Geomechanics.io

Chile is moving to accelerate mining permits to unlock more than $100 billion in investment, with Economy and Mining Minister Daniel Mas targeting a 30% cut in processing times across roughly 200 sectoral procedures while maintaining current environmental standards. Recent filings include Freeport and Codelco’s $7.5 billion El Abra continuity project, BHP’s $5.2 billion Escondida concentrator and Albemarle’s $3.1 billion Transition to Direct Lithium Extraction (TED) project, totalling over $17 billion entering environmental review in weeks. Officials expect faster approvals alone to generate more than 20,000 permanent jobs and to prioritise exploration, expansions and tailings reprocessing.

US recycler Amermin and Ulterra Drilling Technologies are extending their critical minerals recycling partnership to handle Ulterra’s waste streams from Argentina and Canada, on top of existing US volumes. The Texas-based firms already process more than 21 waste streams, including tungsten, cobalt, nickel, manganese, blast media, and synthetic and industrial diamond, and recycled over 1.4 million pounds of Ulterra material in 2025. Amermin is using an $11.5 million US Department of Energy grant to scale processing so end-of-life drilling and tooling inputs can be returned as manufacturing-grade feedstock.

Assarel-Medet has taken delivery of a 300 t class Liebherr R 9350 E electric excavator for its Assarel copper mine at Bul in Bulgaria’s Pazardzhik province, the fifth large electric Liebherr excavator supplied to the company by Liebherr-Export and local partner Alki-L. The R 9350 E, powered by an electric drive rather than diesel, delivers zero on-site greenhouse gas emissions at the face, supporting lower ventilation demand and reduced fuel logistics for the open-pit operation.

Victoria’s Government has extended free public transport across metropolitan and regional networks until 31 May, with fares to be cut by 50 per cent from 1 June to 31 December in response to fuel price spikes linked to Middle East conflict. The measure covers V/Line intercity services, metropolitan trains, trams and buses, directly affecting peak‑hour passenger loads and rolling stock utilisation. Operators and planners will need to monitor platform crowding, dwell times and track capacity, particularly on radial corridors such as Melbourne–Ballarat.

Benchmark Construction and Building has secured the contract to build a new seafarers centre at the Port of Port Hedland in Western Australia, extending the Queensland firm’s 25-plus years of general building experience into one of the world’s largest bulk export ports. The facility will be located within the port precinct as a dedicated shore-based hub for visiting crews, implying new utility connections, coastal foundations and integration with existing landside logistics infrastructure. For civil contractors and port authorities, the project signals continuing investment in ancillary maritime facilities alongside heavy export operations.

Tasmania’s planned Macquarie Point Multipurpose Stadium in Hobart has shortlisted two firms for Stage One of the Request for Tender, moving the project into its first competitive design and pricing phase. The venue is intended as the state’s premier facility for Australian Rules Football, cricket, concerts and community events, implying a large-capacity bowl with hybrid turf, broadcast-grade lighting and acoustic design. Geotechnical and civil teams will now need to refine ground improvement, drainage and access layouts for the constrained waterfront Macquarie Point site.

True North Copper’s push to consolidate control of the Cloncurry copper project in north-west Queensland hinges on securing a deal with Glencore, which currently owns key processing and infrastructure assets in the district. The company is seeking access to Glencore’s nearby concentrator and existing haulage and power corridors to avoid building greenfield plant and reduce capital intensity for restarting open pit and underground operations. Any agreement would materially affect project economics, mine scheduling and regional processing capacity for sulphide copper ore in the Cloncurry–Mt Isa belt.

Brightstar Resources has closed its ore purchase agreement with Genesis Minerals on a record high, delivering its largest gold parcel under the deal. The final shipment caps a toll-treatment arrangement that saw Brightstar truck ore to Genesis’ Leonora processing infrastructure rather than fast-tracking its own plant construction. For mine planners and financiers, the result reinforces the viability of short-term ore purchase and toll-milling strategies to monetise resources and de-risk early-stage gold projects in Western Australia’s Leonora district.

