Geomechanics.io

ABB’s Björn Jonsson, Business Line Manager Mining & Materials in its Process Industries division, frames 2026 as a year for “measured innovation”, urging miners to prioritise deployable automation and electrification over perfect long‑term blueprints. He points to fast-changing conditions from deep underground hoisting systems to large open-pit truck fleets and complex concentrators, with demand for critical materials forecast to multiply several-fold over coming decades. For engineers, the message is to focus on modular, upgradable control, power and digital systems that can be rolled out incrementally rather than waiting for fully optimised end-state designs.

Bechtel has been awarded the EPC contract for Harmony’s Eva copper project in northwest Queensland, covering the copper concentrator and all non-process infrastructure for the greenfield, long-life open-pit operation. The project is expected to be the region’s largest new copper mine, positioning it as a major asset within Australia’s critical minerals strategy. For engineers, the scope signals substantial demand ahead for bulk earthworks, tailings and water management systems, high-capacity power supply, and haul road and plant layout optimisation in a greenfield context.

M Resources has signed a binding MoU with Hazer Group to deploy Hazer’s methane pyrolysis technology, developed with KBR, at the Whyalla steelworks in South Australia if its planned acquisition of One Steel Manufacturing Pty Ltd proceeds. The process converts natural gas into hydrogen and solid carbon rather than CO₂, offering a potential low-emission reductant and fuel source for iron and steelmaking. For plant engineers, this signals possible future integration of hydrogen-ready furnaces and on-site carbon handling infrastructure at Whyalla.

SolGold has signalled it will recommend shareholders accept Jiangxi Copper’s third, all-cash takeover proposal at 28 pence per share, valuing the London-listed Ecuador-focused miner at about £842 million ($1.13 billion) and giving JCC full control of the Cascabel copper-gold project, one of South America’s largest undeveloped copper-gold resources. The bid, 7.7% above Jiangxi’s previous 26p offer, already has backing from major shareholders BHP, Newmont and Maxit Capital, which together hold 40.7%. Market caution persists, with SolGold’s shares trading around 25.75p and the deal still contingent on Chinese outbound investment approvals amid tighter scrutiny in Beijing.

Korean researchers led by Seungho Lee at Jeonbuk National University map five distinct lithium governance models in Chile, Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia and Mexico, linking them to commodity price cycles, geopolitical competition and the maturity of each country’s lithium industry. Chile’s hybrid regime with strong state oversight contrasts with Argentina and Brazil’s decentralised, market-led systems, Bolivia’s tightly controlled state-led model and Mexico’s largely rhetorical nationalisation stance. The two-stage decision-making framework signals that miners, battery manufacturers and state-backed investors must tailor project, offtake and JV strategies to country-specific political settlements rather than apply a single Latin America playbook.

BMC Minerals raised A$100 million in an oversubscribed IPO and debuted on the ASX at A$2.00 per CDI, closing 25% higher at A$2.50 for a market capitalisation of about A$550 million. Funds will advance the 100%-owned Kudz Ze Kayah polymetallic project in Yukon, where the 372 km² package hosts ABM and Kona deposits with over 20 Mt indicated, including 200,000 t copper, 1.15 Mt zinc and 87 Moz silver. A 2020 feasibility study for ABM outlines a nine-year mine, US$492 million initial capex and 32.2 Moz silver-equivalent per year, with 95% of first five years’ concentrate output under offtake.

Sirios Resources will acquire private explorer OVI Mining in a C$23 million all-share deal, consolidating the Cheechoo, Corvet Est and Plex gold assets in Quebec’s Eeyou Istchee James Bay district about 725 km north of Montreal. Cheechoo currently hosts 34.9 million indicated tonnes at 1.12 g/t Au (1.3 Moz) and 42.7 million inferred tonnes at 1.23 g/t Au (1.68 Moz), while historic drilling totals 21,000 m at Corvet Est and 38,000 m at Plex. The merged company, expected to close in Q1 2026 under a new name, will be led by OVI CEO Jean-Félix Lepage with Osisko’s Sean Roosen joining the board, signalling a more aggressive development push around Dhilmar’s nearby Éléonore mine.

