Saudi Arabia has been a dominant force in the global oil market for more than 80 years. With the inevitable shift away from fossil fuels gaining pace, the country is now in the midst of a profound transformation that will diversify its oil- and gas-dependent economy.
The main goals of the future Saudi economy are outlined in the ambitious Vision 2030 program, which involves heavy investments in several sectors. One of them is tourism, which will see massive infrastructure and other construction projects in the coming years.
Another focus area is mining: Saudi Arabia is rich in a number of valuable minerals such as gold, phosphates, and bauxite, and the government is actively wncouraging foreign investments in the sector.
These developments have made Saudi Arabia an attractive growth market for global players in the industry – and Robit is no exception.
Robit took a decisive step forward early this year by signing a distribution deal for their drilling tools with Aginco, the Kingdom’s leading supplier of drilling equipment and tools. Founded in 1978, Aginco serves the mining, engineering, and construction sectors with top-of-the-range materials and extensive professional services.
Aginco seemed like the perfect match for Robit, says Robit’s Distributor Business Manager Ahmad Afridi. “Both parties saw big potential for synergy. Robit is a well-known brand in Saudi Arabia. As Aginco also represents Normet and other top brands in underground mining and construction, we have a great product portfolio to serve similar customers.”
“Aginco is also a growth company like Robit. We are excited to work together to gain a larger share in this heavily competitive market. I see major growth in the following years in mining alone”, Ahmad says.
From Aginco’s perspective, the collaboration marks a significant milestone in their mission to support Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 goals. Aginco’s director, Faisal Sindi comments: “We are excited to partner with Robit, a globally renowned brand in the drilling industry. This collaboration aligns perfectly with our commitment to bringing world-class products and services to Saudi Arabia. Together, we aim to contribute significantly to the Kingdom’s economic diversification and growth, particularly in the mining sector, which holds tremendous potential.”
Picture: Foundation work for the massively ambitious NEOM project in the northwest corner of Saudi Arabia
Phalaborwa is a vast mining complex located next to the mighty Kruger National Park in the northeast corner of South Africa. It is host to several valuable minerals such as copper, phosphate, zirconium, iron, and vermiculite.
One of the entities within the Phalaborwa complex is the Foskor open-pit phosphate rock mine. Phosphate is a critical mineral in fertilizers. Before the foundation of the Foskor mine in the 1950s, South African agriculture depended on imported phosphate rock. Today, largely thanks to Foskor’s success, South Africa exports phosphate fertilizers worldwide.
Drilling and blasting at the Foskor mine in Phalaborwa is operated by Brauteseth Blasting, a family business founded in 1983 in the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province of South Africa. The company started as a small-scale civil blasting company catering to KZN’s construction industry. In forty years, it has grown into a major national player, contracting to more than 20 quarries, five large-scale mining operations, and several construction sites.
Brauteseth has built its success on two cornerstones: a highly skilled, motivated staff and continuous investment in top-of-the-range technology and equipment. This focus on quality tools extends to consumable parts as well.
Brauteseth Blasting operates eight drill rigs at the Foskor mine. As their consignment agreement with their then-supplier of DTH hammers and drill bits was ending in late 2023, Robit SA approached Brauteseth, requesting a performance test of Robit’s and the then-current supplier’s DTH tools.
The extensive testing period started in October 2023 and was completed in February 2024. Robit’s tools included the D65 QL60 3½” API REG blast-hole hammer and 165 mm QL60 Flat Face blast-hole bits.
“The test results were clear: Robit’s tools outperformed the competition in terms of penetration rate and cost-per-meter”, says Duane Kukard, Area Sales Manager at Robit SA.
Convinced by the tests, Brauteseth Blasting signed a consignment agreement to supply their drill rigs at the Foskor mine with Robit’s DTH 6″ equipment.
Since May 2024, all eight of Brauteseth’s rigs in Phalaborwa have been drilling blast holes with Robit’s tools – now with increased efficiency and profitability.
Last year saw a massive geotechnical operation at the Oregon State Capitol: the entire building had to be jacked up off the ground. Robit’s micropile casing systems played an important part in the process.
The Oregon State Capitol building has faced many misfortunes throughout its history. The first capitol burned down in 1855 – only a few months after its inauguration. The second capitol met the same fate in 1935.
However, fire is not the only force of nature that has put the state capitol in peril. Large parts of Oregon, including the capital city of Salem, sit on a tectonically active fault line called the Cascadia Subduction Zone.
In March 1993, a 5.6-magnitude earthquake – the largest in the Pacific Northwest in over a decade – cracked the cupola of the Capitol and created a massive bulge on its west end. Parts of the building remained closed for repairs for almost two years.
Over the following decades, the State of Oregon conducted several studies to determine how best to protect the historic building from further seismic events. After investigating various options, the review committee decided on seismic isolation. In other words, the foundation of the building would rest on so-called pendulum isolators and a seismic joint that allows the entire complex to move independently in any direction from the surrounding ground during an earthquake.
This would be no small task; it meant that the Capitol building would have to be lifted off the ground. This would be achieved by constructing a shoring tower structure on which the building would rest while the new isolation system was being built. As the Capitol had needed extra space for years, it was also decided that an additional basement level would be constructed.
The main contractorship for the geotechnical work was awarded to Pacific Foundation, a family business based in Vancouver, WA. The company started as a smallscale drilling operation in 2012; since then, it has grown into a large contractor capable of tackling complex geotechnical challenges.
Regarding challenges, the Oregon State Capitol project was far from a typical scenario where, slightly simplified, you arrive at the job site, drill the piles into the ground – and that’s it. Here, the first challenge was to gain access underneath the Capitol and excavate enough space for the drill rigs to fit in. This phase started in late 2022.
