Geomechanics.io

Komatsu’s Mine 4D technology is being deployed at Boliden’s Kevitsa open-pit nickel-copper operation in northern Finland to give dispatchers and supervisors real-time visibility of fleets working in temperatures down to –40°C. The integrated platform links high-precision GNSS machine guidance, fleet management and production reporting so operators can track shovel–truck interactions, ore–waste boundaries and cycle times across 24/7 shifts. For engineers, the key gains are tighter compliance to dig lines, reduced rehandle and faster response to equipment or road condition issues in one of Europe’s harshest mining climates.

De Beers has recorded the lowest safety incident rate in its 135-year history, reporting a total recordable injury frequency rate (TRIFR) of 1.0 for 2025 across its global mining operations, improving on the previous year’s record low. The company attributes the performance to a strong “ownership” culture, with shared responsibility for risk controls and intensive frontline engagement in incident reporting and corrective actions. For geotechnical and mining teams, the figures signal that structured behavioural programmes and line-led safety leadership can materially reduce TRIFR even in high-risk, deep-level and open-pit environments.

BHP and Rio Tinto have jointly released new research on large‑scale filtered tailings technology, focusing on improving filtration, stacking and water recovery performance for major iron ore and copper operations. The work examines scaling filter presses and dry‑stack systems from current capacities of tens of thousands of tonnes per day towards ultra‑large installations, addressing challenges such as filter cloth wear, cake consistency, stack stability and conveyor handling. For geotechnical and tailings engineers, the collaboration signals stronger backing for filtered and dry‑stacked designs over conventional upstream or centre‑line tailings storage facilities.

The Federal Government will invest an additional $387.4 million over four years in the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) to accelerate mining-related R&D as the sector shifts towards lower-emission, higher-automation operations. Funding is expected to support work on ore-sorting technologies, advanced sensing and data analytics, and low-carbon processing routes, alongside environmental monitoring tools for tailings and water management. For operators and contractors, the move signals stronger backing for technology pilots and scale-up in areas such as remote operations centres and electrified mobile fleets.

Western Australia’s Environmental Protection Authority has recommended environmental approval for Covalent Lithium’s expansion of the Earl Grey lithium project at Mt Holland, a key hard‑rock operation feeding the Kwinana lithium hydroxide refinery. The proposal covers increased open‑pit mining and associated waste rock and tailings storage, with conditions likely to focus on groundwater drawdown, waste landforms and biodiversity impacts in the northern Yilgarn. For geotechnical and environmental teams, the decision signals tighter scrutiny of pit dewatering regimes, TSF design and long‑term rehabilitation performance.

Iron ore generated $122 billion in sales from near‑record output of 864 million tonnes in Western Australia, confirming it as the state’s dominant commodity despite growth in lithium, nickel and rare earths. Pilbara operations such as Rio Tinto, BHP and Fortescue’s large‑scale open pits and rail‑to‑port chains continue to anchor investment in heavy‑haul rail, deep‑water export berths and large‑capacity crushing and screening plants. For contractors and consultants, iron ore remains the primary driver of bulk earthworks, pit slope design, haul road construction and port materials‑handling projects across the region.

Yindjibarndi Energy Corporation will start construction of the Jinbi solar project in Western Australia after securing a power purchase agreement with Rio Tinto to supply renewable electricity to its Pilbara iron ore operations. The Indigenous-led project will feed solar power into Rio’s existing network that supports mines, rail and port assets, reducing reliance on gas-fired generation and cutting Scope 2 emissions. For mine planners and asset managers, the deal signals further integration of large-scale renewables into remote, islanded mining grids in the Pilbara.

TMC the metals company Inc has signed a contract with Allseas to develop, commission and operate what is billed as the first commercial polymetallic nodule collection system for the Clarion Clipperton Zone in the Pacific Ocean. The agreement covers offshore nodule recovery using Allseas’ deep-sea collector technology integrated with a production vessel and riser system, moving beyond previous pilot-scale trials. For mining engineers, this signals a shift towards full commercial planning for subsea resource extraction, with implications for sediment plume management, equipment reliability at 4,000–5,000 m water depths and regulatory compliance under ISA rules.