Teck Resources has taken a 9.9% equity stake in Metal Energy by purchasing about 4.44 million flow-through shares at C$0.73 and 6.2 million common shares at C$0.45, matching Centerra Gold’s earlier 9.9% position. The financing lifts Metal Energy’s market capitalisation to roughly C$23 million after its share price jumped to C$0.80, about 60% above pre-Centerra levels. Proceeds will fund drilling in 2026 on fully permitted, drill-ready porphyry targets at the 215 km² NIV copper-gold-molybdenum property in British Columbia’s Toodoggone district.

Beijing’s April export controls on seven rare earth elements, followed by a now-suspended October expansion covering additional REEs, magnets and lithium battery materials, have forced Western buyers to reroute critical minerals via longer, chokepoint-heavy sea lanes such as the Red Sea and primary canals. Trading houses including BGN Group, Traxys and Gerald Group are acting as integrated maritime logistics platforms, combining shallow, infrastructure-poor African and Latin American load ports with highly automated deepwater hubs using mixed fleets of smaller bulk, multipurpose and VLGC-capable vessels. Global container lines like Maersk and Evergreen, which has ordered 14 LNG dual-fuel containerships for Asia–Europe, now directly influence lead times, freight costs and emissions for lithium chemicals, magnet alloys and battery intermediates moving to refineries and OEMs in Europe, North America and allied Asia.

Weir is acquiring the remaining 50% of its Chile-based joint venture ESCO Elecmetal Fundición Limitada from Elecmetal for £56 million ($75 million), giving it full control of a foundry built in 2012 that supplies ground engaging tools to the South American mining sector. The deal, expected to close in Q1 2026, adds Chilean casting capacity into Weir’s global foundry network and supports its go-direct sales strategy in the region. For mine operators, this signals tighter OEM integration on wear parts supply for large copper operations in Chile and neighbouring markets.

The Association for Mineral Exploration is urging British Columbia Premier David Eby to appeal the Gitxaala Nation v. British Columbia decision, after the province’s Court of Appeal ruled on 5 December that the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act incorporates UNDRIP and creates legally enforceable obligations. AME argues the ruling creates uncertainty for the province’s automatic online mineral claim system and the Mineral Tenure Act, despite the March 2025 Mineral Claims Consultation Framework (MCCF) changes. The group wants the legislature recalled to make “substantive” amendments to DRIPA and section 8.1 of the Interpretation Act before a 16 February 2026 appeal deadline.

Weir is acquiring the remaining 50% of Chile-based ESCO Elecmetal Fundición Limitada (ESEL), a ground engaging tools manufacturer, for about $75 million, giving it full ownership of the joint venture. The deal consolidates Weir’s control over design and production of GET for large mining shovels and loaders in South America, tightening integration with its ESCO wear parts portfolio. Direct access to ESEL’s foundry capacity in Chile should shorten lead times and improve aftermarket support for high-abrasion ore and waste handling applications.

Construction has begun on the $1.62 billion Beveridge Intermodal Precinct in Melbourne’s north, planned as Australia’s largest logistics hub and the only terminal in the city able to handle 1,800‑metre Inland Rail freight trains. The precinct will connect the southern terminus of the Inland Rail corridor with key Victorian road and rail freight routes, consolidating interstate and port-bound cargo. For civil and geotechnical teams, the scale implies extensive earthworks, high-capacity pavement design and heavy-axle-load rail formation over a large greenfield footprint.

Meridian’s Archer Guard system, a modular steel barrier designed for rapid deployment in fast-paced work zones, is being used on bridge decks, arterial roads and utility corridors to shield crews from live traffic. Proven in the United States and now deployed in Australia, the system can be installed and reconfigured with light plant rather than permanent anchoring, suiting short-duration lane closures and night works. For engineers and contractors, it offers a temporary protection option where conventional concrete barriers are too slow or logistically heavy to install.

A partially buried precast concrete arch forms the main structure of a new underground cellar and tasting room at Gurneys Cider in Foster, South Gippsland, integrating the facility into the vineyard landscape. Designed, engineered and manufactured by National Precast Master Precaster Geoquest Australia, the arch system uses factory-made concrete elements to achieve controlled geometry and rapid installation compared with in-situ construction. The project shows how standard precast bridge and culvert technology can be adapted for small-span, earth-covered architectural spaces with stable thermal and moisture conditions.

