and development, Dr. Feng also believes a sustainable operation requires innovation and more effective management.

He pioneered a digital information management tool for Silvercorp’s mines, which has contributed to improved organizational performance and operational profitability.

“ Mines are depleting assets but, despite the years of production, recent drilling results brought our inventory at Ying, in terms of reserves, back up to roughly the same level as in 2016, with a renewed 20-year mine life” LON SHAVER

VICE PRESIDENT, SILVERCORP

SILVERCORP METALS INC.

at Ying in 2003 by Silvercorp making a $5m investment to kickstart operations. The mines across the property have remained self-funded ever since through operations that have delivered profits of $480m to shareholders. A recently-published technical report, completed by AMC Consultants (AMC) in 2020, highlights a bright future for the mining of silver, gold, lead and zinc at the Ying property. Shaver notes that in addition to the current inventory of reserves of around 12 million tonnes there is also the potential for further incre-ases if additional drilling can convert known resources to reserves, as well as identify more resources.

“Everything in the report ties back to the resources and then the reserves, because it’s upon those reserves that the mine plan was established, and that dictates the projected economic contribution of what the mine

is going to be,” explains Shaver. “Our last report was based on drilling up to June 2016, and this report brings that forward to December 2019. Mines are depleting assets but, despite the production that took place over that timeframe, drilling results brought our inventory at Ying, in terms of reserves, back up to essentially the same level. We had a 20-year mine life that would have been reduced by the depletion that took place, but that life has been restored to 20 years again.”

Quality not Quantity Silvercorp currently operates six mines across three of its four licences in the Ying mining district - SGX, HZG, HPG, LME, LMW, TLP. The Ying Technical Report confirmed that Ying is proving to be a prolific producer.

“Over the years, we’ve established the ability Miningglobal.com

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10+ YEARS

Proudly supporting and advising Silvercorp on resource/reserve estimation processes and reporting across its operations.

Industry leaders in geology, mining, and geotechnical engineering - AMC Consultants’ due diligence and feasibility studies are relied on by the world’s major investment banks and mining companies.

AMC has been Silvercorp’s trusted advisor for Mineral Resource and Mineral Reserve estimation since 2009. With AMC’s continuing guidance, we are now looking forward to yet further streamlining our estimation processes for both internal site operations and external reporting.

- RUI FENG, CHAIRMAN AND CEO

MORE ABOUT AMC

amcconsultants.com

“

“

SILVERCORP METALS INC.

to define higher grades and prioritise those grades during the mine’s life,” adds Shaver.

“This of course brings the production to a higher level in the earlier years, which contributes more when calculating our net present value. Recent drilling appears to have identified zones of traditional mineralization, with high grades and close to existing infrastructure, but also potentially a different type of mineralization that was the source of anomalous gold results from drilling that occurred in the past.”

Silvercorp’s recent technical report also introduced the potential for a seventh mining unit and the current Ying operations have excess mill capacity. “Right now, the existing six mines are operating at sustainable production rates,” explains Shaver. “We don’t really want to push them for much higher tonnage, if anything we’re looking at creating opportunities for higher quality tonnage out of those mines, and pursuing the development of a seventh mining area, the DCG Project (which would be the first mine on the

LON SHAVER

VICE PRESIDENT, SILVERCORP

Effectively replacing reserves since the last report in 2017, the latest technical report (carried out by AMC Consultants) re-confirms a 20-year mine life at Silvercorp’s flagship operation and shows: • 18% Increase in Measured and Indicated Silver Resources.

• 4% Increase in Proven and Probable Silver Reserves, on Top of 21 Million Ounces of Silver Produced between June 2016 and December 2019 at the Ying Silverlead-zinc Mining District.

• In comparison with the 2017 Technical Report, Inferred Resource tonnes have increased by 78%, and contained metal has increased by 42% for silver, 38% for lead, 32% for zinc and 450% for gold.

Significant aspects of comparison of Mineral Reserve estimates between June 2016 (previous Technical Report) and December 2019 (Ying 2020 Technical Report):

DID YOU KNOW...

“ The Ying Technical Report has further confirmed our ability to define higher grades and prioritise those grades during the mine life”

YING 2020 TECHNICAL REPORTS – HIGHLIGHTS

• Increase in total Ying Mineral Reserve silver, lead, and zinc grades of 7%, 2%, and 11% respectively.

• Increase in total Ying Mineral Reserve metal content for silver and zinc of 4% and 8% respectively; 1% decrease in total lead content.

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SILVERCORP METALS INC.

2003

Year founded

$166m LTM revenue in dollars.

1,200+ Number of employees

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March 2021

SILVERCORP METALS INC.

fourth licence). When that does come online it may contribute to production growth and flexibility in terms of the overall operating plan.”

It’s early days, but Shaver explains there was work done historically on the Ying property’s fourth mining licence, which shows the potential of the veins that Silvercorp is looking to develop into new production zones. “We’ve been driving

“ Given the pressures of the pandemic on the global economy, the metals markets should benefit from the fiscal stimulus being put forward. The inflationary pressures we’re seeing will be positive for precious metals” LON SHAVER

VICE PRESIDENT, SILVERCORP

a tunnel towards that fourth licence and with recent drilling efforts we’ve hit some interesting zones,” he confirms. “If it all proves to be positive, the next steps would be to develop additional access and infrastructure to develop another mining operation.”

The Market “Like every other miner in the metals industry, we are in a commodities market where all the producers are price takers,” says Shaver. “The key focus then is how to create and sustain an operation at the low end of the cost curve, so that in good times when prices are high, you make money, but then when prices are low you can survive those tough times, continue to generate positive cash margins and be self-sustaining.”

Shaver sees a strong future for precious and base metals: “Given the pressures of Miningglobal.com

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SILVERCORP METALS INC.

DID YOU KNOW...

THE ENTERPRISE BLOG

44

The Enterprise Blog (EBlog) is Silvercorp’s social media platform for the transparent distribution and flow of work-related knowledge across multiple locations within the business. In the system, each of the mining stopes, development faces, or major pieces of equipment is assigned a blog name. Daily results of onsite inspection by responsible engineers are required to be published on their blogs. The results are listed in a structured data format in a checklist table, containing information and supporting photos. Related parties at different levels of the management team can directly access the daily blog for each workplace, for first-hand information in real time. Meanwhile, the EBlog system also records when a manager has accessed the

March 2021

blog to read or comment on the daily results under their responsibility.