The work continued throughout 2023 and entailed drilling micropiles into the ground across the entire footprint of the building. At best, seven drill rigs worked simultaneously in narrow spaces with only a few inches of clearance above. Two-thirds of the micropiles were Robit casing systems, while one-third, the outside piles, were double rotary systems. The micropiles supported a total of 175 shoring towers upon which the jacked-up building would sit until the work was completed. The tower construction and the jacking operation were performed by trusted partners.
By Christmas 2023, the micropiles, totaling as many as 722, were installed. By late January 2024, the building was resting on the shoring tower structure, paving the way for the seismic isolation system and reconstruction efforts.
For Pacific Foundation, mission success has probably never been more critical. The project required massive amounts of structural engineering and careful planning and coordination by all participating parties to stay on schedule and maintain safety – not to mention that while the work was in progress, the state legislature was in session just a few feet above.
The construction work at the Capitol will continue into 2025. Once finished, the historic marble building should finally be able to stand firm against any future seismic events.
Shoring towers stretching across the entire footprint of the Capitol building.
Kauno Määttä was a familiar name to Finnish wrestling fans in the 1960s and 70s: he won the Finnish Greco-Roman wrestling championship in his weight class several times. In his day job, however, Kauno did not make the headlines despite being a respected professional: he drilled wells.
Kauno’s career as a driller continued into retirement and was passed on to the next generations. In the late 1980s, Kauno’s primary school-age grandsons, Sami and Simo Manninen, got the spark when they got invited as helpers for a well-drilling job.
The spark ignited a lasting passion, and as a result, the brothers’ own company, Oulun Porakaivot, was finally born in 2012. It operates throughout Finland, and its core business is drilling geothermal energy fields for large properties. Oulun Porakaivot also handles the design and permitting of the energy fields and has a wide range of customers from the public sector to commercial properties and housing cooperatives. They also drill individual geothermal and water wells for detached houses and other small properties.
Oulun Porakaivot operates six drilling rigs and has long been Robit’s contract customer, using Robit products for all key consumables such as rods, ring bits, drill bits, and pilots. Panu Haulos, Design Engineer at Oulun Porakaivot, has noticed a welcome improvement in the quality of drilling tools.
“Reliability of consumables is critical in this sector. The wells are getting deeper – up to 450 meters – and the plots of land are often small: if the first hole falls short, there may not be enough room to drill a new one. In consumables, we have to look at the cost of a drill meter from an overall economic perspective: performance, drilling speed and fuel consumption. Robit’s products have been consistently reliable and have performed excellently in deep wells. And today’s hammers and bits are more durable than before,” says Panu.
For about a year, Robit has been developing a new four-inch DTH hammer, branded Robit H4, for well drilling. Testing in cooperation with customers is an integral part of product development. The H4 hammer was optimized and finalized as per customer feedback. Robit’s Sales Director Kimmo Kangas approached Oulun Porakaivot and offered them an opportunity to test the new hammer. A suitable test site was found in Helsinki, at a housing cooperative’s future energy field, where 23 wells will be drilled to a depth of 390 metres. Kimmo has followed the development of the H4 hammer from the beginning and has seen its potential.
“The functionality, reliability and penetration rate of the H4 are outstanding. However, the most significant improvement is fuel consumption, which is significantly lower than the competition. Typically, for example, in a 200-meter well, the compressor consumes about two litres of fuel per meter. On the H4 hammer, the consumption has been as low as one and a half litres. That’s a crucial difference,” says Kimmo.
Low fuel consumption is one of the key assets of the H4 hammer.
Panu Haulos confirms that the H4 has achieved very low fuel consumption figures at the drilling test site. The two companies have been in close cooperation for years.
“Robit’s domestic production is definitely a plus for us: we can get parts with a fast response time. They react quickly to our needs, around the clock if necessary. Robit has also been able to help in special cases where off-the-shelf products have not been available. For example, we had a project where the hole we were to drill had to be absolutely straight. Robit tailor-made us a special guiding rod that did the job,” says Panu.
In many sectors of the economy, growth indicators have recently taken a downward turn. This is not the case in the thermal well market, at least not for Oulun Porakaivot.
“The trend is upward, and demand is constantly growing and diversifying. Of course, this is partly due to technological advances that allow us to drill deeper wells. In Finland, the city of Helsinki, in particular, is a strong driver of progress in this field. The city, striving to move away from fossil-based district heating, has streamlined the permitting process for geothermal heat”, Panu says.
Picture from left: Ville Alanko, Simo Manninen, CEO Sami Manninen, Panu Haulos (Oulun Porakaivot); on the right Kimmo Kangas (Robit).
Thanks to its rich gold deposits, the Cajamarca region in northern Perú has been home to gold mines since the Inca times. One of the current mines is Cerro Corona, where Robit recently became the preferred supplier of DTH drill bits.
Cerro Corona mine, owned by Gold Fields Inc, is located on the eastern slope of the western Andes, some 80 km north of the regional capital of Cajamarca. The open pit mine is expected to produce some 2.1 Moz (about 60,000 kg) of gold and 407 kt of copper in concentrate over its 15-year mine life.
The rich gold deposit is hosted by diorite porphyry, an extremely hard rock embedded in limestone. MUR-WY, the drilling contractor at Cerro Corona, uses the so-called pre-splitting method, where closely spaced holes are drilled and lightly charged, causing fractures that isolate the gold-bearing rock from the surrounding rock mass. Successful pre-splitting requires very straight holes, and, as always, this should be achieved with optimal cost, penetration rate, and tool lifetime performance.
Robit believed their tools might improve productivity, so they contacted MUR-WY in 2021 to arrange test drillings for 5” DTH bits at Cerro Corona. Test drilling is typically a very hands-on type of work where you monitor and make adjustments on the spot with the contractor. However, the COVID pandemic complicated things.