JCHX has broken ground on a new underground high-end intelligent heavy mining equipment factory for its King Ant product line in the Daye Lake High-Tech Zone, Huangshi City, Hubei Province, expanding domestic capacity for loaders, trucks and other mechanised mining fleets. The facility, led by subsidiary JCHX (Hubei) Intelligent Equipment Co Ltd, will focus on intelligent, battery-electric and automation-ready machines tailored to Chinese hard-rock mines. For contractors and mine owners, the project signals stronger local supply options for advanced underground fleets and reduced reliance on imported OEMs.

XCMG Australia has hosted a Wirlu-Murra Enterprises delegation from the Pilbara at XCMG Group’s Xuzhou headquarters to deepen collaboration on mining equipment supply and support. The visit centred on large-scale haul trucks, excavators and autonomous-ready fleets for iron ore operations, along with discussions on parts warehousing, technician training and lifecycle service models tailored to remote Western Australian sites. For geotechnical and mining teams, the partnership signals closer integration of Traditional Owner enterprises into OEM selection, site maintenance contracts and long-term fleet planning.

Barrick Mining has launched a $3 billion share buyback and confirmed plans to spin off a new “North American Barrick” company holding its Nevada joint venture, Fourmile discovery and Pueblo Viejo mine, targeting completion by end‑2026. First‑quarter net earnings jumped to $1.6 billion as the average realised gold price surged 66% year‑on‑year to $4,823/oz and all‑in sustaining costs fell 4% to $1,708/oz, despite a 5% drop in output to 719,000 oz. Operations at the Loulo‑Gounkoto complex in Mali remain below historical production as open‑pit mining restarts are delayed by equipment deterioration, parts shortages and contractor DTP’s exit.

New drilling at Galiano Gold’s 90%-owned Asanko mine in Ghana has extended the Abore underground mineralised footprint up to 180 metres below the current resource and defined a new 200-metre-long zone beneath the main pit. Key intercepts include 53 metres at 3.9 g/t from 179 metres (ABDD26-477), 32 metres at 4.7 g/t from 420 metres (ABDD26-459) and 6 metres at 8.4 g/t from 457 metres (ABDD26-456), within a 30,000-metre programme now about halfway complete. Results will feed a revised life-of-mine plan and 2027 resource update for Asanko, which produced 121,191 oz. in 2025 and is guided at 140,000–160,000 oz. for 2026.

The Metals Company has signed a commercial deal with offshore contractor Allseas to design, commission and operate a deep-sea polymetallic nodule recovery system in the Clarion Clipperton Zone, targeting first offshore production by late 2027. The system is planned for 3 million wet tonnes per year using two collector vehicles working at depths greater than 4 km, linked via a riser pipe to the converted drillship Hidden Gem and an at-sea transfer vessel. NOAA has deemed TMC’s US deep-sea mining application fully compliant, opening the way to a potential final permit by early 2027.

Dateline Resources’ bankable feasibility study for its 100%-owned Colosseum gold project in California’s Walker Lane Trend outlines 573,000 oz production over 10.4 years, with 75,000 oz per year for the first six years and peak output of 102,000 oz in year six. At a US$4,200/oz base case, the study reports pre- and post-tax NPVs of US$785 million and US$551 million (5% discount) and IRRs of 49.5% and 38.6%, from a US$313 million capex and a three-year post-tax payback. Located within the Mojave National Preserve and 10 km from MP Materials’ Mountain Pass rare earths mine, Colosseum also sits in an alkaline igneous corridor with stated rare earth potential, while Dateline’s shares fell 13.4% on the BFS release.

Silver surged as much as 7% to nearly $86/oz, a two‑month high, as stalled US‑Iran peace talks and a 10‑week Middle East conflict kept geopolitical risk elevated, while gold moved only about 0.4% higher. Analysts note silver has reclaimed two key technical levels over the past six weeks and is challenging its April peak, with a sustained break potentially opening a move towards the psychologically important $90/oz level. Despite dropping over 25% from its late‑January high of $121/oz, silver remains about 5% up year‑to‑date.

80 Mile PLC has secured all exploration permits and a definitive earn-in agreement with USFM to start a 5,000‑metre diamond drilling campaign in early July at the Disko-Nuussuaq nickel‑copper‑cobalt‑PGE project in West Greenland. USFM will spend an initial $30 million to earn up to 51% of Disko, with a $7.5 million budget allocated to the first drill phase, leaving 80 Mile free carried for its remaining 49%. SRK Exploration will act as Geological Manager and Forage Fusion Drilling will supply two diamond rigs for the first systematic drilling on the target, which is considered analogous to Norilsk‑Talnakh nickel/copper sulphide mineralisation.

