en.Wedoany.com Reported - Volvo Autonomous Solutions (V.A.S.) and Swedish mining company Boliden AB have successfully completed an autonomous transport project at Boliden's Garpenberg mine in Dalarna County, Sweden. The project transported nearly 700,000 tons of rock fill material, completing over 11,000 transport cycles and covering a total distance of 56,000 kilometers. This project represents the first implementation phase under the memorandum of understanding signed by both parties in 2023, with materials transferred from a quarry within the mining area to the tailings facility to reinforce and raise the height of a local dam.
Founded in 2020, Volvo Autonomous Solutions is a business unit of the Volvo Group focused on developing and commercializing autonomous transport solutions. Boliden AB, established in 1924 and headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, is a leading metal producer in the Nordic region, with operations spanning exploration, mining, smelting, and recycling. The company employs approximately 8,000 people and generates annual revenue of around SEK 90 billion, and is listed on the Large Cap segment of Nasdaq Stockholm. The Garpenberg mine is one of Boliden's oldest operating mines, with mining activities dating back to 400 AD. In 2025, the mine processed approximately 3.6 million tons of ore, primarily producing zinc, copper, lead, gold, and silver concentrates.
The solution deployed at the Garpenberg mine is the Autona/earth product from Volvo Autonomous Solutions, designed for mines and quarries. Autona/earth combines the Volvo FH autonomous truck for mining operations with Volvo's proprietary virtual driver, infrastructure, operational support, and maintenance services to facilitate autonomous transport. Delivered under a "Transport-as-a-Service" model, the solution integrates autonomous technology into the customer's existing operations, with Volvo Autonomous Solutions managing the technical complexity and regulatory compliance required for deployment.
Ingo Sturmer, Chief Technology Officer of Volvo Autonomous Solutions, stated that autonomous transport can bring significant advantages to the mining industry, particularly by keeping people away from hazardous environments and improving operational safety and efficiency. The Garpenberg project has demonstrated that autonomous transport can be scaled under real-world conditions and actual customer operational environments. Rikard Mäki, Head of Electrification and Automation at Boliden, expressed satisfaction with achieving the milestone of 700,000 tons of autonomous transport at the Garpenberg tailings facility, reaffirming the company's commitment to developing world-leading mining operations. Volvo noted that the completion of this project demonstrates the competitive advantages of autonomous transport in certain mining operations, laying a solid foundation for future collaboration between the two parties.
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