Geomechanics.io

A £56M infrastructure programme by SP Electricity North West has started to replace 47km of overhead power lines along Cumbria’s West Coast, targeting ageing assets on key rural and coastal corridors. Works will involve new poles, conductors and associated foundations, with construction teams needing to manage soft ground, exposed coastal conditions and live-network constraints. For civil and geotechnical contractors, the scheme signals upcoming demand for access track upgrades, temporary works, and foundation design suited to high wind loads and variable ground conditions.

Perenti has secured a further extension to its underground mining services contract with Regis Resources at the Duketon gold operations in Western Australia, reinforcing a long-running contractor–owner relationship on the multi-mine complex. The deal keeps Barminco, Perenti’s underground division, in place for core services such as jumbo development, production drilling, load-and-haul and ground support across Duketon’s underground orebodies. Continuity of a single contractor on a mature site like Duketon typically allows tighter control of unit costs, ground control practices and equipment maintenance strategies.

Ramelius Resources has kept its FY26 production guidance of 260,000–300,000 ounces of gold despite a cyclone, higher diesel prices and operational disruptions affecting its March quarter output. Weather-related access issues and fuel cost inflation have raised unit mining and haulage costs at its Western Australian open pits, pressuring margins and short-term strip ratios. Maintaining guidance signals continued confidence in ore reserve quality and mill performance, but leaves limited buffer for further weather or supply-chain shocks in upcoming quarters.

Bellevue Gold has reported record underlying free cash flow for the March 2026 quarter at its Bellevue operation in Western Australia, driven by higher head grades and stronger mill performance as the project moves through ramp-up. The underground mine, targeting more than 200,000oz per annum at nameplate, is increasing stoping tonnage from the Armand and Deacon lodes while continuing development of new high-grade panels. Management is prioritising accelerated decline advance and ventilation upgrades to support higher ore production rates and sustain the improved grade profile.

Townsville’s Cleveland Bay Purification Plant is being upgraded to supply up to 15 megalitres per day of industrial-grade recycled water to the Sun Metals zinc refinery and the adjacent Lansdown Eco-Industrial Precinct, freeing higher-quality potable supplies for Townsville’s 200,000-plus residents. The $274.2 million project includes new pipelines, storage and treatment assets designed for heavy industrial users, underpinning planned critical minerals processing and battery materials facilities in the city’s south. For engineers, the scheme reduces water security risk for future hydrometallurgical and chemical plants in a region already constrained by variable rainfall.

Regis Resources has added $198 million in cash and bullion in the latest quarter, taking its liquidity buffer to around $1 billion as higher output from its Duketon operations and Tropicana joint venture feeds through to the balance sheet. Management is prioritising debt reduction and disciplined capital allocation over major new acquisitions, while continuing brownfields drilling around Garden Well and Rosemont to extend open-pit and underground mine lives. The stronger balance sheet gives Regis more flexibility to fund cutbacks, waste stripping and potential plant upgrades without stressing project cashflows.

MAX Power Mining has drilled the Bracken Well, completed a high‑resolution 3D seismic survey over the Lawson Discovery and the wider 15‑19 discovery area, and identified a Lawson “look‑a‑like” target 12 km southwest using legacy 2D seismic, materially enlarging its natural hydrogen footprint along Saskatchewan’s 475‑km Genesis Trend. Core desorption tests from Cambrian Basal sands above the Basement Complex hydrogen zone returned helium up to 8.7% (average 4.4%), leveraging historically high helium prices. Backed by a C$20.5 million raise, MAX Power plans a Lawson follow‑up well, Bracken completion and further seismic across Genesis and Grasslands, with Bell Canada’s proposed mega data centre nearby adding potential baseload demand.

Structural health monitoring (SHM) systems are turning bridges into continuously instrumented assets, using strain gauges, accelerometers and temperature sensors to capture how every vehicle load, thermal cycle and wind gust affects structural behaviour. By tracking modal frequencies, deflections and crack development in real time, SHM can distinguish normal seasonal movement from damage-related anomalies, enabling targeted inspections and load management rather than blanket restrictions. For geotechnical and civil engineers, long-term datasets from SHM are starting to inform more accurate fatigue life predictions, bearing replacement timing and expansion joint detailing.