Ausgold has reported a new wave of high-grade reverse circulation and diamond drilling results at its Katanning gold project (KGP) in Western Australia, pointing to potential resource growth beyond the current central zone. Intercepts from the Jinkas South and Dingo areas extend known mineralisation along strike and at depth, with multiple thick zones of +2g/t Au reported close to surface. The results support further infill and step-out drilling in 2025, with implications for expanding open-pit designs and optimising future processing plant throughput at Katanning.

Australia’s CSIRO is positioning local mining technology and automation expertise as core to future lunar missions, drawing on decades of remote operations, autonomous haulage and real-time ore sensing in harsh, isolated mine sites. The agency points to mine-grade robotics, tele-remote control rooms in Perth managing equipment thousands of kilometres away, and advanced geoscience data processing as directly applicable to lunar regolith excavation and in-situ resource utilisation. For engineers, the move signals growing crossover between mine automation platforms and off-world excavation, materials handling and dust management systems.

Antipa Minerals has started a major drilling campaign at its 100 per cent-owned Minyari gold-copper project in Western Australia’s Paterson Province, targeting resource growth and higher-grade zones around existing deposits. The programme focuses on step-out and infill drilling near current mineralisation, using reverse circulation and diamond core holes to refine geological models and upgrade JORC classifications. Geotechs and mine planners should watch for new intercepts that could materially change pit shell geometry, geotechnical domains and potential underground development options at Minyari.

Doka has earned an EcoVadis Silver rating in the 2026 assessment, placing the formwork and scaffolding specialist in the top 15% of more than 150,000 rated companies and scoring 91/100 in the environmental category. The company is targeting net zero by 2040 through expanded on-site photovoltaics, fleet electrification and value-chain emission cuts, backed by Science Based Targets initiative commitments. For contractors, Doka’s rental-based circular model, refurbishment services, Xlife top formwork sheet with recycled content, and product carbon footprint data for over 7,000 items offer practical levers to reduce project embodied carbon.

Southern Water is investing £2m to reinforce a repeatedly failing sewer section at Ashurst Bridge near Totton, relining more than 1,000 metres of pipe, including a 430‑metre stretch in the current phase. Final works over the next three weeks along Ashurst Bridge Road and Bull Copse Road require sections of the network to be taken offline, with tanker operations used to manage flows and maintain wastewater services. H. E. Services’ Hungerford depot supplied a Komatsu PC138 excavator, coordinated closely with the contractor to meet programme and performance requirements.

Gordons Construction Equipment is opening its seventh depot and first construction-only site in central Scotland this summer at Blairgowrie, after acquiring the premises from retiring owner Fergus Mitchell. The company has become a licensed dealer for Dieci tele and rotation handlers and Bomag compaction equipment, including road rollers, planers and recyclers, to complement its existing Develon excavation range for projects from housebuilding to peatland restoration. The Blairgowrie site is being upgraded with new hard standing, workshop and showroom, plus roof-mounted solar panels and electric vehicle chargers to power and support operations.

Ipswich-based flat roofing specialist Axter Ltd has appointed Shaun Lotay, founding director and chair of the Bitumen Flat Roofing Association, as technical director to strengthen its roofing and waterproofing expertise. Lotay previously built and led a technical department from scratch at a construction product supplier after first growing sales to fund the function, and later held an operational management role at a major waterproofing company. At Axter, a certified B Corporation, he aims to position the firm as the UK reference point for technical information on flat roofing and waterproofing systems.

Radiator manufacturer Stelrad has appointed former Marshalls plc and Baxi Group chief executive Martyn Coffey as its new chair, with Coffey joining as a non-executive director on 1 May and formally taking over after the 20 May AGM. Coffey currently sits on the boards of Taylor Wimpey plc and Luceco plc, chairing Luceco’s remuneration committee, bringing listed-building-products and HVAC governance experience directly relevant to Stelrad’s heating portfolio. Outgoing chair Bob Ellis steps down after leading the company since 2013 and through its 2021 flotation.

Huddersfield’s Grade II* market is set for a £16.5m regeneration after Kirklees Council approved designs by Greig & Stephenson Architects, the practice behind the overhaul of London’s Borough Market. The scheme, led by Huddersfield-born architect Nick Mitchell and in development since 2001, focuses on modernising trader facilities while conserving the historic fabric of the covered market hall. Plans centre on a flexible multi-use internal space to host events alongside daytime trading, aiming to keep the heritage structure viable amid shifting high street patterns.

