Geek+, a global AMR leader, is proud to announce the launch of RoboShuttle RS8-DA, an 8-meter high flexible arm robot. The highest in the industry, the new robot will enable customers to maximize the use of their warehouses. 

• Expanding its RoboShuttle family with an 8-meter robot reach and flexible tote-picking capabilities.

RoboShuttle is a safe, efficient, and flexible high-density solution that solves the complex logistics scenarios brought on by the rise in e-commerce and the need for systems that can optimize precious warehouse space intelligently. Compatible with 8-meter-high racks, and totes, cartons, or boxes of varying width, the robot can improve space utilization by 5x.

Liu Kai, Co-founder and VP of smart warehouse products at Geek+ says: "With e-commerce and warehouse rental spikes, businesses need a flexibility and space utilization that traditional automation does not provide. Our engineering teams are continuously developing innovative solutions to meet this demand and allow our clients to remain competitive while providing a safe working environment to their employees.”

Built on a slim and robust chassis design, flexible doorframe, and double deep telescopic fork arms, the robot can navigate narrow aisles and reach a maximum height of 8145mm. Using its fork arms, the robot can access the inventory rows of varying depth placed as low as 285mm and as high as 7820mm, targeting horizontal as well as vertical warehouse space.

Equipped with an intelligent depth camera and high precision sensors, the robot can adjust its arms to pick boxes of varying sizes, optimizing overall shelf space. The storage location can also be allocated according to the size of the box, improving inventory organization. Connected to the WMS and driven by intelligent algorithms, the robot autonomously transfers up to 8 totes to and from the workstation, automating picking, replenishment, reverse logistics, and inventory checking processes.

Liu Kai, adds: "As a long-term automation partner with strong R&D capabilities, we see it as our responsibility to facilitate various transitions that a business might be facing using flexible robotics. Our AMR solutions are uniquely tailored to meet industry-specific challenges that logistics operators are facing today.”

About Geek+

Geek+ is a global technology company leading the intelligent logistics revolution. We apply advanced robotics and AI technologies to realize flexible, reliable, and highly efficient solutions for warehouses and supply chain management. Geek+ counts 300 global customers and has deployed more than 20,000 robots worldwide. Founded in 2015, Geek+ has over 1500 employees and is headquartered in Beijing, with offices in Germany, the UK, the US, Japan, Hong Kong, and Singapore. 

~ How the operational management of photovoltaic power plants succeed at the first attempt ~

The climate crisis requires urgent action as we need to significantly reduce our CO2 emissions to curb climate change and limit the average temperature increase to about 1.5°C. Here, Austrian ORF meteorologist, Marcus Wadsack writes: We are the first generation to feel climate change and the last to do something about it. We have the technology and the money, it would be negligent if we do nothing.

Nature itself provides climate-neutral energy in abundance. Year after year, the sun alone supplies more than 10,000 times the annual energy demand of the entire human race. The task of photovoltaic power plants is to convert the sun's rays into electricity. But the optimal management of the huge number of components like PV panels, converters or switchgear requires advanced techniques and methods.

Using the sun's energy with automation
Whether small solar PV systems with an electrical output of 1MW or large ones with well over 100MW, they should all be operated as close as possible to the optimum and must therefore be monitored. In addition, when such large outputs are fed into the power grid, they must be continuously reported to the entity responsible for the grid. The feeding point is usually a substation with special features in terms of switching reliability and remote monitoring. But not only online monitoring and control is important, retrospective monitoring of key indicators should also be possible. After all, the operator wants to know what return his investment is delivering or where there is a need for optimization.

To meet all these requirements, COPA-DATA has developed the Solar PV Application Set based on its zenon software platform. An Application Set is an application template that helps integrators and operators alike to create a specific process visualization quickly and easily.

For solar PV systems, the Application Set offers the ideal overview, summarizes all relevant components such as PV modules and strings, combiner boxes and inverters and clearly displays their operating status. In a solar heat map, the service engineer can immediately see which parts of the system are shaded or dirty or have other deviations or errors. This allows continuous maintenance work to be carried out in a simple and targeted manner, but also with foresight.