“In 2021, access to the mine was heavily restricted, so we had to get creative with MUR-WY to follow up on the tests. We ended up monitoring the performance remotely through WhatsApp videos and messages”, says José Luis Cisneros, General Manager of Robit SAC.
Luckily the restrictions were eventually lifted, and Robit’s Regional Sales Manager, Martín Rodriguez, was able to revisit Cerro Corona and conclude the tests, which proved highly successful.
“On average, compared to the tools they had used, we reached 20 to 25% better yields with our DHD340 Flat Face Premium bits and 40 to 50% better with our D45 HD hammers.
“We detected several ways to improve productivity. Not only did Robit’s components perform better, but a key factor is also the service we can provide. We are now the preferred supplier for DTH consumables at Cerro Corona. There are still challenges to tackle, but we will work with our strategic partners from MRU-WY to articulate better ways to approach their needs and increase security regarding the project’s required logistics”, Martín says.
In the first half of the 20th century, the Norra Djurgårdsstaden district in Stockholm, Sweden, was a busy industrial center and port area with an oil port, a coal port, a free port, and even a seaplane base. Today, it is one of the largest urban development areas in Europe.
The Norra Djurgårdsstaden development project was kicked off in the early 2010s. The first 700 apartments were completed in 2012, and construction work is expected to continue well into the 2030s.
The overall plan includes construction work in five sub-areas in the district. One of them is Project Saltkajen in Södra Värtahamnen, where a new pier with an associated bridge will be constructed, and the existing quay will be rebuilt. The city of Stockholm signed the contract, worth SEK 610 million, with Skanska.
Foundation work for the project includes extensive pipe piling and sheet piling in demanding conditions: more than 500 SSAB RD pipe piles (711 mm and 508 mm) will be drilled and connected by welded interlocking sections, creating a continuous retaining wall against horizontal and vertical loads.
Skanska chose the Robit Steel Fist (SF) casing system to drill the RD piles. SF is a solid choice for all DTH applications where the casing is left in the ground. Skanska has successfully used it in previous projects, such as the Slussen reconstruction in Stockholm.
As construction continues, Norra Djurgårdsstaden is slowly transforming into a modern, environmentally friendly, sustainably built district with 12,000 homes and an estimated 35,000 new jobs. Värtahamnen will be home to some 5,000 people, and 20,000 will work there. With new walkways, shops, restaurants and nightlife, it will also be an inviting entry point for international visitors arriving in Stockholm by boat.
When developing products for use under several conditions, it is vital to consider the experiences of people using the products. In modern times, it is possible to simulate all sorts of conditions in a lab environment or using computer models. But these can often only give an indication of the product’s performance in the real world, whereas those working in the conditions set by said real world can tell you a lot more.
For the above reasons, Robit has a long tradition of working with its distributor partners and end-customers alike regarding product development. The end-users know their equipment and circumstances better than anyone, so they can often test new and existing products under true-to-life conditions. This way, one can ensure that the test results correspond to the products’ actual performance and durability capabilities.
Collaborating towards better efficiency
One of Robit’s long-term test partners is Stevin Rock, which operates a limestone quarry in the United Arab Emirates with a fleet of Down the Hole (DTH) machinery. They have been using Robit-manufactured DTH tools since 2016. Stevin Rock has been using the full suite of Robit’s drilling consumables, with a 4″ hammer as their workhorse of choice and adaptors, drill tubes, and 110 mm and 127 mm bits aiding the work.
The initial contract was made after Robit succeeded in the trials at the Stevin Rock quarry. Robit’s products triumphed with a longer life span and lower cost per meter than the competition at the time. While some alternatives provided a higher penetration rate, this benefit was trumped by the higher number of breakages it brought. They decided to go with Robit, which offered known products that provided conclusive and consistent high performance.
In the years since the initial contract, Robit has proven itself as the right choice with an excellent overall life span of products, a high level of service, and numerous supporting drill master visits. Indeed, these visits have been the core of the support and collaboration towards the customer. A Robit drill master has been visiting the site on support duties a couple of times a year to help Stevin Rock optimize their processes. In addition, Robit and their distributor partner DeltaCorp Global have conducted on-site practical and theoretical training sessions for the operators and mechanic teams on hammer assembly, preventative maintenance, bit wear, failure modes, and best drilling practices.
Robit always aims to find the best possible distributors for each region; the goal is to find those who understand the local market, culture, and general thinking. In DeltaCorp Global, Robit has one such winner. During the years, DeltaCorp has fostered a very close working relationship with Stevin Rock. This allows them to consistently offer timely and relevant support for the customer across their organization. DeltaCorp’s representatives conduct at least one visit each week to one of Stevin Rock’s three sites. The purpose of the visits ranges from stock deliveries to management meetings, where product quality and life span, as well as stock levels and forecasts, are assessed. While on-site, the representatives will also visit the drill rigs to receive direct feedback from the drill operators. On top of all that, the DeltaCorp representatives maintain constant communication with Stevin Rock’s site management, working swiftly in the event any concerns should be raised, such as a sudden need for urgent deliveries, an unforeseen breakage, or some other operational problem.
Thanks to continuous support, Stevin Rock has improved the results they get with their equipment even further. When the initial contract started in 2016, the average life span of a drill bit was 2,000 meters, with hammers reaching approximately 8,000 meters. With all the training given to the personnel to help them make the most out of their tools, the efforts to optimize the drilling processes, as well as the product improvements from Robit’s Engineering and Production teams that based on the customer’s feedback, the average bit life span has extended to 4,500 meters, with the hammers regularly exceeding 25,000 meters.
While the durability and solid performance of the drilling consumables first made Stevin Rock give Robit’s drilling tools a chance, they have since gotten several more reasons to stick to their decision. And while they have been periodically testing multiple competing products, they have not had a reason to switch.