With the Enterprise Blog, information collection, assessments are fair and timely, and each team member is responsible for their work distribution, retrieval, and monitoring has become transparent and immediate. The knowledge collected by the frontline technicians or engineers freely flows throughout layers of the management structure. Management have the incentive, and tools, to make prompt and more accurate decisions that can be instantly delivered to responsible parties.

The benefits of the system are that team member collaboration becomes easy, KPI assessments are fair and timely, and each team member is responsible for their work.

SILVERCORP METALS INC.

Silvercorp Metals Inc. Ying Mines

the pandemic on the global economy, the metals markets should benefit from the fiscal stimulus being put forward. The inflationary pressures we’re seeing will be positive for precious metals, and silver will benefit from that, along with the part it plays in the electrification of society and its growing use in renewable energy such as solar. At Ying there are many positives as the mining is relatively straightforward, with good ground conditions, and little mitigation needed. Metallurgy is strong and our concentrates are in high demand from smelters so we are in a good position to be a sustainable producer of silver, gold, lead and zinc.”

AMC Consultants “AMC have been working with us for a number of years and understand the nature of the ore bodies, the information we’re

“ We trust the expertise AMC Consultants brings on technical reports and look forward to their input on assessing the viability of our future projects” LON SHAVER

VICE PRESIDENT, SILVERCORP

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SILVERCORP METALS INC.

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SILVERCORP METALS INC.

“ AMC have been working with us for a number of years and understand the nature of the ore bodies, the information we’re collecting, how we collect it, how it gets processed and how we apply that picture to the operations” LON SHAVER

VICE PRESIDENT, SILVERCORP

collecting, how we collect it, how it gets processed and how we apply that picture to the operations,” explains Shaver. “We record some of these nuances on our Enterprise Blog; our in-house platform allows us to store, share and access information in real time across the business. AMC have made a number of site visits and combined with the flow of information we can share they’re in a great position to chart the process and come up with what we believe are reasonable conclusions for this latest report.

They’ve also worked with us on reports for the GC mine. We trust the expertise AMC brings on technical reports and look forward to their input on assessing the viability of our future projects.”

for the mining industry in China. “Across our mine sites we’re continually re-greening and re-vegetating and right now we’re building an aggregate plant within the Ying mining district,” explains Shaver. “Working with the community and local government we’re aiming to upcycle waste rock stockpiles from our mines into useful building materials.”

Silvercorp’s involvement with local businesses is creating economic opportunities in synchronicity with its mine life plan.

Setting the standard for others to follow in China’s mining industry bodes well for a productive and bright future for the company.

A Sustainable Future A holistic and sustainable philosophy is key to Silvercorp’s growth strategy. From reducing waste to minimising mining’s footprint on the surrounding environment, the company is proactive in its efforts to lead the conversation around sustainability Miningglobal.com

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INDUSTRY X.O

AUTONOMOUSTRUCKS

Boost Productivity and Attract Funding The latest self-driving models are cuttings costs, raising efficiencies and setting the foundations for fossil-free mining operations in the mobile fleet sector WRITTEN BY: DOMINIC ELLIS

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T

he words ‘electric’ and ‘autonomous’ are largely synonymous with compact passenger cars to most of us but technological developments are taking place at top speed across the transport spectrum – including in the large mining vehicle sector, which has the almost unique capability of combining scale and invisibility at the same time.

As befits these novel times, this year’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) was not only the first digital showcase but also marked Caterpillar’s debut as it promoted its selfdriving fleet equipped with Cat MineStar and data-sharing subscription product, MineStar Edge. If nothing else, it raised the supersized truck into consumer consciousness.

“People may ask why a manufacturing company like Caterpillar has decided to participate in CES,” said Denise Johnson, Group President, Resource Industries. “The real question is ‘why not?’ We’re proud of our reputation for building some of the biggest, most productive machines in the world. But the technology that goes along with those machines is built by Caterpillar, too.”

INDUSTRY X.O

Miningglobal.com

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INDUSTRY X.O

Let's talk mining: Caterpillar and saving the world CES Livestream

Caterpillar has been investing seat passenger planes – and in the development of bestcan move 4.91 trillion pounds in-class mining technology of material.

The Cat 797F autonomous solutions for more than 30 “The CES show is filled with haul truck weighs in at years, developing the buildinginnovators who are always block offerings that surface and looking for the next technology the equivalent of underground mines use every breakthrough,” said Johnson. day to improve consistency “We’re proud to be on that 189-seat passenger and efficiency, enable safer journey, too. But while we planes! operations and reduce overall continue to innovate for operating costs. the future, the technologies It’s been a long journey. The company’s Caterpillar has developed are doing real first research into autonomous vehicles work and delivering real results to our mining began in the 1980s, with prototype customers every day.” autonomous Cat trucks running in a quarry CES wasn’t just a hardware-come-software as early as the 1990s. The first official opportunity for Caterpillar but an opportunity MineStar Command for hauling site began to attract more talent to its technology team. operating in 2013 and today Caterpillar has “We are committed to making investments in more than 350 trucks operating 24/7 on technology research and development,” said three continents.

Johnson. “We need the best and the brightest The Cat 797F autonomous haul truck engineers, developers and tech experts to weighs in at 284.6 tons, rising to 687.5 tons help us turn those investments into solutions on a full load – the equivalent of 15 189for our customers.”

284.6 tons 15

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INDUSTRY X.O

Autonomous truck benefits: • Operations are up to 20 percent more efficient • Mines record up to 30 per cent more productivity • 24/7 operations with zero ‘lost time’ incidents • Large upfront capital offset by savings over time

Caterpillar Chairman & CEO Jim Umpleby added that for many mines of a certain size, most customers now want an autonomous fleet. “We’ve had customers publicly state that they’re seeing productivity increases in the range of 30 percent, which is obviously very significant to their bottom line. We have about 340 autonomous mining trucks running and expect to reach 400 by the end of the year. We like to say that we have more actual autonomous miles on our mining trucks than any car manufacturer has out there.”

Oxbotica secures autonomy software funding Oxbotica, a leader in autonomous vehicle software, recently announced the completion of a $47 million Series B investment with partners across the globe, led by bp ventures.

The funding will accelerate Oxbotica’s commercial deployment of its autonomy software platform across multiple industries and key markets.

It follows the signing of an MoU between Wenco International Mining Systems and Oxbotica last year to develop a world-first Open Autonomy solution for mining. Initial trials are underway, and the companies are actively recruiting mining partners with appropriate testing grounds. It’s billed as 52

March 2021

“ We have about 340 autonomous mining trucks running and expect to reach 400 by the end of the year” JIM UMPLEBY,

CHAIRMAN & CEO, CATERPILLAR

the first Open Autonomy solution for the mining industry.