Another great advantage lies in the integrated reporting functions of zenon. Meaningful statistics can be created based on value archives of any duration and pre-compression. Thus, for example, causes of alarms can be analyzed, or yield figures and benchmarks — for example, according to IEC 61724 — can be formed. The possibility of uncomplicated reporting in zenon, based on an integrated database, means an invaluable advantage in the strategic optimization of system operation.

Accurate forecasting and balancing of the yields in real time is another important aspect of the automation of solar power plants. Corresponding outputs or surpluses must be precisely coordinated with the grid operator. On the other hand, specifications must be received from the grid operators. The data exchange required for this can take place via various industry protocols such as IE C 60870, DNP3 or OPC-UA as well as via REST or MQTT-based web protocols (XML, JSON) and must in any case fulfill a sufficient degree of robustness as well as cyber security.

Switchgear or substations form the bridge between the local power plant and the next higher network level. Here, expensive high-voltage components must be reliably orchestrated and monitored. Several specialized switching and protection systems from different manufacturers are typically used here. Here, zenon provides a comprehensive overview by means of the topological real-time representation of the networks. Powerful functions for the safe execution, but also recording and playback of complex switching operations can be easily used with the zenon software platform.

The possibilities of modern solar PV operation management
The consistent use of renewable energies for the purpose of mitigating the negative consequences of climate change must be made a top priority, especially in view of the effects that are already being clearly felt. Photovoltaic power plants are a supporting pillar for a carbon neutral energy economy.

Intelligent automation helps to fully exploit the potential of photovoltaic power plants and to optimize yields over many years. The zenon software platform covers a unique spectrum of tasks for the operational management of photovoltaic power plants as well as surrounding switchgear or substations. The Solar PV Application Set in zenon effectively combines important functions and thus creates the ideal prerequisite for the perfect use of the valuable energy that our sun offers us.

Visit the COPA-DATA website for more product information, or click here to contact  directly.

About COPA-DATA
COPA-DATA is an independent software manufacturer that specializes in digitalization for the manufacturing industry and energy sector. Its zenon® software platform enables users worldwide to automate, manage, monitor, integrate and optimize machines, equipment, buildings and power grids. COPA-DATA combines decades of experience in automation with the potential of digital transformation. In this way, the company supports its customers to achieve their objectives more easily, faster and more efficiently.
The family-owned business was founded by Thomas Punzenberger in 1987 in Salzburg, Austria. In 2020, with more than 300 employees worldwide, it generated revenue of EUR 54 million. www.copadata.com

Industrial software supplier COPA-DATA is launching a webinar series to offer practical advice and guidance on digital transformation for production and plant optimization in the food and beverage industry. The series will take place over three weeks in November, with one 30-minute power session taking place each week. COPA-DATA UK managing director, Martyn Williams will introduce the first webinar in the series on Thursday, November 11, 2021. To secure a place, register on the COPA-DATA website.

The webinars will explore areas of digital transformation in the food and beverage industry and discuss how businesses can use tools, like zenon, to optimize their production, with a focus on innovation, digitalization and sustainability. Led by COPA-DATA’s specialists, attendees can expect a valuable guide to transformation with industry insights, expert advice and customer case studies.

The power sessions will be delivered by COPA-DATA food and beverage industry manager Emilian Axinia, the COPA-DATA food and beverage industry manager. Emilian has over 20 years of experience in engineering and automation projects in the food and beverage industry. Since joining COPA-DATA in 2007, his focus has been to develop the business in this area using his comprehensive knowledge of the unique challenges it faces.

The first of the sessions will be held on Thursday, November 11 at 10:00am (GMT). The webinar, entitled “From Pilot to Rollout, for optimizing packaging processes” will introduce transformation in the industry, along with how the implementation of a line efficiency system has benefited brewery group, Molson Coors, in their operations. Attendees will learn the key areas for product and process innovation for fluid supply chains and how they can apply the processes used in the case studies to their own business.

Session two, “A digitalization tree growing on production data humus”, will take place on Thursday, November 18. The webinar will also examine the benefits of leveraging manufacturing data through a case study about how drink and brewing company AB-InBev leverage plant floor data to improve processes, and the lessons in optimization that can be learned from this for other companies.