“We have been using Robit’s products for years and cannot fault their performance or service. We run an open tender every two years, and they always come out on top. Robit’s commitment to collaboration and continuous improvement is their great strength. However, their local Distribution Partner is also strong; with their reliable supply chain management and quick reaction times, a solution is always available to us 24/7.”
Stevin Rock Operations Manager Brian Howard under the Arabian sun.
Collaboration as the basis for product development
During their years working with Stevin Rock, Robit has been conducting numerous tests on many hammers and bits. All these tests have aimed to increase the life span of the products, as well as their performance, with minimal downtime and breakages so that the customer can reduce their drilling costs to the minimum. Tests carried out with customers have been at the heart of Robit’s product development process. Those trials have led to discoveries and breakthroughs that have guided the designs of their latest products, with the upcoming H-series hammers as a good reference point.
The new H-series hammers have been designed with performance and versatility as their guiding principles. The goal was to provide customers with a hammer range that they could utilize in different environments with minimal breakages and maximized utility for each operator’s circumstances. Customer feedback led Robit to develop a new modular design, offering increased flexibility and adaptability to varying conditions. With a few simple changes in the assembly of the hammer, the user can customize it for their needs; whether one wants to run them with improved productivity in mind or needs to be able to use a lower capacity compressor, the H-series hammers can be modeled to suit these requirements.
In practice, the modular design allows Robit to offer four hammers in one base design. The assemblies vary between high power and low volume, as well as foot valved and tubeless. Thus the following variations are available: high power with a foot valve, high power tubeless, low volume with a foot valve, and low volume tubeless. The high-power assembly offers high blow energy and air volume, resulting in a fast penetration rate and is suitable for deep-hole drilling. On the other hand, the low-volume assembly provides lower blow energy and air consumption, which are ideal for soft ground while keeping the hammer energy efficient.
As an example, Stevin Rock was looking for a faster drilling hammer to improve the potential productivity. Robit provided them with two assemblies of the new H-series models with differing internal arrangements to control the airflow, one with low air volume and the other with high air volume. These new hammers were to be tested against the tried-and-true D45 hammer from Robit’s older hammer range. The tests showed a considerable, consistent improvement across the board. The penetration rates went up in all tests, with the smallest increase at 14% and the most significant improvement at 30%. The highest penetration rate reached during the tests was 63.18 meters per hour. These results also correlated with those seen in earlier trials, ensuring the validity of the results.
With the new hammer range, Robit wants to bring more options to the market while still guaranteeing high performance. Because if one thing has become crystal clear during their collaboration with their customers, no two drill sites are the same. For this reason, they will make sure to let their customers’ and distribution partners’ voices be heard when developing new products and improving on the old ones.
This is an edited version of an article originally published in Global Mining Review, May 2023.
Peñasquito Mine, located in the State of Zacatecas in Central Mexico, is the second-largest silver mine in the world and also a major producer of gold, lead, and zinc. The giant has been successfully served by a fresh partnership between a new dynamic distributor and Robit.
The scale of operation at Peñasquito is so massive that it’s more like a small city than just an open-pit mine, with its own airport, a 1,900-bed camp with full dining, laundry and recreational facilities, and even a radio station. Opened in 2010, it currently produces some 31 million ounces, or almost 900 tons, of silver per year.
Mining is a thriving industry in Mexico, with several distributors competing over their share of the drilling consumable market. Peñasquito Mine is owned by Newmont, the world’s largest gold mining corporation. This did not stop Marlous Supplies and Services, a newcomer in the field, from landing a distribution deal for Robit DTH tools with Newmont.
Marlous was founded in the spring of 2020 by Martín Ocaño, who has an accomplished track record in the business.
“I have dedicated 24 years to the commercialization of products and services, in mining and public and private companies. For years I had been working on the idea of forming a company dedicated to supplying different products to the mining industry”, Martín says.
“Our key strength against the competition is that we focus completely on giving good attention and service to our clients, always covering their needs, interests and concerns, including after-sales. This has distinguished us and helped us enter and gain ground in the toughly competed mining market.”
In the search for a reliable supplier for drilling tools in their portfolio, Marlous decided the best option was Robit, given their experience and product quality. In the case of Newmont Peñasquito, Marlous was in the right place at the right time.
“Newmont’s main supplier of drilling tools was failing to deliver products in time. We had a similar product available, so we were able to help them out, and from then on we were allowed to start serious testing”, Martín recalls.
Currently, Marlous is supplying a major part of the DTH drilling tools used at Peñasquito. These include Robit D88 and WH4 hammers as well as QL80 and TD40 drill bits.
A key factor in their success at Peñasquito has been the technical personnel working on-site in close cooperation with the Newmont staff. This includes monthly meetings where the results of the previous month are analyzed and points of improvement can be identified.
“We are always open to feedback and encourage our customers to comment on any detail, anomaly or possible improvement. They appreciate it when their comments and observations are taken into account and implemented as soon as possible”, says Martín.
Still a young and small company, Marlous has already established a firm foothold in the Mexican mining sector. Growing steadily, the company is building on a balanced synergy between the quality of products and impeccable customer service.
Picture: The Marlous team, from left; Martín Tapia, Erik Coronado, Guadalupe Rivera, Ignacio Beltran, Carlos Tapia, Rodrigo Aravena. Martín Ocaño, Narciso Beltrán and Miguel Beltrán were out on business.
Rich in copper, silver, gold, and lead reserves, Peru is a global giant in the mining industry. Iron ore is also a significant export, although known deposits are limited to a single region.
Antonio Raimondi was an exceptionally versatile scientist. Born in Milan, Italy in 1826, he emigrated to Peru in 1850. A year later he became a professor of natural history at the National University of San Marcos in Lima. In the following years, he founded a medical school and a chemistry department there. Raimondi was also a passionate geographer, traveling extensively across the country conducting geological, botanical, and zoological studies. It was on one of these journeys that he discovered a vast iron ore deposit in the Marcona District in the Nazca province, some 500 km south of Lima, in 1870.