The system will provide customers flexibility and efficiency in autonomous mining deployment, allowing them to operate any open standard-based vehicle

INDUSTRY X.O

Caterpillar Chairman & CEO Jim Umpleby - many mines of a certain size, most customers now want an autonomous fleet.

30%

increase in productivity

340

autonomous mining trucks running and expect to reach

400

by the end of the year!

and integrate it into their existing fleet, and meet growing demand for autonomous haulage trucks, which are projected to grow by more than 300 percent by 2023.

Wenco and Oxbotica both support an open and interoperable ecosystem of partners that integrate solutions alongside existing mine infrastructure. Both companies believe this provides customers with the greatest flexibility and control for integrating new solutions while reducing associated risks and costs.

This approach also notably avoids vendor lock-in and offers customers the freedom to choose preferred technologies, independent of their primary industrial systems.

Furthermore, it enables highly skilled autonomy suppliers that may be new to mining to integrate with customers’ existing

operations while backed by a proven expert in the industry.

A wholly owned subsidiary company of Hitachi Construction Machinery, Wenco, has 30 years’ experience in developing technology solutions that assist mining companies in maximising resource value from their operations. This latest advancement builds on the vision of Open Autonomy – first publicly announced by Wenco and its parent, Hitachi Construction Machinery, at the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (CIM) Convention in Montreal in May 2019.

Andrew Pyne, Wenco President and CEO, said it was confident that combining Oxbotica’s proven capability in autonomy with its 30-year experience in interoperable fleet management systems for large mining Miningglobal.com

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INDUSTRY X.O

“ We have the opportunity to develop an aspect of fossil-free mining operations, a step towards achieving a fossil-free society and basic industry” MARIA LINDBERG,

MANAGER, HEAVY ELECTRIFIED TRANSPORT AT VATTENFALL

customers enables it to create the industry’s first full-function Open Autonomy platform.

“Regardless of the strategies of other industrial autonomy vendors, Wenco and Oxbotica believe firmly in the principle of open systems and consider it the primary way to bring about our joint goals of widespread adoption of autonomous technology and safer, more productive industrial operations. Our joint platform will allow customers to choose any open standards-based vehicle and integrate it into their existing operations.”

Scania steps on autonomous pedal Scania – which has been testing selfdriving trucks for mining transport in Australia since 2017 – has the cab-less AXL fully autonomous concept truck in its fleet, which is powered by renewable biofuel. Claes Erixon, Head of Research and Development at Scania, said the model “changes the game significantly”.

“The development in self-driving vehicles has made great strides in the past years. We still don’t have all the answers, but through concept vehicles like Scania AXL we break new ground and continue to learn at great speed,” he said. Scania was recently granted permission by the Swedish Transport Agency to test self-driving trucks on the E4 motorway between Södertälje and Jönköping.

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Electric truck tackles Arctic conditions Kaunis Iron is collaborating with Vattenfall, Volvo Trucks, ABB and Wist Last & Buss in a pilot project to develop a sustainable logistics system with electrically powered heavy trucks functioning in -44 degree Celsius in northern Sweden. Volvo Trucks is contributing its own heavy truck, an all-electric Volvo FMX prototype, to evaluate how battery-electric trucks including charging systems function in Arctic conditions.

Maria Lindberg, Manager, Heavy Electrified Transport at Vattenfall, said: “Our fossil-free electricity and services for charging infrastructure, where we install, operate and maintain charging functions, play a self-evident role in the development of electrified transport, and we are very

INDUSTRY X.O

Sandvik scoops Global Product Leadership award: pleased with this cooperation. Here, we have the opportunity to develop an aspect of fossil-free mining operations, a step towards achieving a fossil-free society and basic industry.”

Vattenfall and Kaunis Iron signed a letter of intent to develop fossil-free and electrified mining operations at the iron ore mine in Pajala, Sweden, in January.

"The Swedish mining industry is facing major changes to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and develop climate-efficient and responsible mining operations,” said Klas Dagertun, CEO, Kaunis Iron. “Kaunis Iron wants to take active responsibility for this development, and that is why this collaboration with Vattenfall is very important.”

Based on its recent analysis of the global mining automation market, Frost & Sullivan has recognized Sandvik with the 2020 Global Product Leadership Award for its advanced mining automation, teleoperation and digitalization solutions portfolio, AutoMine and OptiMine. ”Sandvik is the only mining equipment and solutions company that was awarded in our 2020 Class of Top 50 Digital Bestpractitioners across the Industrial and Energy Space,” says Rohit Karthikeyan, Industry Analyst at Frost & Sullivan.

The AutoMine system is an innovative automation solution that comprises AutoMine Underground and AutoMine Surface Drilling, enabling customers to scale up the mining automation at their own pace.

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CRU GROUP

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March 2021

CRU GROUP

DATA-DRIVEN COMMODITIES

DIGITALTRANSFORMATION Will Blake, Director of Technology & Analytics at CRU Group, discusses how data and data analytics are driving change in commodities WRITTEN BY: MATT HIGH

T

he digital transformation of every industry sector means that an immeasurable amount of data is being generated by businesses, industries and consumers worldwide every day. The effective harnessing and analysis of that data can generate significant value to companies through the greater understanding and insight of trends, and better prediction and forecasting that allows robust strategies to be delivered.

The latter is where CRU comes in. The London-headquartered company uses data to offer unrivalled business intelligence on the global metals, mining and fertiliser industries through market analysis, pricing assessments and consultancy services. The content and insight provided by CRU gives a complete view of the commodity market, enabling operators and industry participants to make critical business decisions.

PRODUCED BY: CAITLYN COLE

Understandably, delivering such a comprehensive suite of services requires a robust and innovative technology and analytics strategy. Will Blake is responsible for driving this strategy. Will is a highly experienced technology leader, having spent more than 15 years at CRU and, previously, close to two years working as a geophysicist in a seismic exploration team. Data has been an overarching theme throughout his career, as he explains: “Geophysics is a data intensive role that requires the handling of large volumes of information – the oil industry was really one of the first that exploited the value of data in this way, so that experience has certainly given me a greater understanding of the challenges around information and data, as well as how we can effectively solve the issues our customers face.”

During his 15 years at CRU, Will has witnessed data, and the effective analysis Miningglobal.com

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CRU GROUP

CRU’s strategy on data gathering

“ COMPANIES ARE PRODUCING REAMS OF DATA AND, AT THE SAME TIME, USING A LOT MORE TO IMPROVE THEIR OPERATIONS” WILL BLAKE,

DIRECTOR OF TECHNOLOGY & ANALYTICS, CRU GROUP

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March 2021

of that data, play an increasingly important role in the business strategies of customers.