Record US defence spending of $US901 billion under the latest National Defense Authorization Act is expected to lift demand for Australian critical minerals used in missiles, radar and naval platforms, particularly rare earths, lithium and high-purity alumina. AUKUS-related programmes for nuclear-powered submarines and advanced undersea surveillance could draw on Australian uranium, copper and high-grade steel feedstocks, tightening supply in existing export chains to Asia. Miners with US-aligned offtake agreements and ESG-compliant operations are likely to be favoured as Pentagon procurement shifts to secure, allied supply.

Exploration updates across Australia include new drilling at Beacon Minerals’ Lady Ida gold project, where recent RC and diamond holes are targeting extensions to the Iguana lode along previously under-tested shear zones. Junior explorers are also advancing greenfields copper and critical minerals programs in Western Australia and Queensland, with step-out drilling and downhole geophysics refining targets around existing JORC resources. For geotechs and mine planners, the focus is on defining continuity, grade distribution and structural controls to justify follow-up infill drilling and potential resource upgrades.

Federal Government plans to keep the 590,000‑tonne‑per‑year Tomago Aluminium smelter operating beyond 2030 by underwriting long‑term power supply, a critical issue for the 950MW baseload user in New South Wales’ Hunter Valley. The move secures ongoing demand for coal and gas‑fired generation while grid‑scale renewables and firming capacity catch up, locking in a major domestic offtaker for bauxite, alumina and anode supply chains. For engineers, it signals continued investment in potline maintenance, high‑amperage rectifier upgrades and grid‑stability services from Tomago’s interruptible load.

Black Cat Syndicate has secured 90km² of new tenements adjoining its Lakewood processing facility, expanding its landholding around the 800,000tpa carbon-in-leach plant near Kalgoorlie. The ground sits along existing haulage routes to Lakewood, enabling short trucking distances for potential satellite open pits and underground feed. For mine planners and geotechs, the move signals likely near-mine drilling, resource definition and pit optimisation work focused on incremental mill feed rather than standalone remote deposits.

Rajant’s BreadCrumb wireless nodes are being promoted for mines as a fully mobile mesh, with each vehicle, shovel and drill carrying its own node to maintain line-of-sight connectivity as the pit face moves. Unlike fixed access-point Wi-Fi, the system uses multi-radio, multi-frequency links and self-healing routing so data can reroute around blocked paths caused by highwalls, stockpiles or moving plant. For engineers planning autonomous haulage, remote drilling or high-density telemetry, the approach reduces dead zones without constant re‑design of tower locations.

Northvale Construction is delivering a £7m airspace extension to Trickett House in Sutton, adding two floors to the rear block and one to the front to increase capacity from 49 to 68 retirement flats, with handover of the rear block due in 2026 and overall completion by October 2027. The scheme creates 19 net-zero-carbon homes using air source heat pumps, solar PV, a green roof, SuDS and low-energy lighting, while most residents remain in situ. Works also include upgraded communal areas, additional parking, ambient access improvements and new EV charging points.

Lovell is creating a dedicated Renew Central business to deliver housing refurbishment, planned works and retrofit services across the Midlands and East Anglia, building on more than 20 years of regional activity within Lovell Midlands. The unit will sit alongside the existing Renew North arm to give housing providers a focused offer on safety, compliance and decarbonisation-driven upgrades, including energy-efficiency retrofits. Long-serving Lovell manager Carl Yale, who joined as a trainee in 1998, becomes regional managing director from 1 January 2026.

A £500 fine has been imposed on McGrath Building & Joinery Contracts Ltd after HSENI found serious asbestos management failings during refurbishment of the Sacred Heart Chapel in Boho, Co. Fermanagh in November 2023. Investigators concluded the principal contractor did not adequately plan, manage or monitor works under Regulation 13(1) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016, particularly around identifying and safely removing licensed asbestos. The Enniskillen Magistrates’ Court conviction signals continued regulatory focus on CDM-compliant asbestos surveys and licensed removal on small refurbishment projects.

Coventry City Council is expected to approve construction of an 800‑metre twin‑track Coventry Very Light Rail (CVLR) demonstrator between Coventry Railway Station and Coventry University Technology Park on Mile Lane, operating bi‑directionally in live traffic. The CVLR system uses precast track panels requiring no excavations, with Colas having laid the initial 220‑metre single‑track city‑centre demonstrator in eight weeks at less than half the cost and time of conventional tramways. Longer term plans envisage a 12 km route linking the station, the West Midlands Investment Zone at GreenPower Park and development around Ansty Park, with future autonomous operation.