The series will conclude on Thursday, November 25 with “Why software frees up teams’ creativity for improvements”. This webinar will discuss how using platforms such as zenon can enable companies to dedicate their creativity and skill to driving growth. This session will cover the final stage of your transformation journey and the industries commitment to carbon-neutral operations, focusing on a study on how Carlsberg targeted CO2 neutrality in their operation. Sustainability is an increasing priority for many industries, and this case study will explore how food and beverage businesses can become more efficient and environmentally friendly.

Expert Insights

Each session will also include a Q&A, where attendees will have the opportunity to consult COPA-DAT’s experts on how zenon may support them on their journey. Martyn Williams will introduce the sessions, drawing on his years of experience in business management and his background in field sales and engineering to give attendees insight into how they can transform their business.

“These webinars offer a fantastic opportunity for food and beverage companies to learn more about successful digitalization. We use case studies focusing on real world success stories in this industry with proven results to illustrate the impact digital tools can make to a business,” explained Martyn. “The online platform also makes these sessions accessible to anyone working in the industry who might benefit”.

Industry COPA-DATA experts contributing to the webinar series include Alexander Fröhlich, a food and beverage industry, who has been with the company for over a decade, applying his skills in technical product management and application package creation. Also joining the sessions will be specialist Andreas Grün, to help attendees to plan and execute their transformation journey using his knowledge of the food and beverage industry. Finally, Head of key account management Bernhard Ebert will also be in attendance, offering advice and guidance on digitalization.

The Trail of Transformation webinar series offers a unique opportunity to learn more about key areas for digital transformation specifically aimed at food and beverage. Ready to learn more? Register for the webinar series here. The first event will take place on November 11, 10:00am (GMT).

About COPA-DATA

COPA-DATA is an independent software manufacturer that specializes in digitalization for the manufacturing industry and energy sector. Its zenon® software platform enables users worldwide to automate, manage, monitor, integrate and optimize machines, equipment, buildings and power grids. COPA-DATA combines decades of experience in automation with the potential of digital transformation. In this way, the company supports its customers to achieve their objectives more easily, faster and more efficiently.
The family-owned business was founded by Thomas Punzenberger in 1987 in Salzburg, Austria. In 2020, with more than 300 employees worldwide, it generated revenue of EUR 54 million. www.copadata.com

Sapphire Technologies has just announced that it has closed its Series A round led by Cooper and Company and joined by Equinor Ventures and Chevron Technology Ventures.

The investment capital will be used to scale up manufacturing and distribution of Sapphire’s energy recovery systems for pressure let-down applications.

Sapphire Technologies is a spin-off from Calnetix Technologies, known for its disruptive innovations in high-speed motors and generators, magnetic bearings and power electronics for a variety of applications and industries. These technologies are being applied by Sapphire in its FreeSpin™ In-line Turboexpanders (FIT), which offset carbon emissions by converting waste pressure energy into clean and usable electric power.

“As leaders in financing low carbon projects, Cooper and Company, Equinor and Chevron will be invaluable partners to accelerate the growth of Sapphire’s energy recovery business globally,” said Freddie Sarhan, CEO of Sapphire. “We look forward to working with them to achieve our vision of providing affordable, reliable and clean electricity that will enable the world’s transition to a lower carbon future.”

“We are delighted to be partnering with Equinor and Chevron in helping to bring Sapphire’s clean energy technology to a global market,” said Adam Mikkelsen, Principal at Cooper and Company. “Sapphire’s technologies combine zero carbon electricity with compelling economic returns, and we believe we’ll see widespread adoption within the energy industry.” 

“Equinor’s ambition is to become a net-zero energy company by 2050, and new solutions and technologies will be required for society at large to meet its climate targets. We are pleased to announce the investment in Sapphire as one contributor to help the energy industry reduce emissions and improve energy efficiency,” said Gareth Burns, Head of Equinor Ventures.