“It’s been a huge transformation,” he notes.

“Generally speaking, data is a lot more prevalent and is consumed from a host of different and new sources, such as increased automation and so on. Volume wise, we’re dealing with so much more information that we analyse, so it’s a significant change.

“Take the mining industry as an example,” Will continues. “Companies are producing reams of data and, at the same time, using a lot more to improve their operations.

There’s a big increase in IoT devices at mining sites and satellite geospatial analysis for monitoring purposes, for example, which help to boost productivity, eliminate unnecessary costs and allow for the move towards predictive maintenance. At the same time, we’re seeing an acceleration in the drive towards automated mining and self-driving vehicles, which can operate around the clock.

Not only can they improve production rates

CRU GROUP

and safety, but provide greater availability of data and information to analyse.”

CRU has been operational for just over 50 years. And while the company has always been at the forefront of primary research and analysis, Will explains that the exponential growth of data and innovative technology has led to the company’s own digital transformation journey. “We started as a paper-based publisher that would publish thousands of industry reports each year. And, because we have clients in 90 countries worldwide, we’d have to transport that information to them by courier.

Similarly, the data collection was also quite a manual process.

“What’s really changed is the accessibility of data,” he continues. “Clients used to be happy receiving a report once a year, or once a quarter, but now we’re no longer willing to wait for that information – technology makes everything instantaneous, so our whole cycle has had to change in terms of what we produce and how we produce it. It’s no longer about pulling information together and presenting it to the customer, people can often find that information easily elsewhere.

WILL BLAKE TITLE: DIRECTOR OF TECHNOLOGY & ANALYTICS COMPANY: CRU GROUP INDUSTRY: COMMODITIES RESEARCH AND ANALYSIS

EXECUTIVE BIO

LOCATION: LONDON Will has over 12 years of experience in technology across a range of disciplines including data analytics, cybersecurity, digital product development and cloud infrastructure. He is currently Director of Technology & Analytics at CRU and has responsibility for digital development initiatives and global technology services. He is also a member of the CRU executive team and has wider responsibilities across the business including product development and compliance. Prior to CRU, he worked as a geophysicist for a seismic exploration company in the oil industry. He holds a MSc in Geophysics from Durham University and a BSc in Geology from Bristol University.

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Pyramid Analytics: digital transformation’s trusted partner Pyramid Analytics helps organisations navigate their data journeys. The data analytics company provides customers with a unified, trusted analytics platform that is adaptable and scalable, and acts as a single analytics solution regardless of user type or skill level.

“Digital transformation has fundamentally changed the way that organisations view and consume data,” says Omri Kohl, cofounder and CEO at Pyramid Analytics.

“We’re now in an environment where data is an absolutely critical asset—if you want to have a competitive advantage and to capitalise on any opportunities in the market, you need to leverage all data available to you. It’s the most significant cultural change in how people develop and scale companies. Just look at Facebook, Google and Amazon, they’re all hugely successful and all driven by data.”

CRU Group, a valued Pyramid customer and leading commodities analysis company, has undergone a significant digital transformation of their own. CRU offers analysis, forecasting and pricing services for the mining, metal and fertiliser industries. As such, its business is built around the effective analysis and use of data. “We’ve been working with CRU for roughly five years, enabling them to scale and provide effective data to their customers,” says Steve Cowell, Head of UK & Ireland. “At that stage, the company was embarking on its own digital transformation and had a lot of data in

Pyramid Analytics

silos and spreadsheets. They were looking for an advanced analytics platform that would allow effective data modelling, improved security and governance.”

“We’ve spent a lot of time working with CRU to help them democratize and visualise their data and achieve real consistency across the organisation— ultimately transforming sales revenue reporting and driving portfolio growth.

CRU is now able to more accurately forecast profit margin and influence how and what they sell. We are honored to be a trusted partner in their digital transformation and congratulate them on their tremendous success.” pyramidanalytics.com

CRU GROUP

To be successful, we have to add value and interpretation on top of that information, which CRU is very good at.”

To manage this transformation and add value, Will explains that CRU “pulled back to the information and the content, rather than focus around the technology, which people do have a tendency to do. The latest tools don’t necessarily matter that much, for us the focus has always been the accessibility of data and information, the understanding of what our customers need to help them make effective business decisions, and how often and in what format do they need it.

Only once we have the answer to those questions do we consider the technology necessary to deliver on them.”

One essential implementation was a cloudfirst strategy, he explains. CRU consumes

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CRU GROUP

An insight into how CRU gathers content for its consumers

“ OUR CLOUD STRATEGY PROVED TO BE VERY RESILIENT AND WAS A KEY ENABLER IN ALLOWING BUSINESS TO CARRY ON EFFECTIVELY” WILL BLAKE

DIRECTOR OF TECHNOLOGY & ANALYTICS, CRU GROUP Miningglobal.com

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Cyber security is dull as ****

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CRU GROUP

500+

sets and commodities prices published each week

300+

employees spread over 8 offices on 5 continents

40

different commodities analysised

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CRU GROUP

content from a multitude of locations globally, and by working in the cloud the business is able to achieve the flexibility and technical delivery to maximise on any investment. Similarly, Will notes that the business has focused on building on its core in-house technical and data skill sets in order to deliver effectively to customers.

“Data is pivotal, so we keep that expertise within the business. We partner with other companies on things that we don’t see as core to our direct business, so networking communications, front-end website development,” he adds.

CRU specialises in market-leading research built on robust and transparent

“FOR US THE FOCUS HAS ALWAYS BEEN THE ACCESSIBILITY OF DATA AND INFORMATION” WILL BLAKE,

DIRECTOR OF TECHNOLOGY & ANALYTICS, CRU GROUP

methodologies. Regardless of specific sector or operation, its customers typically use the content and information provided to inform critical business decisions such as whether to enter a certain commodity market, for example. It also offers price assessments from a team of specialists in London, Beijing, Mumbai, Pittsburgh, Shanghai, Singapore and Santiago. Will explains that primary research in these areas covers supply, demand, price and costs analysis; the content is also used to build proprietary models that inform CRU’s forecasting under the strapline of ‘where commodities meet economics’.