It wasn’t until the 1950s that the exploitation of iron ore in Marcona began. Since 1992 the open pit operation has been run by the Chinese-owned company Shougang Hierro Perú, during which time the production of iron has grown sixfold.
A large share of the drilling and earthmoving operations at Shougang Hierro Perú is conducted by Cosapi Mineria, a subsidiary of Cosapi S.A., one of Peru’s biggest construction and engineering companies. Cosapi Mineria specializes in massive earthworks and the development of open pit mines.
An open pit operation typically makes extensive use of Down-the-Hole tools for pre-split and buffer drilling. That’s why Shougang Hierro Perú was an attractive target for Robit SAC to approach with their offering.
“The iron deposit at Shougang Hierro Perú consists of very hard and abrasive materials. You can find competent soils with compressive strengths of 250 to 300 MPa”, says José Luis Cisneros, General Manager of Robit SAC.
“We contacted Cosapi Mineria and carried out the first test in early 2020 with 7-inch bits and a D65 hammer. Since then, we have been working ever more closely with Cosapi, providing them with material innovations to increase performance.”
“In recent months we have been working together with Cosapi in a testing process of the main DTH providers in the market. Thanks to the constant monitoring by our Assistance Engineer Kevin Salas, and the development of the right products through our DTH Sales Manager, Martín Rodríguez, we have been able to generate new ways of improving the operation and proposing drilling targets with higher standards”, José says.
The open pit operation requires a lot of double bench pre-splitting, performed with D45 HD hammers and 5-inch bits, ballistic buttons, and a convex face. The bits have obtained an average duration of 1,400 meters, and an average speed of 32 m/h.
Recently, Cosapi signed an extension contract for their operations in two of the open pits at Shougang Hierro Perú. Impressed by the tests conducted with Robit, they granted a consignment agreement, trusting Robit with 60% of the consumption of drilling tools over the competition.
“This is the first contract of consumption for DTH tools in Latin America where we will provide assistance and stock for the client’s operation, including technical service, maintenance of hammers and management of drill bits”, says José.
“We hope to show Cosapi Mineria and the market that Robit SAC has the necessary resources to keep exceeding the expectations of our strategic partners.”
Carbon neutrality is a globally accepted goal to minimise the negative effects of climate change, in which energy production plays a key role. The current military crisis in Europe is a reminder that nations should also strive for maximal energy self-sufficiency. Geothermal energy provides one promising, cost-effective path toward achieving both goals.
In Finland, the growth of geo-energy has been rapid in recent years. One of the key actors in the sector is Rototec, Europe’s largest geo-energy company with more than 60,000 energy wells drilled. Founded in 2007, Rototec has grown strongly in Finland and operates also in Sweden and Norway.
While geothermal energy has long been a popular energy source for single-family houses, Rototec is focusing more on supplying geo-energy for large properties such as hospitals, shopping centres, and factories.
A geothermal system requires one or more bore wells, drilled to a depth of 150–250 metres, depending on the amount of energy required. Robit has been supplying Rototec with drilling tools since the early years of the company.
“Robit, as a big domestic manufacturer, was a natural choice for us. 99% of the holes we drill are four-inch wells and Robit has a comprehensive line of tools for that. Currently, all our drill bits are from Robit,” says Hannu Puolitaival, Technical Director at Rototec.
The fruitful, mutually beneficial cooperation spans back more than a decade and focuses on customer-oriented service.
“Over the years, we have worked closely together to develop drill bits to better meet our needs. We test the products, and share our experience and comments with Robit for further development. One of Robit’s assets is their agility: after our feedback, they can produce new, improved prototypes at a fast pace for testing. Of course, the fact that they have domestic manufacturing helps too,” Hannu says.
“Another strength is that Robit can make small batches. If we’d need, say, five units of a particular new drill bit for testing, that poses no problem. Not all manufacturers can do this,” says Hannu, and adds one more thing: “I have especially liked the fact that Robit has a dedicated person managing all communication with us. It makes our cooperation seamless and straightforward.”
Wolfe Island sits at the north-eastern end of Lake Ontario, at the entrance to the Saint Lawrence River. The Canada–US border runs immediately to the south of the island, leaving it on the Canadian side. A ferry connects the island to the city of Kingston, Ontario.
A popular destination for nature lovers, Wolfe Island’s resident population tends to double or triple in the summer. For years, the ferry has been running near or even over capacity during the busy seasons. That’s why the Ontario Ministry of Transportation launched a major improvement project in 2020. Its goal is to replace the old ferry with a new, larger one, which requires significant upgrades at both ends of the ferry line: Kingston Dock on the mainland and Marysville Dock on Wolfe Island.
The General Contractor for the Marysville Dock project is Facca Inc. from Lakeshore, Ontario. A family business now in the fourth generation, Facca has built a reputation as one of the premier civil construction contractors in Ontario over several decades. They perform all the foundation work, and most of all other work on the Marysville Dock project with their own forces.
“We have been doing our own deep foundation work – piled foundations and sheet piling, some drilled shafts in earth – for about 15 years now. However, this job is only the second for which we’ve performed hard rock drilling of this scope, and the first we’ve done completely with our own forces”, says P.Eng. Steven Gardonio of Facca.
On their Down the Hole hammers for the project, Facca has used both the Robit DTH Prime system and the Robit Steel Fist system, supplied by Pinnacle, Robit´s Canadian distributor. Through their extensive piling expertise, Pinnacle’s Mitch Yorston and Jim McPhail have also provided valuable technical support for Facca.
