Christian Barra Llano General Manager ORBIT GARANT CHILE
What were the recent achievements of Orbit Garant?
We recently obtained new contracts with Minera El Abra and Anglo American to continue working with them for the next three to five years. This has allowed us to engage in long-term planning. The year also saw growth in our staff, with now almost 320 people in our Chile office.
At the end of 2024, we won a contract at Codelco’s El Teniente division, which is an important milestone for us as a company to be involved in the underground drilling of such an impressive project. With more mines going further underground and more brownfield projects, how is Orbit Garant adapting its techniques and equipment?
We manufacture our own equipment for underground and surface drilling. This allows us to adapt each drill rig to meet the specific requirements of each tunnel and client. Currently, we are working on developing a robotic arm that allows an operator to manipulate the drill more easily. This is not only a technological advancement but allows the drilling sector to be more inclusive and open, as less strength is required to operate such drills.
At El Teniente for example, we are currently trialing an upgraded drill to improve capacity, performance, and semi - autonomy. Our company is recognized around the world for our ability to adapt to the needs of each client. How would you compare Chile to the other mining jurisdictions in which Orbit Garant operates?
The labor, safety and health regulations have much stricter laws than most other countries. In Canada, there is much more flexibility on what is allowed between a client and service provider, granting more freedom to companies to be able to deal with each mine’s unique needs. This is what is lacking in Chile in my opinion. For example, in Canada, you are required to have half as many people operating a drill rig compared to Chile, which increases efficiency and lowers costs in their operations.
Pablo Wallach Beovic VP Innovation and Marketing ENAEX
Can you provide an overview of ENAEX's work in low-carbon products?
In Peru, we have successfully manufactured green hydrogen from renewable energy, producing a product called Prillex Zero, which is fully produced using renewable energy. This product has an exceptionally low carbon footprint of 0.1, compared to a typical ammonium nitrate footprint of four. We have offset the remaining carbon footprint through green bonds, reaching neutrality in production.
In Chile, we are producing a product called Prillex ECO2, which uses blue ammonia - a process that involves importing ammonia produced from gas with CO2 capture sequestration. This approach reduces the carbon footprint by 40-50% compared to regular ammonia. Our final ammonium nitrate product has less than one ton of CO2 per ton of ammonium nitrate. We have fully certified the entire production process, including baselines and ammonia sourcing. What technologies are transforming mining according to ENAEX?
We are focusing heavily on robotics to reduce human exposure to dangerous areas. A prime example is our underground teleoperated truck (UG-iTruck), which we are currently testing at Codelco’s El Teniente mine. This innovative truck can be controlled from up to one kilometer away and perform the entire blasting process, including priming, hole cleaning, and programming contactless detonators. Can you elaborate on ENAEX's digital platform, Bright?
Bright is our comprehensive digital platform designed to gather extensive information from the mining process. It collects data from various sources including trucks, detonators, sensors, fragmentation cameras, drill machines, and other equipment. The platform includes several innovative tools that transform this data into actionable insights. What are ENAEX's technological adoption perspectives across different countries?
Chile presents more regulatory challenges. Obtaining permits for technological trials, even for safety-improving robotics, can involve lengthy bureaucratic processes. In contrast, countries like Peru and Brazil have more streamlined approval processes, which sometimes leads us to conduct testing in those markets.