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NTT: supporting global enterprises in the new digital era

CRU GROUP

We speak to Mo Meah, Client Partner at NTT with 25 years experience An insightsales into how CRU efficiently in the technology environment, onwith the the global pandemic dealt company’s partnership with CRU Group

Information provided by CRU helps Joining NTT in 2014, Mo Meah currently holds Group’s collaboration tools, which in turn has led “ W E’RE ALSO organisations navigate challenging market the position of Client Partner at the company. to NTT looking at other areas of the business This hascloud beenand evidenced most “NTT is a global ICT provider with a revenue conditions. such as security making use of digital LOOKING TO thethe company’s during of$11bn. As the 11th largest company in the recently events.in “So relationshipwork is moving in the right world, NTT’s focuses on supporting global direction to support their future business the global COVID-19 pandemic. Like all needs.

DRIVE A LOT OF enterprise companies that are looking to utilise companies, One of theCRU keyfaced areas,the considering challengethe of global the new digital era of intelligent solutions, both pandemic that we’re currently experiencing, AUTOMATION to aable remote workingand business locally and regionally, as well as globally. NTT shifting is being to support work with their “It’s been very challenging,” Willtogether operates in over 50 countries, working with model. remote workers.

We were able to put AND TO IMPROVE customers to build very long trusted relationships highlights, the ability“but to allow employees to work from home as we have offices in Beijing as a managed service provider,” comments Meah. and at Shanghai, very short which notice,”both he adds. enforced home OUR RANGE OF working in January, we were better placed to NTT’s relationship with CRU Group began four Meah details that NTT’s partnership with CRU for any potential 23able March DATA SOURCES, years ago, originating from an event hosted plan Group is one wheredisruption. they have On been to build

by NTT. “Cloud Expo allowed CRU Group to wea moved strong relationship.

“We have worked the whole global business – closely INCLUDING assess who they could go to market and who around with them to really where 300 people – tounderstand home working andthey’re would support them in establishing a more agile going as a business and being able to address it’s worked remarkably well. Our cloud and robust network. We actually bid on XXXX at some of those issues in terms of having better SATELLITE proved totools be very and was the time, and as part of that we effectively strategy communication and resilient allowing them the data in allowing business carrynetwork delivered a brand new infrastructure for an a key andenabler the voice to operate overtoone ANALYTICS” environment to support their business and oninterface.

Our partnership makes their job a lot effectively.” consolidate their connectivity across the globe. easier becausehas they can relyengaged on their trusted The company also been Our network partner to worry about infrastructure, which WILL BLAKE, has enabled them to communicate in dedicated analysisonto the better more effectively with both employees and allows themCOVID-19 to concentrate key areas DIRECTOR OF TECHNOLOGY understand how the virus is impacting customers,” comments Meah. of actually optimising and being more effective & ANALYTICS, in their business roles,” concludes commodities.

“Disruption to supplyMeah. chains CRU GROUP As a result of this initial partnership, NTT has had has been significant,” Will states, “as well as the opportunity to branch out and unify CRU Miningglobal.com

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CRU GROUP

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CRU GROUP

short-term demand reduction. Alongside this, we’ve been tracking operational status of mines, smelters and refineries with our dedicated disruption tracker service, which has been embedded in our existing products. Our economics team has been closely analysing the impact of this disruption on global GDP and other economic indicators as our outlook shifts from what’s happening now to what the future looks like for our customers.”

As to that future, Will describes a rapidly changing market that is showing the first signs of stability. Forecasting, he notes, always has a degree of flexibility, but CRU is experiencing commodities customers seeking answers to longer term questions, which demonstrates the response to COVID shifting from a survival mentality to one of strategically planning for the future.

For CRU, future plans revolve around continuing to develop core services and the implementation of new technologies, says

Will. “We still have work to do to harness the volumes of data we need and make it more accessible – it’s a never ending evolution in that respect. We have just purchased a new data platform that will drive this growth and offer a greater range of analysis. We’re also looking to drive a lot of automation and to improve our range of data sources. The latter includes satellite analytics, which provides an enormous wealth of information at a global scale.”

“In terms of our business, there are two big trends that will drive what we do: increasing electrification of transport and the changing structure of power generation, and carbon emissions and environmental sustainability.

Both will contribute hugely to how our customers operate and they’ll form a key strategic area for us to move into.”

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SMART MINING ERA

Benefits from Digital Solutions Digital innovation is shaping the mine of the future WRITTEN BY: DOMINIC ELLIS

O

ver the past decade, the mining industry has faced increasingly difficult scenarios to improve efficiencies, raise safety and reduce costs, whilst also demonstrating an increased environmental and social awareness among local communities.

The recent China gold mine explosions in Shandong Province were a stark reminder of the dangers faced by miners working 400 meters below ground, even in today’s more safety-aware and technologically equipped 21st century.

Against the wider challenges of 2020, the pressure to get the balance right has only intensified and the pandemic has triggered many countries to re-assess the long-lasting impacts of their mining and metal projects. As a result, new processes must be developed to meet the increasing demand for materials and low-carbon technologies.

On all fronts, this is where the new digital era can offer solutions.

Traditionally, mining has been slow to adopt new technologies and embrace

innovations that could transform and strengthen the industry. However, an Accenture Consulting report found that 82 per cent of the mining industry is looking to increase investments in technological innovations over the next few years.

From AI and spatial visualisation data to GIS systems and automated drones, digital technologies are set to make mining operations around the world more productive, efficient and sustainable, whilst significantly reducing the risks involved and improving worker safety.

The global smart mining market size is expected to reach $24,047.6 million in 2027, from $9,256.7 million in 2019, growing at a CAGR of 13 percent over the next six years, according to Allied Market Research.

Changes are now filtering through. At the end of last year, Epiroc agreed to buy MineRP, a software company specializing in increasing productivity for mines through integrated planning, execution and analytics.

“The combination of MineRP’s platform capabilities with Epiroc’s digital solutions, partners and global presence has the potential to transform the way that mines operate,” said Helena Hedblom, Epiroc’s President and CEO. “MineRP is a highquality software provider with significant experience of connecting mines from pit to port, and together we will continue to Miningglobal.com

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TECHNOLOGY

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TECHNOLOGY

“ The mining sector can only benefit from adopting digital technologies and data analytics to optimise the efficiency and effectiveness of mines, boost asset performance, reduce risk and mitigate against environmental concerns” BORIS IVANOV

GLOBAL COMMODITIES EXPERT

make mining customers’ operations even more smart, safe and seamless.”

Axora launched an online Smart Mining resource centre to help companies rebound from, and thrive after, the global Coronavirus pandemic. The Smart Mining centre provides the latest industry insights and access to digital solutions and technologies which mining companies can adopt to accelerate their business growth, reduce wasted investment, and avoid duplication.

Shaping the future of mining after COVID-19 | Axora In a paper entitled The Digital Mine: connected, optimised, sustainable, Prof.