“We’re putting in about 1,800 m of caisson with the Primes through a mixture of clay, sand, and till, with 250-ish meters of that socketed into the very strong (approaching 200 MPa UCS) limestone bedrock.” “There are a total of 87 caissons on the contract, some more than 27 meters in length. Nine were first installed on a dolphin from our barge with technical assistance from Pinnacle. This work went so well that we decided to purchase from Pinnacle the drill setup required – Down the Hole hammers and associated – and the remaining caissons were installed at the main ferry dock”, Steven explains.
“With the Steel Fist, we’ve been drilling some of the more difficult of the approximately 220 toe pins embedded 2.4 m into the bedrock.”
“We’ve been extremely happy with the performance of our equipment from Pinnacle and Robit bits. All drilling is full RC, and the process of drilling overburden – soft to hard clay and dense glacial till – from inside of the pre-driven pipe piles and locking into the ring bit at depth has not been an issue at all.
“Often, we can lock into the rings without halting rotation, very smooth, as was the drill-through process. Same for the Steel Fist, we’ve managed to drill material out from piles without rotation so as to not engage the wings and lock into the shoulder at depth, saving us significant time. We realize this is unorthodox, but it’s been working for us”, Steven says.
The CA$70M ferry dock project is still very much in progress. If everything goes as anticipated, Wolfe Islander IV, the new state-of-the-art, fully electric, zero-emission ferry – first of its kind in Canada – will start operating between the new Kingston and Wolfe Island docks in November 2023.
As far as mineral reserves go, Kazakhstan is in the top twenty in the world, and mining comprises almost one-third of the country’s export earnings. No wonder then that the competition in the sales of all mining-related goods, including drilling tools, is very tough. Robit secured a distribution deal with a key player in the region.
As a major global exporter of minerals, Kazakhstan benefits from its central geographical location between Europe and Asia. This is also reflected in the name of the largest company supplying machinery and equipment for mining and construction in the area: Eurasian Machinery LLP.
With more than 600 employees, Eurasian Machinery provides customers with high-quality technical services through ten centers in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. Besides being the official distributor of Hitachi Construction Machinery – their spearhead product line – they also supply the industry with machinery and equipment from a host of other high prestige global brands. As of August 2021, these include Robit.
George Apostolopoulos, Robit’s VP, Global Sales, is thoroughly familiar with the Central Asian market and sees great synergies for Robit in the exclusive distributor agreement with Eurasian Machinery.
“Eurasian Machinery have a strong reputation in the Kazakh market. They have done an excellent job with the Hitachi Construction Machinery brand and have placed themselves among the preferred suppliers for the country’s mining industry. They are present with equipment and service contracts in most of the mines in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan”, George says.
“Customer satisfaction is driving their efforts and they are providing high-quality services to the industry. A high-tech Component Repair Center in Karaganda serves the purpose very well.”
“This is a very significant deal for Robit as the Kazakh mining market is among the biggest in the world. It’s the 2nd largest within our East sales area after Russia. It could provide significant leverage for our sales; big opportunities exist for our Top Hammer products both underground and surface, as well as our Down the Hole offering.”
“There is some tough competition in this market not only from the traditional players but also from low-cost suppliers. This makes it particularly important for us to have a renowned and well-represented distributor in this market”, George concludes.
Picture: A view over the steppes from a chalk mountain in northern Kazakhstan.
In the late 19th century, Helsinki was growing and industrialising rapidly. This was particularly evident in the seaside district of Sörnäinen, which became the largest industrial area in the city after the construction of a cargo port and a railroad track. Now the port and factories are history, but the neighbourhood – now called Kalasatama or “Fish Port” – will remain an integral part of the Helsinki maritime cityscape in the future. That future is now being built in Verkkosaari, at the northern end of Kalasatama.
While the southern Kalasatama has been under reconstruction for years, Verkkosaari was sitting idly for a long time. Its 13 hectares are now zoned for a residential area for 3,600 people, a large daycare centre, and a marina. To start with, more than 200,000 tonnes of contaminated soil had to be removed. Before construction work can begin, the soil needs to be reinforced. New land is also being built on top of the sea, where some of the buildings will arise.
At this moment, work at Verkkosaari is in full swing with excavations, earthfilling, pile drilling, and other groundwork. Drilling contractor Fingeo is drilling micropiles for road base support, in cooperation with the main contractor GRK Infra. The jobsite is demanding.
”Most of the challenges are caused by the old structures, concrete piles, wooden piles and other materials buried in the soil. It’s former seabed that had been gradually filled since the early 1900s”, says Tuomas Perkiö, supervisor for Fingeo.
The jobsite is also exceptional in scope. “This is the largest micropiling project ever in Finland. We have a drilling contract for 6,000 piles, 110 km altogether”, Tuomas recounts.
Fingeo started the pile drilling work at the beginning of 2020 with one drill rig. By November they were operating five drill units and had laid down some 3,800 piles, which equals to 63 kilometres. The remaining 2,200 piles will be drilled by autumn 2021.
Fingeo uses Robit’s pilot bits and reamers in the drilling work, which has progressed without a hitch. ”Robit’s pilots and reamers are doing a great job. At best, we have drilled more than 8 kilometers with a single bit. Cooperation with our Robit contact Sami Paavola has also been excellent: deliveries run smoothly, and Robit reacts quickly to our requests and provides support whenever needed”, says Tuomas Perkiö.
From left: Matti Tikkanen (Fingeo), pilot bit after drilling 8 km, a brand new pilot bit, Sami Paavola (Robit). Photo: Tuomas Perkiö
The remaining infrastructure works in Verkkosaari are scheduled to be completed in 2022, allowing the actual construction phase to begin. Kalasatama as a whole is one of the largest construction areas in Helsinki, and it will keep taking shape well into the 2030s.
