Australian company Resolute Mining, which runs an autonomous drilling, loading, haulage and navigation operation at Syama in Mali, has estimated productivity gains in the region of 15-20%.
Speaking ahead of a mining conference in Australia, Resolute’s chief executive officer and managing director John Welborn said the substantial benefits from its underground operation were not at the expense of local jobs and capacity building.
“Ore will literally be drilled, blasted, bogged, loaded and hauled all the way to the surface without ever being manually handled,” Welborn said.
“We now have an all Mali trained crew. Because these systems are automated, they’re easy to operate,” he added.
“Rather than taking jobs away from the local workforce, it’s allowing us to train, employ, empower and upskill our local workers.”