David Sjödin, Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the Luleå University of Technology in Sweden, said: “We will have to create deeper mines in the future. We can’t send humans to these depths and automation will be the only option. To be automation-ready, mines will first have to get digitalisation right.” The World Economic Forum has identified four key digital themes that are Miningglobal.com

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expected to be central to the digitalization of the industry over the next decade.

Safety sensors A researcher at the University of Southern Queensland in Toowoomba, Australia, has developed new super sensors that could significantly improve mining safety, in another clear example of technology redrawing the conventional mining environment.

Designed to prevent injury and death on mining sites, Dr Toan Dinh’s sensors detect early mechanical issues in oil and gas pipelines while being able to withstand harsh and corrosive environments – an ability that has even caught the attention of NASA. Dr Dinh, a mechanical engineer at the University of Southern Queensland, has spent the past six years developing the sensors, which are made of silicon carbide.

He says that they are five to 100 times smaller than the width of a single human hair, and that they perform "a thousand times better" than conventional sensors.

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“The current silicon technology can’t be used in harsh environments because they can’t survive a long time in conditions of high temperature and corrosion,” Dr Dinh explains. “The sensors I have developed can operate in up to 600 degrees Celsius for a wide range of applications, including oil and gas industries and aerospace technologies.”

Big data and spatial data visualisation Smart mines are mines where the major assets are digitized via embedded sensors that transmit data to a centralized location through a wireless network. The value of a smart mine lies in exploring the clear and robust data available across the mine workflow to provide realtime insights. Once analysed, the data can identify production issues, manage inventory and quality, track production and asset performance and costs. This can help mining companies make optimal decisions to generate efficiencies across its production and operations.

TECHNOLOGY

“ The current silicon technology can’t be used in harsh environments because they can’t survive a long time in conditions of high temperature and corrosion” DR DINH,

MECHANICAL ENGINEER THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN QUEENSLAND

Spatial data is becoming increasingly valuable across the mining sector, with three-dimensional modelling, virtual reality and augmented reality software’s enabling companies to plan new mines without being on the ground. For example, threedimensional modelling allows companies to create a realistic model of a new mine, with viewable depth perception, which enables them to assess and test potential issues before plans are deployed in the real world.

In addition, these new technologies allow individuals to experience what it is like to

work in a mine without being in the field and for companies to train new miners remotely.

In particular, developments in augmented reality now allow miners to be trained using virtual simulators and provide an immersive experience – letting employees to prepare for difficult events in a safe environment.

This reduces costs, risks and negative impacts to the environment.

Autonomous mines Mines have always been considered dangerous environments to work in.

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However, as the exploration of new deposits become increasingly complex, including lower ore grades, deeper deposits and high-stress environments, the number of injuries and fatalities in mining remains persistently high. This is where technological innovations offer a lifeline.

The World Economic Forum projects that automation and robotics could prevent 10,000 injuries in the mining and metals industries in the decade to 2025.

Through the implementation of AI-powered autonomous systems, mining companies are now able to use 78

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self-controlled machines to take charge of the operations in hostile environments.

This move will not only significantly reduce the threat to miners’ lives, however, the rise of the ‘digital mine’ is also set to boost overall productivity with machines able to work 24/7. China’s coal mines have been boosting intelligent mining technologies to reduce accidents with more robots working underground.

The number of pieces of machinery equipped with smart mining technologies reached 494 at the end of 2020, up 80 percent on 2019. Nineteen kinds of robots

TECHNOLOGY

“We will have to create deeper mines in the future. We can’t send humans to these depths and automation will be the only option. To be automation-ready, mines will first have to get digitalisation right.”

DAVID SJÖDIN

ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND INNOVATION, THE LULEÅ UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY IN SWEDEN

were working in underground coal mines for mining, drilling and patrolling at the end of 2020, according to the National Mine Association.

The Syama underground gold mine in Mali became the world’s first fully autonomous mine operation. Designed in partnership with Swedish engineering company Sandvik, the mine operates with fully automated trucks, loaders and drills.

The fully autonomous operation means that the mine can operate 24 hours a day, with all operations overseen from a remote operation centre.

Drones and surveillance Mining by its nature has a negative impact on the environment. Whilst this is an unavoidable reality, mining companies can considerably reduce this impact by tracking how resources are extracted and disposed of.

For example, automated drones can be used to monitor excavation and extraction projects, keeping detailed accounts on the spread of waste products and harmful materials. By introducing an element of accountability, mining companies will become more mindful of their activities and assess and minimize subsequent knock-on effects.

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On top of documenting the mine’s impact on its surrounding ecosystem, drones can also be used to assess pipeline infrastructure and retention ponds, whilst also providing safety surveillance in hazardous areas and asset management across multiple sites. By providing a detailed account of what cannot be seen by eyes on the ground, drones are only set to become more important to the smooth and successful running of mining operations.

Future opportunities Without doubt, the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted how important technological innovation is to delivering cost efficiencies, enhancing sustainability and providing new solutions to keeping workforces safe across all sectors. The mining industry is no exception.

Boris Ivanov, Global Commodities Expert, said: “The mining sector can only benefit from adopting digital technologies and data analytics to optimise the efficiency and effectiveness of mines, boost asset performance, reduce risk and mitigate against environmental concerns.

In addition, shifting human-run operations to autonomous or semi-autonomous remote-controlled mines will only work to enhance the process along the entire value chain.”

Technology is not just a factor in the future of mining operations, it’s also affecting the market output. For example, the growing use of smartphones, tablets, batteries and the push for electric vehicles has led to a rise in demand for rare earth elements and lithium.

“Ultimately, by delivering modern, safe and productive mines, technological innovations have the capacity to help make mining a valuable enterprise. Now it’s up to industry leaders to connect people, equipment, data and insights by harnessing digital technologies to drive operational excellence,” added Ivanov.

In a rapidly changing world, mining companies need to be more agile, resilient, and transformative. Accelerating the digitization of the mining industry has several advantages.

The only question remains the speed of adoption.

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SOURCE TO PAY

Automation and Digital Key to POST-COVID Procurement

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SOURCE TO PAY

Data enrichment and advanced analytics are transforming source to pay processes and the way companies track data throughout their supply chain and operations WRITTEN BY: DOMINIC ELLIS

M

ost companies have some form of automation in place in their current source-to-pay (S2P) operations and the concept is certainly nothing new to most leading companies. But depending on how developed they are, what sort of business initiatives are prioritised, and where budget is allocated, some organisations are far further along in their automation journey than others.

The global pandemic has also placed pressures on procurement and supply chains like never before.

