Australia

Autonomy gets real at Daunia as Whitehaven lifts productivity, redefines safety and proves culture is the key to mining’s autonomous future

When Whitehaven Coal acquired BMA’s Daunia and Blackwater mines in Queensland’s Bowen Basin, it wasn’t just the company’s biggest purchase to date.

By Jamie Wade on March 7, 2026
Safety, Occupational Health, Incident Reporting, Efficiency, Production Optimisation, Equipment Maintenance, Costs, Cost Control, Inventory Management, Workforce, Recruitment, Training and Development, Employee Retention, Innovation, Technology Adoption, Process Innovation, Risk, Risk Assessment, Risk Mitigation, Mines & Projects, Mine Profiles, Case Studies
Australia, Queensland, Bowen Basin
Energy Minerals, Coal (Thermal and Metallurgical)

Smart mines get smarter as agentic AI steps up to connect data boost productivity and put intelligent decision making in every miner’s toolkit

The future of mining is already here - and it’s being shaped by AI systems that can think, act and integrate seamlessly with the tools you already use.

By Jamie Wade on March 7, 2026
Efficiency, Production Optimisation, Process Improvement, Equipment Maintenance, Workflow Management, ESG, Sustainable Practices, Long-term Planning, Workforce, Training and Development, Health and Well-being Programs, Innovation, Technology Adoption, Process Innovation, Risk, Risk Assessment, Risk Mitigation, Mines & Projects, Project Overviews, Development Stages, Exploration, Geoscience data visualisation and analytics, Exploration technologies and methodologies
Australia, Western Australia

When piezometers act up, dissipation testing shows the surprising role of saturation fluids in solving tailings dam monitoring mysteries

Unexpected piezometer trends in a tailings dam triggered an investigation that uncovered an overlooked variable in dissipation testing – the type of saturation fluid.

By Jamie Wade on March 7, 2026
Safety, Occupational Health, ESG, Water and Air Quality Monitoring, Innovation, Process Innovation, Risk, Risk Assessment, Risk Mitigation, Mines & Projects, Case Studies
Australia, Queensland
Base Metals, Energy Minerals, Coal (Thermal and Metallurgical)

Why stable jurisdictions, faster permits and clear rules are winning the global mining investment race

The annual temperature check from the Fraser Institute has landed — and while the rocks haven’t moved, capital certainly has.

By Jamie Wade on February 28, 2026
Costs, Financial Planning, Cost Control, ESG, Regulatory Adherence, Environmental Permits, Legislative Updates, Stakeholder Communication, Risk, Risk Assessment, Risk Mitigation, Exploration
Australia, North America, United States, Nevada, Arizona, Alaska, Canada, Ontario, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Africa, South Africa, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Botswana, Mali, Europe, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Oceania, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand, Asia, China
Precious Metals, Base Metals, Rare Earth Elements, Strategic Minerals

Gold fever, tin whispers and rare earth reality checks

If you wanted a temperature check on Western Australia’s exploration sector last week, you didn’t need a feasibility study.

By Jamie Wade on February 25, 2026
Costs, Financial Planning, Cost Control, ESG, Regulatory Adherence, Environmental Permits, Legislative Updates, Stakeholder Communication, Community Development Projects, Local Employment Opportunities, Sustainable Practices, Long-term Planning, Workforce, Recruitment, Training and Development, Employee Retention, Risk, Risk Assessment, Risk Mitigation, Mines & Projects, Project Overviews, Development Stages, Exploration, Geological exploration and resource modelling, Exploration technologies and methodologies
Australia, Western Australia, Goldfields-Esperance, Mid West, New South Wales, Central West Region
Dysprosium, Precious Metals, Strategic Minerals, Gold, Niobium, Base Metals, Tin, Rare Earth Elements, Praseodymium, Neodymium

Mining’s next bottleneck isn’t in the ground – it’s in the policy inbox

At first glance, the WA Mining Club’s Market Outlook Luncheon at Optus Stadium looked like it would follow a familiar script.

By Jamie Wade on February 6, 2026
Efficiency, Production Optimisation, Costs, Financial Planning, Cost Control, ESG, Regulatory Adherence, Environmental Permits, Legislative Updates, Long-term Planning, Economic Balance, Innovation, Technology Adoption, Process Innovation, Risk, Risk Assessment, Risk Mitigation
Australia, Western Australia, North America, United States, Canada, Europe, United Kingdom, France, Asia, China
Uranium, Precious Metals, Strategic Minerals, Gold, Silver, Base Metals, Copper, Energy Minerals, Coal (Thermal and Metallurgical)

AI isn’t the risk in mining. Inconsistent capability is and the technology is already exposing where systems and judgement fall short

AI isn’t the risk in mining.

By Jamie Wade on February 2, 2026
Safety, Incident Reporting, Efficiency, Process Improvement, Workflow Management, Workforce, Training and Development, Employee Retention, Health and Well-being Programs, Innovation, Technology Adoption, Process Innovation, Risk, Risk Assessment, Risk Mitigation
Australia, North America, Europe
Base Metals, Strategic Minerals

Mining just got complicated – diggers are now diplomats data wranglers and nation builders whether they like it or not

There was a time when mining’s job was simple: dig it up, ship it out, repeat.

By Jamie Wade on January 29, 2026
Efficiency, Production Optimisation, Process Improvement, ESG, Workforce, Training and Development, Employee Retention, Innovation, Technology Adoption, Process Innovation, Risk, Risk Assessment, Risk Mitigation, Exploration, Geoscience data visualisation and analytics, Exploration technologies and methodologies
Australia, Western Australia, Queensland, Northern Territory, North America, United States, Canada, Europe, Sweden, United Kingdom
Lithium, Base Metals, Gallium, Copper, Germanium, Nickel, Rare Earth Elements, Neodymium, Dysprosium, Strategic Minerals

Mining’s energy bill just met its match as digital twins AI and regenerative drives unlock the kind of savings that turn control rooms into profit engines

If you still think “energy recovery” belongs in the sustainability chapter of the annual report, Rockwell Automation would like a quiet word – preferably from inside a control tower humming with AI, digital twins and enough conveyor simulations to make your GPU blush.

By Jamie Wade on December 3, 2025
Efficiency, Costs, ESG, Innovation, Risk, Mines & Projects
Australia, North America, United States, Africa, South Africa
Iron ore, Precious Metals, Gold, Base Metals, Copper

Why the same gold deposit can sparkle in Australia but merely shimmer in China as study reveals how valuation rules reshape what a mine is truly worth

If gold is the world’s most universal currency, it’s also one of its most misunderstood.

By Jamie Wade on November 25, 2025
Costs, Budgeting, Financial Planning, Procurement Efficiency, ESG, Regulatory Adherence, Reporting Requirements, Stakeholder Communication, Extraction, Reserve Estimation, Innovation, Technology Adoption, Process Innovation, Collaboration with Research Institutions, Risk, Risk Assessment, Risk Mitigation, Mines & Projects, Project Overviews, Case Studies, Exploration, Geological exploration and resource modelling, Exploration technologies and methodologies
Australia, Asia, China
Precious Metals, Gold