“Sapphire’s FreeSpin expander technology enables waste energy recovery across multiple industrial applications, potentially reducing carbon emissions while increasing operating efficiency,” said Barbara Burger, Vice President of Innovation and President of Technology Ventures for Chevron. “This is the latest investment from our $300 million Future Energy Fund II, launched in February 2021, which focuses on industrial decarbonization, emerging mobility, energy, decentralization and the growing circular carbon economy.”

About Sapphire Technologies

Based in Cerritos, Calif., Sapphire Technologies develops, manufactures and sells energy recovery systems for both natural gas and hydrogen industrial and commercial applications. These reliable and sustainable systems are specifically designed to convert the energy wasted in pressure reduction processes into clean electric power without interrupting manufacturing or processing activities. Sapphire Technologies is a subsidiary of Calnetix Technologies.

About Cooper and Company

Cooper and Company is a private investment company based in Newport Beach, Calif., that acquires and actively develops assets on a long-term ownership basis. It has been a key shareholder of Calnetix Technologies for over 20 years and capital partner to Calnetix’s innovative subsidiaries. For more information, visit www.cooperandcompany.org.

About Equinor Ventures

Equinor Ventures is Equinor’s corporate venture capital arm dedicated to investing in ambitious early phase and growth companies. We believe that the innovation, creativity and agility of start-ups can drive change, and transition the energy industry towards a low carbon future.

About Chevron Technology Ventures

Chevron Technology Ventures (CTV) pursues externally developed technologies and new business solutions that have the potential to enhance the way Chevron produces and delivers affordable, reliable, and ever-cleaner energy. CTV leverages innovative companies and technologies to strengthen Chevron’s core operations and identifies new opportunities to shape the future of energy. For more information, visit www.chevron.com/technology/technology-ventures.

Angola’s crude oil production has seen a drastic decline of almost 30% in just six years, from 1.7 million barrels per day (mmbd) in 2015 to just shy of 1.2mmbd in 2021, according to GlobalData. The leading data and analytics company now expects further decline for the country through to 2025, which is forecast to see approximately 1.1mmbd - despite the multiple expansion projects that are due to come online in the near future. However, Angola may see a bit of relief in that marketed gas is at a record high.

Conor Ward, Oil and Gas Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “Angola has been unable to replicate the level of investment experienced in the early 2010s. While the multiple expansion projects due to come online within the next few years - including Lifua A, B, and C; CLOV phase 2; and Dalia Phase 3 - will have the capacity to bring an additional 89,000 barrels of crude per day to Angola, they will only be able to temper the decline of the country’s ageing fields for a short period.”

On the other hand, production has been growing at Angola’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant, which came online in 2013 and is supplied by associated gas. In 2021, marketed gas in Angola reached a new high of 720mmcfd.

Ward continues: “ENI’s Northern Gas Complex, which will be the country’s first non-associated gas field, is a pioneering project. Its performance will be observed closely by other companies that are considering developing gas fields in Angola.”

One concern is whether European majors, who are currently responsible for over a third of Angola’s production, will continue to revise their positions based on emerging emissions goals.

Ward adds: “A positive signal is the potential merger between BP and ENI, which will likely enable the companies to streamline operations in Angola and make further investments to grow production. Should this deal go ahead, it is possible that more mergers could occur to unlock stranded resources in the country irrespective of what other European companies may decide to do.”

About GlobalData

4,000 of the world’s largest companies, including over 70% of FTSE 100 and 60% of Fortune 100 companies, make more timely and better business decisions thanks to GlobalData’s unique data, expert analysis and innovative solutions, all in one platform. GlobalData’s mission is to help our clients decode the future to be more successful and innovative across a range of industries, including the healthcare, consumer, retail, financial, technology and professional services sectors. GlobalData

Managed SD-WAN and SASE Provides World Fuel Services with Secure Connectivity for Their Hybrid Workforce While Lowering Their Total Cost of Ownership

Aryaka®, the leader in fully managed SD-WAN and SASE, today announced World Fuel Services, a leading global energy company, has selected the company’s cloud-first platform for its latest network transformation initiative. The new initiative consists of providing World Fuel Services with secure connectivity for their global hybrid workforce while lowering their total cost of ownership (TCO).