Natural England has approved the Stodmarsh stream enhancement scheme under the Habitats Regulations, unlocking nutrient neutrality credits to support several thousand new homes around Ashford, Kent. The scheme centres on watercourse and wetland improvements in the Stodmarsh catchment to offset additional nitrogen and phosphorus loads from new foul drainage. Planners, drainage designers and geotechnical teams will need to integrate on-site attenuation, SuDS and connection strategies that align with the credit conditions tied to the Stodmarsh enhancement works.

Agnico Eagle Mines is acquiring Rupert Resources for about C$2.9 billion and, together with deals for Aurion Resources and B2Gold’s 70% stake in the Fingold JV, will control roughly 2,492 sq. km in Finland’s Central Lapland Greenstone Belt. The consolidated hub will link the Kittila mine (3.3 Moz probable reserves) with Rupert’s Ikkari project (3.5 Moz probable reserves), targeting about 500,000 oz/year of gold production within a decade and up to $500 million in operating and development synergies. Agnico plans C$20 million of Ikkari drilling in 18 months and C$60–100 million in regional exploration over three years, with an internal mine evaluation due by end-2027.

Peru has reauthorised the mining permit for Southern Copper’s $1.8 billion Tía María project, clearing La Tapada open-pit’s first-stage operations after Minem confirmed compliance on environmental certification, ownership, and safety and health obligations, including previously incomplete waste dump design and project scheduling. The project, in Arequipa, is slated to produce 120,000 tonnes of copper per year for 20 years, with start-up targeted between late 2026 and early 2027, adding to Southern Copper’s Toquepala, Cuajone and Ilo operations. The decision lands amid a chaotic presidential run-off and roughly $7 billion of stalled copper projects linked to illegal mining.

Environmental group National Parks Conservation Association, represented by Earthjustice, is suing the US Department of the Interior and National Park Service over approval of Dateline Resources’ Colosseum rare earth and gold project inside the Mojave National Preserve’s Clark Mountain region, about 10 km from MP Materials’ Mountain Pass mine. The suit alleges NPS authorised mining without a valid plan of operations or required permits, breaching multiple federal laws and long-standing park protections. Dateline says exploration and project work will continue, but its shares fell 9.5%, cutting market capitalisation to about A$1.23 billion.

Mangrove Lithium has commissioned North America’s first commercial electrochemical lithium refinery in Delta, British Columbia, with capacity to produce 1,000 tonnes per year of battery-grade lithium hydroxide—enough for about 25,000 EVs—using an electrolyser and membrane system that regenerates sulfuric acid and eliminates sodium sulfate waste. The plant can process feed from brines, hard rock, clays, geothermal direct lithium extraction and battery recycling, reducing chemical consumption and carbon intensity versus conventional routes. Backed by up to C$116 million from the Canada Growth Fund and C$21.9 million in conditional federal support, Mangrove is advancing a 20,000 t/y Quebec refinery and has an MoU to source spodumene from the North American Lithium mine.

BHP Invent has signed two Memorandums of Understanding with China ENFI, a subsidiary of China Metallurgical Group Corporation, and BGRIMM Technology Group to co-develop technologies for mineral processing, leaching and complex ore treatment. The partnerships focus on flowsheet innovation and metallurgical testwork for challenging ores, including operations in high-altitude environments common to western China. For miners, this signals potential new process routes and reagent schemes for low-grade or refractory deposits, with Chinese engineering houses positioned as key design and pilot-plant partners.

Copper futures in New York climbed more than 5% this week to $6.11/lb ($13,480/t), nearing January’s record close as satellite data show Chinese smelters running at unprecedented levels. Earth-i’s SAVANT index reports China’s inactive capacity at just 3.9%, driving an all-time high active capacity of 10.73 Mt, 775,000 t above a year ago, while North American smelter inactivity has surged to 32.3%. Spot TC/RCs have flipped from +$50/t in January 2024 to about –$78.50/t, with Antofagasta’s 2026 benchmark with a Chinese smelter settling at zero, the lowest on record.