The piling project in Verkkosaari continues into the second half of 2021. Photo on the top: Matti Tikkanen, Fingeo
Copper mining has been a key driver of Chile’s economy for centuries. Among the country’s mining companies, the state-owned Codelco is the crown jewel. It’s the world’s leading copper producer with immense mineral reserves, and a driving force for the entire country’s development.
Codelco’s major mining sites include El Teniente, “the Lieutenant”, the world’s largest underground copper mine which has been in operation for 200 years and currently has a capacity of 400,000 tonnes.
The second largest mine is the century-old Chuquicamata, or “Chuqui”, as the locals call it. Since its open pit operations had grown increasingly uneconomic over the last years, Codelco made a huge investment switching to underground cave mining in 2019. Chuqui’s current capacity is 377,000 tonnes. Andina, the third largest mine nested at the dizzying height of 3,700–4,200 metres on the Andes, consists of the Rio Blanco underground mine and the Sur Sur open pit.
As of late 2020, Robit will be the main supplier of Top Hammer and Down-the-Hole drilling tools for Codelco’s three largest mines. This is a result of decisive cooperation between Robit and their Chilean distributor Full Safety.
Founded in 2010, Full Safety had focused on dealing in clothes and footwear for special target groups such as armed forces, law enforcement, health professionals – and the mining industry. The last-mentioned seemed like a promising sector for new business opportunities, and in 2015 they contacted Robit.
“We were looking for new strategies, and we met Robit at the right time. After consulting with them we restructured our business model over the next few years by opening a new office and recruiting sales personnel as well as drillmasters for field support. In turn, Robit offered us training and technical-commercial support on client visits, and participated in mining fairs with us”, recounts Cesar Cornejo, General Manager of Full Safety.
Getting a foot in the door of a global giant like Codelco is not a simple thing. Despite persistent efforts, discussions on arranging a comparison test to prove the quality of Robit’s consumables led nowhere. As a change of plan, Full Safety approached Astaldi, the main contractor at El Teniente – and they agreed to a head-to-head test between Robit and their then-current brands.
The February 2020 tests, involving bits, drifter rods and couplings, did not disappoint: Robit outperformed the competition by some 30% in terms of lifetime and penetration rate. A letter of certification by Astaldi opened the door to participate in a tender for Codelco. Full Safety and José Antonio Rodríguez, Sales Manager for Robit SAC, then carefully fine-tuned an offer that proved the most competitive.
This major achievement, however, is just the tip of the iceberg. The Chilean mining sector has vast growth potential for the Robit-Full Safety partnership, and several other tenders and product tests are already underway across the country.
Picture from left: Alberto Castillo (Sales Manager, Full Safety),Rafael Rojas (Drillmaster, Full Safety), José Antonio Rodríguez (Sales Manager, Robit), and Cesar Cornejo (General Manager, Full Safety).
Stevin Rock LLC is one of the largest quarrying companies in the world, operating in the Middle East, on limestone, dolomite and gabbro minerals. Stevin Rock LLC produces over 80 million tons of the above minerals each year, drilling at the same time over 1.5 million meters.
After stringent trials with multiple competitor products over months, Robit products were found to have the least cost per meter in operations. Thus, the first contract was signed in 2017 for 2 years. After consistent performance for these 2 years and once again testing all competitor products, Robit was again found to have the most competitive performance. Robit was once again awarded the contract for the next two years covering 2019 and 2020. During these periods 2017 to 2020, Robit has been continuously improving its products based on customer feedback. As a result, Robit products have been regularly improved repeatedly.
Robit has also conducted regular drill master visits as well as conducted regular classes for Operators and Mechanics on optimum parameters for getting the best life of the product.
A combination of timely product evolution, regular training, visits of Drill Masters, 100% on time delivery and zero down time loss on account of product performance had contributed to the success of the product.
Robit is represented by Deltacorp Global FZE in the United Arab Emirates. They export to over 15 countries and operate from 2 warehouses in Duty Free Zone, in UAE.
Case report by: Bharadwaj Ventaraman, Manager, Deltacorp Global FZE and James Keenan, Distributor Business Manager, Middle East and Turkey, Robit Group
Al Masane Al Kobra Mining Co (AMAK) is the pioneer private mining company of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, producing copper, zinc in concentrate as well as gold and silver in doré since 2012.
Al Masane Al Kobra Mining Co (AMAK) is the pioneer private mining company of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, producing copper, zinc in concentrate as well as gold and silver in doré since 2012.
The main mining camp (Al Masane) is in the southwest region (Najran) of Saudi Arabia at an elevation of 1620 mRL and approximately 640 km southeast to Jeddah. AMAK is committed to establish and sustain the highest safety standards with a zero-harm target and international best practice environmental standards with zero discharge to ambient environment. AMAK’s motto is “Every Incident Is Preventable”.
AMAK is continuously seeking investing in mining opportunities in the KSA and the region, including East African countries. Exploration continues at its nearby concessions as well as deeper levels of Al Masane and Guyan orebodies, which are still wide open at depth and extensions, with additional satellite pit development opportunities at Al Masane, Guyan and Al Aqiq mineralization zones.
AMAK is using Robit’s drilling consumables for face development, ground support and DTH drilling for underground operations. Robit consumables are performing well and thus, getting positive feedback from AMAK: “We are satisfied and happy for working with Robit. We appreciate the full support during the contract meaning quick responses for deliveries and shipping as well as providing technical services support in case of any problem”.
Case report by: Kadir Uslu, Drill & Blast Engineer, Al Masane Al Kobra Mining Co and James Keenan, Distributor Business Manager, Middle East and Turkey, Robit Group
Photo: Jumbo Operators, Mr. Mustafa Tufekci and Mr. Roger Junas
Sub aquatic application drilling with Hyper 31 and DTH bit 90 mm
Robit contributes to the development of infrastructure in Paracas, Peru. Average depth of drilling is 14 m below the sea level and actual drilling is 12 m into the bedrock. The Robit® Hyper 31 showed the best performance in rate of penetration, considering the air volume and pressure delivered by the compressor.
