en.Wedoany.com Reported - Recently, Swedish mining equipment manufacturer Sandvik and Anglo-Australian mining company Rio Tinto announced a joint development agreement to integrate Sandvik's i-series open-pit drills with Rio Tinto's Autonomous Drilling System (Rio Tinto ADS™). This collaboration combines Rio Tinto's experience in autonomous drilling and remote operations with Sandvik's AutoMine® automation platform technology, aiming to enhance safety, productivity, and system compatibility in open-pit mining operations. The initial phase will focus on auxiliary drilling operations in open-pit mining, with the long-term goal of achieving remote autonomous control of multiple drills across multiple sites via Rio Tinto's operations center in Perth, Western Australia.

Founded in 1862 and headquartered in Sandviken, Sweden, Sandvik is a global engineering group with businesses in mining and rock technology, metal cutting tools, materials technology, and manufacturing solutions. In 2025, the group's revenue was approximately SEK 130 billion, with around 44,000 employees worldwide. Its mining and rock technology division is a leading supplier of underground and open-pit mining equipment. Rio Tinto, established in 1873, is a British-Australian multinational metals and mining corporation involved in the exploration, mining, and processing of resources including iron ore, aluminum, copper, diamonds, industrial minerals, and uranium. Headquartered in London, UK, with a dual listing in Australia, it employs approximately 57,000 people globally and reported revenue of about USD 54 billion in 2025. Rio Tinto operates one of the world's largest autonomous mining networks in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, encompassing drills, trucks, and trains. Its Gudai-Darri iron ore mine is one of the industry's most technologically advanced sites, already operating with a fully autonomous mobile fleet.

This collaboration will proceed in two phases: first, development and drill testing at Sandvik's test facility in Finland, followed by field trials at Rio Tinto's operational site in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. Testing will include field trials to verify achievement of commercial production targets. The partnership aims to support the future operation of autonomous drill fleets, enabling different drill models to operate on a unified automation platform, thereby driving open-pit operations toward greater safety and flexibility. Petri Virrankoski, President of Sandvik's Surface Drilling business, stated: "This collaboration reflects Sandvik's commitment to improving safety and productivity through open, interoperable automation. Building on the AutoMine® and i-series platforms, we are proud to strengthen our long-term relationship with Rio Tinto and support the continued advancement of autonomous drilling technology under the demanding Pilbara conditions."

This partnership builds on Rio Tinto's long-established experience in automation systems. Its Perth Operations Center already enables remote monitoring and dispatch of drills, trucks, and trains in the Pilbara region, a model successfully implemented at sites such as Gudai-Darri. Rio Tinto stated that the deployment of Sandvik's integrated technology is expected to further enhance operational safety—removing operators from hazardous environments—while improving fleet productivity and equipment lifespan. This collaboration marks another significant milestone in the technical partnership between the two companies, following Sandvik's supply of 17 loaders and 2 trucks to Rio Tinto's Oyu Tolgoi project in Mongolia in July 2025.

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