Rocketmine, a subsidiary of the international Delta Drone Group,
says it “continues to affirm its’ position as the drone service
providing leader in UAV (drone) solutions for the mining sector.” The
company has procured contracts with mining majors throughout Africa. A
contract renewal with South African mining giant, Exxaro Resources Group
sees Rocketmine providing survey and mapping solutions to the
Grootegeluk site in the Limpopo Province. This forms part of their plan
to evolve towards the “digitised mine of the future” concept where
real-time mine planning and execution can be conducted to improve mining
efficiency and production.
Grootegeluk mine is Exxaro’s largest opencast mine in the southern
hemisphere. This particular site inhabits various hazards and dangers to
the surveyors. The survey and mapping solution was aimed to get
surveyors out of dangerous areas to increase safety and data turnaround
time. One of Exxaro’s primary driving force in optimising efficiency of
their operations is to meet the demand requirements of the Medupi power
station. “Our professional service and accurate data have been our
greatest advocates. While safety and our cost-effective approaches
contribute to a more streamlined and productive output on-site assisting
the client achieve their targets,” explains Rocketmine MD, Christopher
Clark.
The second contract acquisition sees Rocketmine taking to the skies
in Namibia. Rio Tinto’s first commercial uranium mine, Rössing Uranium,
had supplied a total of 132,610 t of uranium oxide to the world by the
end of 2017. To achieve the best possible grade of uranium, the Rössing
Uranium mine achieves this by optimising the accuracy of planning. This
requires regular and accurate stockpile movements. “The integration of
drone technology at Rössing Uranium Mine will enhance operational
efficiencies pertaining to planning by providing expeditious accurate
data,” said Clark.
Rocketmine secured two other contracts in West Africa. Newcrest
Mining Limited in Côte d’Ivoire and Newmont Akyem to provide mine blast
monitoring and fragmentation analysis and survey mapping respectively.
“A global cumulative amount for these African projects over the next
three years equates close to €1,000,000. These mines are clear cases
that the future of the mining will utilise technology not only to find
innovative solutions but to decrease their carbon footprint,” concludes
Clark.