Canadian firm awards contract for launch platform of new remote mining system

Photo: Arctic Canadian Diamond Company

Arctic Canadian Diamond Company and Royal IHC subsidiary IHC Mining have entered into an agreement for the construction and delivery of a specialised launch and recovery platform for use with a new type of underwater remote mining (URM) system.

The URM system will consist of a floating platform, an underwater mining crawler, and a land-based dewatering plant.

The system will be used for the extraction of diamond-bearing kimberlite ore from deep open pits at the Ekati Diamond Mine in the Northwest Territories of Canada.

Begun in 2018, the project seeks to introduce a mining system that would have a much lower environmental impact compared to conventional mining methods. The partners said that, as the URM crawler will only be mining the kimberlite ore and minimal waste, it will significantly reduce the mine’s footprint.


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