Newcrest awards $14.5m pit equipment order to Sandvik

The Sandvik Leopard DI650i blasthole drill at work. Credit: Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions

Sandvik Mining and Rock Solutions has won an C$18.5 million ($14.5m) order for surface mining equipment from Newcrest Mining (TSX: NCM; ASX: NSM) that will optimize reliability and productivity at the Red Chris copper-gold mine in British Columbia.

Newcrest has ordered two Sandvik Leopard DI650i, and two Sandvik DR412i for use at Red Chris. The mine recently published a prefeasibility study demonstrating the potential to become a world class underground block cave mine. Sandvik will also provide field service support and vendor managed inventory to support the site’s training and maintenance processes. 

The order, including equipment, aftermarket and rock tools, was booked in the third quarter of 2021. Delivery of the equipment is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2021. 

“We are excited to partner with the Red Chris mine in Canada’s Golden Triangle and we are proud to contribute to their objectives of safety and productivity with our innovative, automation-ready drills and service solutions,” says Sandvik Canada’s vice-president Peter Corcoran.

Leopard DI650i is a diesel-powered, self-contained crawler mounted intelligent down-the-hole drill rig. It is designed for high-capacity production drilling applications in surface mining, as well as large-scale quarry applications. Sandvik DR412i blasthole drill is designed to deliver dependable penetration and return on investment for 216- to 311-mm (8.5-12.25 in) rotary and down-the-hole applications. DR412i is AutoMine ready, providing functionality for both on-board and off-board automated needs.

(This article first appeared in the Candian Mining Journal)