Anglian Water has launched a £1.6bn infrastructure programme starting this month, centred on large-scale water main replacements, new storm storage tanks and upgrades to existing assets across its eastern England network. The package targets reduced leakage and burst frequency on ageing trunk mains and increased stormwater attenuation capacity to cut combined sewer overflows during intense rainfall. For civil and geotechnical teams, the works imply extensive trenching in urban corridors, complex traffic management, and foundation design for new tanks sized for more frequent extreme storm events.

A new open framework agreement has been launched to deliver up to £15M of construction and refurbishment works for the University of Wales Trinity Saint David Group and Pembrokeshire College in Haverfordwest. The framework is expected to cover multiple campuses and building types, enabling packages such as teaching block upgrades, specialist labs and workshop fit-outs to be let without separate full procurements. Contractors and consultants will be watching for lots that may include structural remodelling, M&E replacement and fabric improvements aligned with current Welsh education estate standards.

NY Highways has awarded places on a £25M civil engineering framework to deliver road, parking and footpath maintenance and construction across the North Yorkshire highway network. The multi-year arrangement will cover schemes such as carriageway reconstruction, localised pavement repairs, drainage upgrades and minor structures works, providing a pre-procured supply chain for the unitary authority’s routine and planned works. Contractors can expect dispersed, small-to-medium packages rather than single mega-projects, with emphasis on rapid mobilisation, traffic management capability and familiarity with local ground conditions.

Engineers restored rail services through Somerset after completing Easter bank holiday works at East Somerset Junction, between Westbury and Taunton, several hours ahead of schedule. Teams replaced life-expired rail, sleepers and ballast on this key junction, working within a tight multi-day possession to minimise disruption on the route. The renewal improves track geometry, drainage and bearing capacity at the junction, reducing future maintenance interventions and supporting higher reliability for passenger and freight operations.

Hunterston B in North Ayrshire has become the first advanced gas-cooled reactor (AGR) nuclear power station to transfer from EDF to direct UK Government ownership as it moves into the full decommissioning phase. The twin-reactor AGR plant, which ceased generation in 2022 after more than four decades of operation, will now be managed through the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority’s framework. For civil and geotechnical contractors, the shift signals upcoming packages for reactor dismantling, large reinforced concrete demolition, waste encapsulation structures and long-term coastal site management.

The BNG Federation accuses the UK government of breaking its promise to set a clear timetable for applying biodiversity net gain (BNG) rules to nationally significant infrastructure projects (NSIPs), leaving major schemes in a “regulatory vacuum”. Developers of large highways, energy and rail projects currently lack certainty on when and how the statutory 10% BNG requirement will apply, complicating land acquisition, habitat design and long-term management plans. The federation warns that without a defined start date and guidance, DCO applications and environmental impact assessments risk delay and redesign.

Copper wire theft from light poles is costing municipalities, DOTs and utilities millions of dollars in repairs while leaving roadways, car parks and pedestrian routes without critical lighting and grounding. Thieves typically access handholes, cut energised conductors and pull out long runs of bare or insulated copper, exploiting poorly secured pole bases, unmonitored corridors and predictable maintenance patterns. Recommended countermeasures include using tamper‑resistant handhole covers, non-metallic or copper‑clad aluminium conductors, continuous grounding loops, real-time circuit monitoring and targeted CCTV or patrols on high-risk corridors.

MAXAM Tire has added a 45/65R45 size to its MS406 E4/L4 off-the-road tyre line, targeting heavy loader applications in mining and large quarry operations. The MS406 design uses a deep tread pattern and reinforced casing to handle high load cycles and abrasive conditions, aiming to extend service life and reduce unplanned downtime on large wheel loaders. For mine operators, the new size broadens fitment options on 45-inch rims, supporting tyre standardisation across mixed fleets and tighter cost-per-hour control.

Pilot Crushtec will use the Hillhead 2026 show (23–25 June, UK, c.20,000 visitors expected) to launch its latest-generation TwisterTrac VS350E Stage V mobile crusher and push for an expanded European dealer network. The VS350E, a track-mounted vertical shaft impact unit, is configured for quarrying, construction and recycling applications where EU Stage V emissions compliance is now mandatory. Stronger distribution in Europe signals more local support and parts availability for high-spec mobile crushing fleets on both greenfield and brownfield sites.

