Weir Group PLC has confirmed that Jon Stanton will step down as CEO on 1 August 2026 after a decade leading the company’s shift towards mining technology solutions such as high‑pressure grinding rolls and digital wear‑monitoring systems. He will be succeeded by Andrew Neilson, currently Group Finance Director, who will be elected to the Board as CEO‑designate ahead of the transition. The changeover gives mine operators and EPCMs two years’ visibility on leadership continuity at a key supplier of slurry pumps, comminution equipment and process optimisation services.

Boliden’s Somincor operation at Neves-Corvo in Portugal’s Alentejo province, about two hours’ drive from Lisbon, is emerging as a leading European testbed for underground equipment automation. The polymetallic mine, acquired by Boliden in 2024, is advancing remote and autonomous operation of load–haul–dump fleets and drilling rigs in deep orebodies typical of the Iberian Pyrite Belt. For engineers, the site signals growing scope for high-automation underground layouts, communications infrastructure upgrades and workforce reskilling in what has traditionally been a conventional mining district.

Beijing-based RETTAR is deploying 3D spatial sensing systems in mines and aggregate stockyards to automate volumetric measurement and material tracking, replacing manual surveys hampered by low visibility and data lag. Using fixed LiDAR scanners and mobile platforms to generate high-density point clouds, the technology delivers near real-time stockpile models and reconciled tonnage estimates across crushers, conveyors and storage pads. For mine planners and plant operators, this enables tighter inventory control, faster reconciliation cycles and reduced on-foot exposure around active stockpiles and loading areas.