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📰 In The News
Rising Stars in Mineral Exploration
- CSIRO's Discovery Program, led by Dr. Sandra Occhipinti, is driving innovation in sustainable mineral exploration with tools like space-based sensors and 3D geological modeling, aiming to secure Australia's leadership in critical mineral discovery.
- With a diverse team across Australia, early-career researchers are advancing projects like space-based mineral mapping, lithium targeting, and 3D modeling of complex geological structures, contributing valuable insights to the global clean energy transition.
- Researchers like Jo Miles, Mario Iglesias-Martinez, and Chirantan Parui are integrating advanced spectral and structural analysis to enhance exploration efforts, with each pursuing new breakthroughs in sustainable resource development at CSIRO.
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Up Close With the 300 Tonne Driverless Trucks
- At Rio Tinto’s Greater Nammuldi iron ore mine in remote Western Australia, over 50 autonomous trucks, monitored from a control center in Perth, improve safety and productivity while reducing downtime.
- Automation has created safer mining conditions and 15% productivity gains, with workers redeployed to remote control roles rather than being replaced, despite ongoing concerns about interface design and control workload.
- The global mining industry, particularly in Australia, continues to expand automation, with Rio Tinto leading and looking to integrate further autonomous equipment, while safety policies evolve to manage human interactions with machines.
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Critical Mineral Mines Tied to 111 Violent Incidents and Protests on Average a Year
As part of our commitment to transparency in the mining industry, we're sharing critical findings from Global Witness's latest analysis on transition mineral mining:
- Critical mineral mines (copper, cobalt, lithium, nickel) were linked to an average of 111 violent incidents and protests annually from 2021-2023
- While emerging economies face the majority of these challenges, up to 81% of mining operations are controlled by companies from wealthier nations and major consumer countries
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ESG Mining Company Index: The True Numbers of Women in Mining and Company Boardrooms
- Women represent only 12% of the global mining workforce, with industry-wide labor shortages highlighting the urgent need to attract more women.
- Although female board representation in mining has improved, with top companies reaching 31%, overall workforce participation remains low at 17.4%.
- BHP leads in female workforce diversity (36%) due to set diversity goals, yet fewer women are pursuing mining degrees, with female graduates in mining engineering dropping to 11% in 2020.
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Startup Turns Mining Waste Into Critical Metals for the U.S.
- Phoenix Tailings, co-founded by MIT alumni, uses a novel, carbon-free process to extract rare earth metals from mining waste, offering a sustainable domestic alternative to China's dominance in rare earth processing.
- Backed by the Department of Energy, the company operates a facility in Woburn, Massachusetts, which produces high-purity rare earth elements and aims to expand to nickel, magnesium, and iron extraction.
- By refining mining waste into essential materials for clean energy applications, Phoenix Tailings addresses U.S. material security concerns and sets a new standard for environmentally responsible metallurgical processes.
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🎧 On the Rocks
This week, host Emily King sits down with Louis Buck, SVP of Public Affairs at 3 Rivers Energy Partners, to explore the innovative intersection of bourbon production and renewable energy.
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