Revival Gold’s 2025 drilling at the past-producing Mercur gold project in Utah returned one of its strongest South Mercur intercepts to date, with hole RMC25-031 cutting 74 m at 2.8 g/t Au from 91 m downhole, including 13 m at 8 g/t from 13 m depth, and RMC25-032 intersecting 84 m at 1.1 g/t from 14 m. The company, which now owns 100% of Mercur after buying Barrick’s remaining stake, is advancing a heap leach operation based on a PEA outlining US$208 million capex for a 10-year, 95,000 oz/y mine. A 16,000 m follow-up drilling and engineering programme will feed into a pre-feasibility study targeted for Q1 2027, ahead of a potential construction decision in 2028 and first production in 2029.

McEwen Copper is seeking about $4 billion in financing, including export-credit support from agencies such as the US Export-Import Bank and the US International Development Finance Corp., to build the Los Azules copper project in Argentina. The feasibility-stage operation targets copper cathode production, not concentrate, with planned output of 205,000 tonnes per year for the first five years, then averaging 148,000 tonnes over a projected 22-year mine life, extendable to 33 years. Backers include Stellantis and Rio Tinto’s Nuton, with a $300 million IPO and first production by 2030 under consideration.

Greenland’s government has issued a draft decision not to renew Energy Transition Minerals’ Kvanefjeld exploration licence, effectively blocking development of the planned mine–concentrator–refinery rare earths complex under the 2021 Uranium Act that bans uranium prospecting, exploration and exploitation. ETM argues the move is inconsistent with previous licence extensions granted after the Act and during ongoing legal challenges, warning it may deter critical minerals investment in Greenland amid US‑EU efforts to diversify away from Chinese supply. Despite securing Spanish foreign direct investment approval for acquiring the Penouta tin‑tantalum mine, ETM’s shares fell 7.4% to A$0.050, halving year‑to‑date.

Allied Critical Metals’ Borralha project in northern Portugal has intersected over 200 metres of visible tungsten mineralisation at the new Venise breccia target, 400 metres from the Santa Helena breccia complex, sending its shares up 8% to C$1.88 and valuing the company at C$317 million. A March PEA for Santa Helena alone, based on 13 Mt at 0.21% WO₃ (measured and indicated) and 7 Mt at 0.18% WO₃ (inferred), outlines an 11‑year mine producing 1,708 t/y WO₃ with an after-tax NPV of C$473 million and 49% IRR. Venise, defined within a 20,000‑metre drill programme and historically mapped but never systematically tested, was excluded from the PEA and is now central to plans to grow a district-scale tungsten system designated a strategic national project by idD Portugal Defence.

BRICS+ central banks now hold about 6,000 tonnes of gold, or 17.4% of global reserves, up from 11.2% in 2019, with Russia (2,336 tonnes), China (2,298 tonnes) and India (880 tonnes) the largest holders. Annual official-sector gold buying has averaged roughly 1,000 tonnes over the past four years, doubling after 2022 sanctions on Russia, and BRICS+ countries accounted for more than half of purchases between 2020 and 2024. The report flags Saudi Arabia as a potential “wild card”, noting that a shift to a 5% gold allocation could alone match projected total central bank demand for 2026.

Copper’s early-2026 rally above $14,500/t has fully reversed, with prices now around $12,000/t and down 2.5% year-to-date after the Iran war and Strait of Hormuz disruptions pushed energy costs higher and clouded global growth. Goldman Sachs, led by analyst Aurelia Waltham, has cut its 2026 base-case copper target to $12,650/t from $12,850/t, versus an estimated “fair value” of about $11,100/t, and warns of a “severely adverse” downside scenario if the strait stays blocked. For project modellers and mine planners, the bank’s note signals weaker near-term demand assumptions and greater price risk around expansion and hedging decisions.

Codelco and Chinese OEM SANY have completed a 680 km round-trip pilot of a 100% electric haul truck carrying 27 t of copper concentrate between the Radomiro Tomic Division and Angamos Port in northern Chile. The test ran across the Atacama Desert, exposing the vehicle to long-distance, high-temperature, low-humidity operating conditions typical of bulk copper logistics from mine to port. Results will inform future fleet decarbonisation strategies for long-haul mine-port corridors, including charging infrastructure siting and duty-cycle planning.