Western Australia is a land of extremes. It’s sitting on the oldest rock crust on Earth, formed three billion years ago. It’s most likely also home to the oldest life forms on our planet, dating back even further, some three and a half billion years.
Today, human life forms in the state are mostly concentrated on the fertile coastal areas. In contrast, the vast central parts – the Outback – consist mostly of sparsely inhabited hot desert. In these circumstances the only significant economic activity is mining. 15% of all the world’s iron ore is produced in Western Australia; the state is also a major extractor of gold and bauxite.
A young Matt Izett started out as a driller’s assistant, or “offsider”, for a major drilling operator in Western Australia in the 1980s. By the turn of the century he was managing a branch office of a mining supplies company.
In 2005 Matt took another leap forward and founded Ranger Drilling with his wife Julie, specializing mostly in Reverse Circulation (RC) drilling for customersoperating in the West Australian iron ore market. In fourteen years Ranger has, through consistent growth, become a major player in the industry with 19 drill rigs.
A reliable choice for remote locations, RC drilling is a preferred method for mineral exploration. It uses far less water than diamond drilling, making it ideal for arid areas such as Western Australia, where sourcing water is expensive.
Since the beginning, Ranger has made a point of constantly optimizing and customizing tools, equipment and drilling techniques. In this mission, Ranger have enjoyed a great relationship with Robit Australia (formerly DTA) over the last ten years.
Robit supplies Ranger with RC hammers and bits. “We have made DIFOT a priority with Ranger as their business has grown the offering in mining, exploration, and hydro”, says Mark McGrath, Regional Sales Manager, Robit Australia. “Our team does its best to ensure Ranger can continue to provide world class customer service each and every day.”
In the coming years, the use of liquified natural gas (LNG) in transport and industry is expected to grow significantly. That is a key reason why earlier this year, a Robit Steel Fist pilot bit started to penetrate granite rock in the Kola peninsula.
As far as fossil fuels go, LNG is by far the most environmentally friendly – it has the lowest CO2 emissions per unit of energy while also having the highest heating value. Thus, it has big potential as a future transport fuel alongside biofuels, hydrogen and electric mobility, and most major fossil fuel companies have begun investing in it.
Treasure hidden beneath the permafrost
Russia has the largest natural gas reserves in the world. The bulk of those reserves is sitting under the permafrost in northwest Siberia, in the Yamal Peninsula and its offshore areas. Recent years in the region have seen a massive investment in the so-called Yamal project, a joint venture between Russian, French and Chinese companies, which includes a huge LNG plant, in operation since 2017.
The Yamal project is now being followed by the Arctic LNG-2, another major international joint venture, located in the neighbouring Gyda peninsula. It has an ambitious plan to cut the production costs by placing the LNG production plants offshore in the Gulf of Ob on so-called gravitybased structures (GBS). These reinforced concrete structures are built on a shipyard, towed to the intended location, and then sunk onto the seabed.
Arctic village transformed
Until recently, Belokamenka was a small village just north of Murmansk in the northwest corner of Russia. In 2017 it was chosen as the location for the new shipyard where the GBSs are to be built. This means a massive transformation in the area, covering more than 150 hectares. The shipyard will have two dry docks, each 400 x 175 m, the largest in Russia. Currently the construction site employs some 4,000 people.
The construction of pipe pile walls for the dry docks is performed by NK-Teplokhimmontazh and the drilling contractor Spetsfundament Plus. It involves the drilling of no less than a thousand piles, up to 32 metres deep, through sand and loam into the granite bedrock. Their tool of choice for this Down-the-Hole job is the large diameter Robit Steel Fist Casing System. Drilling work on dry dock #1 is now completed and will continue into 2020 on dry dock #2.
In 2022, the first GBS built in Belokamenka is expected to start its 1,600 km voyage, with the help of a powerful tugboat fleet, across the Barents Sea to its destination in the Gulf of Ob.
Tested tools: Robit DTH hammer and bits Test location: Altyntau Kokshetau quarry, Kazakhstan Client’s challenge: Finding an alternative for their existing QL6 DTH hammer: problems with the upper adapter not solved by the manufacturer Reported by: Andrey Dak, General Director, LLP Robit Kazakhstan
Report:
At the site, Robit Kazakhstan has tested two QL6 DTH hammers, with 171 mm Robit DTH bits. Representatives of Robit Kazakhstan and Robit Russia as well as competitors’ technical specialists were present at the test. Each of 3 drill rigs had drilling tools from different manufacturers.
As a result, Robit hammers demonstrated excellent results, whereas the tested drill bits did not show the best performance. Therefore, Kazzinc acquired a batch of Robit hammers.
Once in operation, quality issues with the acquired DTH hammers arose: the lifetime of some of the hammers was 30 % less than expected. Lifetime expectation is set by the quarry; we accepted the challenge.
We took a customer-oriented approach and invited a technical specialist from Australia to Altyntau Kokshetau. In addition, two upgraded hammers and redesigned 171 mm DTH bits were sent. Using all the test data, we strove to manufacture the best fit for the customer’s ground conditions. The changes mostly concerned the hammer’s cylinder, make-up assembly, the DTH bit’s check valve and buttons. A second test supervised by our local Robit expert was conducted.
Eventually, thanks to our group’s teamwork and our desire to provide the best service, the performance became excellent again – even exceeding the lifetime expected by the contract. The upgraded DTH bits also showed good results, reaching their expected lifetime. The deal was secured.
Kazzinc decided to continue using Robit drill consumables. Starting from the beginning of 2019, a new contract for a batch of DTH hammers and DTH bits was signed.
