NETWORKS AND COMMS
New mining network orbits
Connectivity continues to drive the future of mining , enabling new technologies like autonomous fleets . Paul Moore reports on developments and options
Part of the Gold Fields Salares Norte Remote Monitoring Center in Santiago - the mine , 1,500 km away , purely relies on LEO satellite communications for connectivity
While 45 / LTE and now 5G have been leading the network and comms bandwidth race in recent years to deliver low latency and enable operational autonomy and greater remote oversight of mines , including using high resolution video , other comms solutions have also been making headway in the mining industry - notably satellite-based offerings . In the past , satcomms offerings , such as those utilising VSAT terminals , have been seen as primarily solutions for remote exploration and early stage projects , as well as providing camp-based communications for smaller operations .
However , today ’ s latest satellite comms solutions are often able handle the full network needs of up and running mining operations . One of these is Starlink – very well known already as the world ' s first and largest satellite constellation using a low Earth orbit to deliver broadband internet . Starlink is now being used as the primary comms network by some major mining operations – notably Gold Fields ’ new Salares Norte gold mine in Chile , which enables , amongst others , oversight over the working of the mine via a remote-control centre in the company ’ s Santiago office , which was recently visited by IM with Reynaldo Martinez , Asset Management and Operational Performance Manager .
Martinez stated : “ An exciting journey for us has been the communications network used at the mine . Typically mines use communications towers , for example with LTE 4G , along with an optic fibre cable network . But we do not use optic fibre – the nearest fibre cable is 200 km away . Instead , two years ago , our team started testing a Starlink satcomms connection – today we have different satcomms access points at the mine , plant and camp – all of our communications work via Starlink – it has worked very well , with no interruption related to weather such as heavy snow plus it is able to handle live HD video monitoring across the site . Its level of stability was actually something of a surprise – five antennas in total were enough for the whole mining complex . We are also testing an alternative low earth orbit satellite system as a redundancy . Using low earth orbit satellite communications has proven to be fast and reliable . Our antennas in Santiago connect via
the telecom service providers to the Cloud , meaning we have no need to use an external telecommunications provider .”
Starlink is supplied directly as well as via a network of global authorised resellers including NSSL , Speedcast Marlink / ITC Global , KDDI , Anuvu , Elcome , Clarus Networks , IEC telecom and others . Clarus Networks states : “ Because Starlink has the largest fleet of LEO satellites , it is possible to provide fast internet even in the most remote parts of the planet . Combined with its easy installation process , users can quickly connect to a nearby satellite and start using the service right away .” It adds : “ Starlink is already changing the face of many industries , particularly offshore energy and maritime , and it ’ s looking set to do the same for mining . Firstly , there is a huge cost benefit . The high-speed , low-latency connection will enable fast and reliable communication that is far less expensive than current technologies for mining and exploration operations . This speeds up the flow of information between remote sites and head office , thanks to the possibility of real-time collaboration and automated data transfer – by
78 International Mining | SEPTEMBER 2024