Historically, what held back capable organisations from automating further was a lack of understanding of what full automation looks like in practice and what this futuristic S2P environment entails. But now, in a remote-working world, digital efficiencies are essential from the mine to the office.

The benefits of automation of the procurement function are varied, but typically alleviate staff from manual, time-consuming tasks such as: • Addressing user search queries • Generating a purchase order • Confirming three-way matching • Routing and tracking requests • Analysing supplier performance • Flagging areas of increased risk concerning supplier sanctions As with any sourcing, once tasks such as these are automated, your team can focus on strategy and analysis, bringing value to procurement and your organisation as a whole.

Procurement leaders play a central role in mitigating supply-chain risks, protecting cash, enhancing productivity in operations, and making strategic choices that will help the company bounce back with a more miningglobal.com

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SOURCE TO PAY

Managing the operational and supply-chain impact of the coronavirus

resilient and competitive cost Industry benchmarks base, according to McKinsey. suggest that most The steps that Chief organizations waste 3 to Organizations Procurement Officers (CPOs) 4 percent of their overall waste take now can also cement their external spend on excessive positions as critical creators transaction costs, inefficiency, of their overall external spend of value and true strategic and noncompliance. For an on excessive partners in the organization. organization with an annual transaction costs, inefficiency, and It recommends: spend of $2 billion, eliminating noncompliance • CPOs can consider rolling out that leakage could send $70 a contract digitization solution million a year straight to the For an organization that will allow them to map, bottom line. with an annual query, and monetize contract Companies must identify spend of terms going forward. the best targets for automation • Rethink the supply chain within their own processes. eliminating that leakage could send CPOs may need to accelerate Organizations can do this by the onboarding of new first evaluating the current suppliers while working level of automation they have million a year straight to the on a safe and efficient implemented, compared with bottom line qualification process. what is technically achievable • CPOs can build resilience in the supply for each task in the source-to-pay process. chain by leading a comprehensive analysis They can then estimate the value of across the entire supply-chain life cycle. closing each gap.

3-4%

$2bn

$70mn

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SOURCE TO PAY

This value will come both from the amount of work that can be automated and from likely improvements in compliance, cycle times, and payment terms associated with each step. Any gains must be set against the cost and complexity of implementing suitable technologies. Robotic process automation and smart work-flow solutions are likely to be quicker and cheaper to implement than sophisticated machinelearning technologies and cognitive agents, for example.

The emerging picture of the end-to-end process will provide a comparison of the relative benefits of addressing each step within it, set against the relative cost and difficulty of automating those steps.

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Two PRGX data and technology experts recently discussed how analytics and data enrichment can help companies overcome S2P challenges.

“Whether it is applied to factors such as True Net Cost or Days Payable Outstanding, data enrichment and advanced analytics have the power to transform how companies track, categorize and analyze spend data,” said Daniel Ebert, Senior Manager of Analytics at PRGX. Procurement challenges during pandemic COVID-19 has acted as a massive restraint on the agriculture, construction, and mining machinery manufacturing market in 2020 as supply chains were disrupted due to

SOURCE TO PAY

“Whether it is applied to factors such as True Net Cost or Days Payable Outstanding, data enrichment and advanced analytics have the power to transform how companies track, categorize and analyze spend data” trade restrictions and manufacturing activity declined due to lockdowns imposed by governments globally.

Deloitte has highlighted four key areas as companies structure their procurement: • Visibility is precious: Enhance the visibility of your supply network to identify risks and capacity constraints • Supply is diversified: Assess the financial health and reliability of your suppliers, and strengthen the collaboration to leverage cost optimisation potential • Stock is rebalanced: Rebalance stock levels and reassess your category strategies to align with post-COVID supply chain planning • Customer demand is changing: Be close

to your customers to understand how their needs may have shifted Accenture recommends a five-point procurement list; put people first; secure the supply base; unlock funds intelligently; build resilience for the future; and innovate with purpose.

Across the world, costs are escalating.

South Africa's mining industry estimates it will cost around R300 million to help the government roll out Covid-19 vaccines to mineworkers and community members as the country battles a surge in infections.

Company heads are adding up the collective costs of procurement, transportation, and storage of the vaccines - but costs can fall if companies club together on logistics. miningglobal.com

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TOP TEN

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TOP TEN

WOMEN

IN MINING Mining Global profiles ten women making a WRITTEN BY: DOMINIC ELLIS difference to the global mining industry through their leadership, advocacy, and abilities. All 10 women have been chosen from the 2020 edition of the ‘100 Global Inspirational Women in Mining’ list from the Women In Mining UK Advocacy Group

F

ounded in 2006, Women in Mining UK is an advocacy group that promotes the employment, retention, and progress of women in the mining industry. .

Leveraging partnerships with leading mining companies and other industry participants, WIM aims to push the business case for diversity, inclusion, and the economic advancement of women in the sector. One of its key initiatives is the biennial ‘100 Global Inspirational Women in Mining’.

Such initiatives are incredibly important with women filling less than one-fifth of leadership roles across global mining companies, according to a recently released S&P Global Market Intelligence analysis

of executives and board members.

They fill only about 12.9 percent of C-suite positions in Europe, while in the US and Canada, they occupy just 11.5 percent of C-suite roles.

However, they are more likely to have better representation in executive roles more broadly, and on company boards.

Mining Global presents 10 women leaders in the global mining industry who are shaping the way the industry moves forward, while also providing inspiration to other women about the opportunities for success in this challenging and demanding sector.

All 10 women have been chosen from the 2020 edition of the ‘100 Global Inspirational Women in Mining’ list.

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TOP TEN

09 10 BONNIE LIU CEO

GF Futures Bonnie Liu has worked in the commodities market since 2002 and joined GF Future HK from Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing. GF Futures operates as a futures brokerage company, serving customers in Hong Kong. Shortly after stepping into the role of CEO, Liu convinced management to diversify their business into bulks and other types of energy products within the sector. Driving the project, Liu oversaw everything from designing the business model and forecasting financials, through to building the team and finding the customers.

After three years of hard work, GF Futures has become the biggest iron ore house in the Chinese market and was rewarded by the SGX as the best performing Chinese house (iron ore) for 2019 and 2020.

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AMANDA LACAZE

CEO and managing director

Lynas Corporation

Although Amanda Lacaze has had a diverse and successful career in marketing and telecoms, she is perhaps best known for leading the remarkable turnaround of Lynas Corporation, bringing the company back from a 99 percent drop in its share price.

Lynas is an integrated source of rare earth, being the only producer of scale of separated rare earths outside of China, and the second largest in the world. The company’s rare earths deposit in Mt Weld, Western Australia is one of the highest-grade rare earth mines in the world; and Lynas also operates the world’s largest single rare earths processing plant in Malaysia.