Gold Candle is acquiring Pan American Silver’s Larder property in Ontario’s Abitibi greenstone belt in an all-share deal worth 15,000,000 common shares, giving Pan American about 12.9% of Gold Candle on closing. The transaction covers the entire Larder package, including the Bear Lake, Cheminis and Fernland gold zones along the Cadillac–Larder Lake break, a major Archean shear-hosted gold corridor. For miners and explorers, the deal consolidates control of a structurally complex, high-potential orogenic gold trend under a single, exploration-focused junior.

Yindjibarndi Energy Corporation has reached financial close on the Jinbi Solar Project in Western Australia’s Pilbara and signed a 30‑year power purchase agreement with Rio Tinto to supply renewable electricity to the miner’s operations on Yindjibarndi Ngurra. The Indigenous-led project will now move into construction, adding large-scale solar generation into Rio Tinto’s Pilbara grid, which is currently dominated by gas and diesel. For miners and project engineers, the deal signals growing long-horizon offtake certainty for utility-scale renewables integrated with remote, heavy-industry loads.

Kinross Tasiast has commissioned a Hitachi EX8000-6 face-shovel excavator, now the largest mining excavator operating in Mauritania and only the fourth EX8000 unit delivered in Africa. The machine, weighing over 800 t and typically paired with ultra-class haul trucks, is expected to materially increase loading rates in the Tasiast open pit. For mine planners and geotechnical teams, the larger bench heights, wider dig faces and higher instantaneous production rates will influence slope design, traffic management and blast fragmentation requirements.

Hillhead 2026 at Hillhead Quarry from 23–25 June will host 600 exhibitors with expanded live demonstrations of crushers, dumpers, tyres, powertrains, hydraulics, and safety systems for quarrying, construction, and recycling. Key launches include Pilot Crushtec’s TwisterTrac VS350E VSI crusher with Stage V Volvo Penta engine claiming up to 40% lower fuel use, Thwaites’ nine-tonne ROPS+ dumper and new electric two- and three-tonne swivel models, and Continental’s LD-Master Rock L5 and MPT 91 tyres with integrated pressure/temperature sensors. Engineers can also assess ACE Plant’s Dromone D80 Ball & Spoon hitch for reduced whole-body vibration, Hyundai G2/DX engines via Marshall’s, and Jihostroj QHDM2 reversible hydraulic motors for mobile crushing plant.

Australia’s drive to expand onshore critical minerals processing has advanced with the opening of new research facilities focused on refining battery and magnet metals such as lithium, rare earths and cobalt. The centres are equipped for pilot‑scale hydrometallurgical and pyrometallurgical testwork, including leaching, solvent extraction and high‑temperature roasting, to bridge the gap between bench chemistry and commercial plants. For process and project engineers, the facilities offer local options to de‑risk flowsheet design, validate recoveries on Australian ores and generate data for bankable feasibility studies.

Greatland Gold has reported one of its strongest intercepts to date at the West Dome Underground project, with new drilling returning a high-grade gold interval that materially extends known mineralisation down-plunge. The WDU target lies adjacent to the Havieron system in Western Australia’s Paterson Province, where existing underground development and decline access provide a pathway to rapid resource conversion and potential mine planning updates. For geotechnical and mine design teams, the result supports further step-out drilling and may justify re-optimising stope shapes and ground support assumptions around the new high-grade zone.

Lampson Australia is leveraging more than three decades of heavy-lift and haulage experience to execute keystone mining projects using ultra-heavy crawler cranes and specialised transporters for components such as mining shovels and draglines. The company’s fleet includes high-capacity Lampson Transi-Lift cranes and multi-axle self-propelled modular transporters (SPMTs) configured for multi-hundred-tonne loads, long load paths and constrained brownfield corridors. For mine expansion and shutdown work, this capability reduces on-site assembly, shortens critical-path outages and lowers ground improvement requirements compared with conventional stick-built approaches.

Yilgarn Iron has appointed Thiess to restart iron ore production at the Koolyanobbing operations in Western Australia’s Yilgarn region, reviving a site that previously supplied lump and fines to export markets via the Esperance port rail corridor. Thiess is expected to provide contract mining services including drill-and-blast, load-and-haul and ore handling, with a focus on quickly re-establishing pit access, waste stripping and ROM stockpile capacity. The partnership signals renewed demand for mid-grade hematite from smaller Yilgarn deposits, with implications for local rail logistics and port throughput planning.