World Fuel Services sells and distributes aviation, marine and land fuel products, as well as energy management solutions, to clients across a range of industries in over 200 countries worldwide. ­The Fortune 500 company is headquartered Miami, Florida with employees across the U.S., Latin America, Europe, and Asia.

When World Fuel Services embarked on a company-wide digital transformation initiative, transforming their core on-premises network was the critical first step and foundation to achieving their vision of a cloud-first architecture. The company’s MPLS network was unreliable, expensive, and time-consuming to maintain across their global sites. Their IT organization determined they needed a unified, cloud-based architecture to deliver the company’s critical SaaS applications, such as Microsoft Office365, Box, Slack, Zoom and more, without increasing costs or management complexity.

After determining that Aryaka’s fully managed Cloud-First SD-WAN solution plus last mile management services met all their requirements, World Fuel Services quickly rolled out the solution to 75+ global sites. Once deployed, global application performance and network redundancy improved, while the company decreased their network TCO by 25% — a real win-win for the organization.

Yet when the global pandemic appeared in 2020, World Fuel Services, like most organizations, was challenged to transition a fully on-site organization to a fully remote workforce. Th­e company’s traditional VPN was slow and unreliable. After deploying Aryaka Private Access, a secure managed VPN-as-a-Service solution, latency for remote workers decreased and, anecdotally, remote users noted the positive experience of having fast, uninterrupted connectivity.

As a result of this shift, the company has embraced a hybrid work environment, viewing it as the future of work and Aryaka as an important tool to enabling this vision. By moving to Aryaka’s fully managed SD-WAN and SASE solution, World Fuel Services plans to be MPLS and datacenter free by the end of 2021. Lastly, the move to Aryaka’s managed service has proved to be a major benefit, saving both time and money for the IT organization.

“We wanted to consume our network in the same way we consume the cloud, which is an as-a-service model, but at the same time, we wanted to make sure the company we worked with was culturally aligned to who we are and who we want to be,” said Richard Delisser, vice president of global infrastructure at World Fuel Services. “Th­ose are the two core reasons we chose Aryaka.”

“From a network performance standpoint, I view the benefits in two areas: one is redundancy. We could never have the level of redundancy with MPLS that we now have with Aryaka. The second is the amount of incidents. We’ve seen a 90% reduction in incidents since deploying Aryaka,” said Walter Aragon, senior network manager, at World Fuel Services.

“I would like to add, it’s not just Aryaka’s technology we’re thankful for, it’s their level of support. If we have a circuit that’s down, they support us end-to-end by reaching out to the ISP, managing the issue, and letting us know when it’s been solved. This helps us put the pressure aside and focus on other priorities,” Walter concluded.

“World Fuel Services is a company that is top of their game in delivering trusted energy solutions,” said Shashi Kiran, CMO at Aryaka. “We are pleased to have earned their trust as a strategic partner as they deliver best-in-class energy solutions to their customers globally.”

In January 2020, Aryaka and World Fuel Services won the 2020 SD-WAN Implementation Award from Internet Telephony in the category of successful SD-WAN deployment.

About Aryaka

Aryaka, the Cloud-First WAN and SASE company, and a Gartner “Voice of the Customer” leader, makes it easy for enterprises to consume network and network security solutions delivered as-a-service for a variety of modern deployments. Aryaka uniquely combines innovative SD-WAN and security technology with a global network and a managed service approach to offer the industry’s best customer and application experience. The company’s customers include hundreds of global enterprises including several in the Fortune 100. https://www.aryaka.com/

Vattenfall has set ambitious targets in how to deal with wind turbine blades at end of life. An immediate commitment to a landfill ban on decommissioned wind turbine blades has been made. The next decade there will be an intense work increasing the recycling rate of wind blade components.