The company’s success is testament to the work Lacaze has put in since stepping in as CEO six years ago. The turnaround isn’t just limited to the balance sheet, with the company’s female workforce growing from 51 to 120 – mainly in operational roles, while there is a strong focus on retaining and promoting qualified women into positions of leadership.

TOP TEN

08 NATALIA KAYBALINA Managing Director

Taseevskoye, Highland Gold Natalia Kaybalina manages the Taseevskoye mine in Siberia, one of the largest gold mines in the world. Born in Eastern Kazakhstan, Kaybalina moved to Russia in 2009, working initially in the Trans-Baikal Territory before moving to Moscow.

Kaybalina oversees the Taseevskoye deposit, which includes two adjacent sites – the Baley tailings project and the Sredniy Golgotay deposit. The predominantly underground mining operation is staffed almost entirely by a male team of about one and a half thousand persons.

In addition to being a surveyor by training, Kaybalina is also a sociologist, having completed a masters programme at Transbaikal State University’s School of Sociology.

07 GAY HUEY EVANS Chairman

London Metal Exchange As chairman of London Metal Exchange, Gay Huey Evans has led a major technology infrastructure rebuild and steered LME’s diversity and inclusion agenda and sustainability initiatives. She also sits on a number of boards, is a Trustee of the Beacon Collaborative and Wellbeing of Women, serves on Chatham House’s 20th Century Committee, while she is also a member of the US Council on Foreign Relations. She serves on the boards of Standard Chartered, ConocoPhillips, IHS Markit and HM Treasury.

Over the course of a 30-year career, Evans has worked within the finance and commodity industry as both an established market practitioner and regulator, giving her deep expertise across commerce, risk, governance, policy, and regulation in capital markets.

In 2016, she was awarded an OBE for services to the financial service industry and diversity.

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TOP TEN

05 06 FLORENCE DRUMMOND Co-founder and CEO

Indigenous Women in Mining and Resources Australia Florence Drummond is the co-founder and CEO of Indigenous Women in Mining and Resources Australia, a network created with her sister Jessica, to showcase Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women in the mining sector.

A Dauareb Wuthathi woman, Drummond is focused on working with the mining industry to create sustainable opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia’s mining sector. Having joined the industry as a mine operator, Drummond aims to create a platform for voice and visibility for Indigenous women in Australia’s mining sector and globally. She believes that relations with host communities and indigenous people are foundational to the industry’s future, and she hopes to use her perspective, experience, and position to advance that cause.

AIDA DIOP NDIAYE President

Women in Mining Senegal A geologist by training, Aida Diop Ndiaye is the president of Women in Mining Senegal and an activist who pushes for social progress through action. Since 2012, she has worked to promote women’s leadership, inclusion, and participation in mineral resource governance. She has actively been involved in science and technology education for girls, and a defender of women’s rights, as well as minority populations.

Ndiaye is a founding member of Women in Mining Senegal and is also responsible for the portfolio of external relations and communications committee of Women in Mining of West Africa (WIMOWA).

She has ten years of experience in the extractive sector (mining, oil and gas) which has allowed her to acquire skills ranging from exploration, to the governance of extractive industries through the management and development of mining projects.

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04

SERPIL DEMIREL CEO

Esan Metallurgical engineer Serpil Demirel first began her career in the mining industry in sales, and gradually moved up the corporate ladder into leadership roles. She is known for her focus on developing company culture and shaping that culture to meet the changing needs of both the company and the broader business environment.

Since her appointment as CEO, Demirel has focused on preparing the company for the future – profitable growth, sustainability, digital transformation, research and development and innovation are particularly high on her agenda. Furthermore, she also is keen to ensure that women feel welcome at Esan and has tailored recruitment and workplace policies in support of her ambitions to turn the company into a diverse, forward-looking entity. As a result, Esan currently has the highest percentage of female employees across the entire Turkish mining industry.

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03 ZENZI AWASES President

Women in Mining Association of Namibia Zenzi Awases is the president of the Women in Mining Association of Namibia. A geologist with 15 years of experience exploring and mining a paleo-placer diamond deposit along the southwestern coast of Namibia, Awases entered the mining industry almost by accident, having dreamed of wanting to be a lawyer.

Since then, she has gone from strength to strength, becoming a vocal leader, mentor and advocate for gender diversity in mining. Awases was named founding president of the Women in Mining Association of Namibia (WiMAN) in April 2017, and in November 2019, was elected to the Board of the Association of Women in Mining Africa (AWIMA), as the representative for Southern Africa.

02

TOP TEN

EVA ARIAS

Executive president

Compañía Minera Poderosa

Eva Arias is the executive president (board and company) of Compañía Minera Poderosa in Peru. Although coming from a family with a long history of being involved in mining, Arias is originally an architect by trade. Early on her career, she, along with two friends, opened a small – but successful – architecture and construction company. It was only in 1977 that she decided to join her family’s mining business and set about carrying on her father’s legacy.

As executive president, Arias focuses on preparing her company, workforce and industry for the many challenges that are rapidly converging. These include social challenges around the mine’s relationship with its community, government and workers; the challenges around operational efficiency with minimal environmental impact and the highest possible safety standards; and the technology challenges highlighted by the pandemic, where ways of working and living have been transformed completely.

However, the most challenging moment of Eva Arias’ mining life has been driving Poderosa’s recovery from crisis, where within three five-year cycles, she oversaw the evolution of the company from a bankrupt entity to the most profitable company in Peru by 2019 – not just in mining, but across all sectors.

Miningglobal.com

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HILDE MERETE AASHEIM President and CEO

Hydro

Hilde Merete Aasheim became president and CEO of Hydro – the world’s largest integrated aluminium business – in May 2019. Prior to the company’s reorganisation of business areas in March 2009, Aasheim served as executive vice president for the Aluminium Metal business area since November 2008.

She joined Hydro in October 2005 as executive vice president for Leadership and Culture (human resources, health, environment, safety, and corporate social responsibility). In January 2007, she led the planning of the integration between Hydro’s oil and gas activities and Statoil. When the merger closed,

she became executive vice president of staff functions and corporate services in StatoilHydro.

In her role as president and CEO of Hydro, she is focused on the company playing an important role in the global green transition, stating that while Hydro has amongst the lowest carbon footprints for aluminium production in the world, she intends to lower it further.

Aasheim adds that the mining industry needs to ‘walk the talk’ when it comes to sustainability by educating consumers and encouraging them to demand more information about the origin of the materials they are buying.

Miningglobal.com

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