Vattenfall’s ambition is to enable a fossil-free living within one generation and one important element to deliver on this is a significant growth in wind energy. To ensure this is done in a sustainable way, Vattenfall has a high focus on reducing environmental impacts and to handle all resources responsibly. Therefore, Vattenfall has set several targets for how to deal with wind turbine blades at end of life:   

• An immediate decision on landfill ban on decommissioned wind turbine blades from owned windfarms and committing to re-use, recycle or recover 100 percent of decommissioned blades   
• A 50 percent recycling rate of wind turbine blades by 2025   
• A 100 percent recycling rate of wind turbine blades by 2030   

“It is no longer acceptable for composite waste from the wind industry to be placed in landfills, even though specific country legislation allows for this. Achieving 50 percent recycling by 2025 and 100 percent by 2030 is a big challenge. Solutions to tackle this challenge do not exist in large scale today, so significant efforts are needed to reach this long-term goal. Therefore we will engage in and provide blades to research initiatives that will foster further technology innovation and testing of more advanced recycling technologies”, comments Eva Philipp, Head of Environment and Sustainability Busines Area Wind.  

To achieve the ambitious target, Vattenfall, among others, supports research on material recycling of composite waste and promotes the use of recycled composite material in new products. Furthermore, there will be a long-term approach focusing on all aspects of circular economy, such as supporting the recyclability of wind blades by design, and thereby increasing the value of the recycled material at end of life. 

“To reach 100 percent recycling is a joint effort and all stakeholders need to collaborate. In this Vattenfall wants to significantly contribute. As the wind industry continues to grow to provide fossil-free energy across the globe, Vattenfall is committed to promoting a circular economy which reduces environmental impacts throughout the product lifecycle”, comments Helene Biström, Head of Business Area Wind  

To be able to achieve a complete recycling of wind turbine blades depends on factors like technical development, support of policies and governmental incentives. And in order to push the business towards a sustainable end of life solution for wind turbine blades, Vattenfall will continue to increase its engagements in cross industry discussions on national and as well as EU level.  

Metso Outotec and Phu Thai Cat (PTC) have signed a distribution contract for Metso Outotec’s aggregates solutions in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. The agreement includes a wide choice of Metso Outotec’s mobile, portable, and stationary crushing and screening equipment, crusher wear parts, screening media and parts. The contract has come into effect in September 2021.

The demand for aggregates in the territory is estimated to grow significantly in the coming few years thanks to the implementation of major infrastructure projects. Because of the development, aggregates customers are focusing more on production efficiency and output material quality that Metso Outotec’s premium crushers are perfect for.

“We are very pleased to start the cooperation with Phu Thai Cat,” says Shaun Fanning, Vice President, Distribution Management Asia Pacific in Metso Outotec. “The combination of high market demand for aggregates solutions in the region and a professional partner like Phu Thai Cat, we look forward to an effective cooperation to grow our business. Most importantly we expect that with the cooperation our aggregates customers will enjoy better availability of our aggregates solutions and products, complemented by PTC’s strong local resources and support.”

“The cooperation allows us to provide alternative, high-efficiency solutions to aggregates customers,” comments Trinh Duc Thang, General Director, Phu Thai Cat. “The combination of high quality Metso Outotec aggregates solutions and our already proven product support capability will benefit the customers and help us to develop another profitable business by expanding the customer base while finding new opportunities with existing clients.”

The contract covers Metso Outotec’s Lokotrack® and Nordtrack™ track-mounted equipment, NW Series wheel-mounted equipment, Nordberg® C-Series jaw crushers, GP- and HP-Series cone crushers, NP-Series and Barmac® impact crushers, HRC grinding rolls, vibrating equipment, and conveyor belts. It also includes related wear parts and parts, such as crusher wears, O-Series wears, Trellex® screening media and Contender™ Series parts.

Phu Thai Cat provides construction and mining equipment, genuine parts, maintenance, repair, warranty and value solutions for aggregates, mining, and construction industries. They have five branches and 368 employees. Read more at their website: https://www.phuthaicat.com.vn/

Metso Outotec is a frontrunner in sustainable technologies, end-to-end solutions and services for the aggregates, minerals processing and metals refining industries globally. By improving our customers’ energy and water efficiency, increasing their productivity, and reducing environmental risks with our product and process expertise, we are the partner for positive change.  

Metso Outotec is committed to limiting global warming to 1.5°C with Science Based Targets. We ranked 8th on the 2021 Global 100 list of the world’s most sustainable companies.

Headquartered in Helsinki, Finland, Metso Outotec employs over 15,000 people in more than 50 countries and its sales for 2020 were about EUR 3.9 billion. The company is listed on the Nasdaq Helsinki. mogroup.com

Elkem, a global leader in silicon-based advanced materials, today announces a new climate roadmap detailing how the company plans to develop its business in line with the aim of the Paris agreement of limiting global warming to well below two degrees. The company aims to reduce its total fossil CO₂ emissions by 28% from 2020-31 while growing its supplies to the green transition – thereby delivering a 39% improvement of its product carbon footprint in the same period. Elkem’s long-term goal is net zero emissions by 2050.

Elkem has a strong position to contribute on climate, having been founded in 1904 to create value from renewable electricity. The company already uses 83% renewable electricity in its operations. Elkem’s supplies of advanced silicones, silicon products and carbon solutions are essential to the green transition, with silicon metal on the EU’s 2020 list of critical raw materials. Elkem is also externally recognised for climate actions: Ranking among the world’s top 5% companies rated by CDP in 2020.

The new climate roadmap details Elkem’s commitment to limiting the long-term global temperature increase to well below 2°C – in line with the Paris agreement – while also growing faster than the market and achieving revenue growth of 5-10% per year.

“Elkem aims to be part of the solution to combat climate change – and to be one of the winners in the green transition. Our mission is to provide advanced material solutions shaping a better and more sustainable future. We have a clear corporate strategy to strengthen our competitive positions through specialisation and growth. With this climate roadmap, we detail our ambitions to reduce emissions towards net zero while growing our business,” says Elkem’s interim CEO, Helge Aasen.

Elkem’s direct and indirect emissions (scope 1 and 2) today amount to 3.3 million tonnes (mt) of fossil CO2 equivalents, which will be reduced by 28% to 2.4 mt by 2031. The majority of Elkem’s direct emissions come from its smelters in Europe, particularly in Norway and Iceland. The majority of the company’s indirect emissions come from China and the use of fossil fuels in the electricity mix.

To deliver on the roadmap, Elkem will focus on three key levers: Reducing fossil CO2 emissions, supplying to the transition and enabling more circular economies.

• To reduce fossil CO2 emissions, Elkem aims to change the reduction material in its smelting process to biomass, shift to using more renewable power in China, pursue a more low-carbon supply chain and explore the potential of more carbon capture at its smelters. Elkem has already progressed the share of biomass in its process to more than 20%, now aiming for 50% by 2030. China is currently investing significantly in new renewable energy which is expected to support further improvements in the energy mix going forward.
• To supply to the transition, Elkem aims to grow its supplies of advanced materials to green markets such as better buildings, electric vehicles and renewable energy; and build new business in green markets such as battery materials, biomass and energy recovery. As a leader in silicone solutions for EV battery protection, Elkem is already supplying to more than 1 million EVs on the road today – about 15% of the world’s EVs. This market is expected to grow exponentially over the coming years. Elkem has set up Vianode as new company dedicated to growth opportunities for advanced battery materials, enabling 90% reductions of emissions compared to conventional materials.
• To enable more circular economies, Elkem is working closely with customers and researchers to increase recycling with customers and within its own operations, as well as developing the eco-design of innovative products. Elkem is already supplying products based on circular economy to the global market, such as Microsilica, a former by-product now key to some of the world’s tallest buildings and longest bridges. Elkem is also currently participating in a project with the potential of reducing the carbon footprint of silicones by more than 65 percent through chemical recycling.

“Our stakeholders expect Elkem to be a leader on climate, and this climate roadmap sets out bold ambitions and actions. At the same time, Elkem is dependent on our stakeholders to enable a successful green transition: We need customer demand for green solutions, we need attractive framework conditions and we need world-class competence and innovation. We hope this roadmap is seen as an invitation to work with Elkem in making a difference across our industry and beyond,” says Aasen.

About Elkem
Elkem is one of the world's leading providers of advanced material solutions shaping a better and more sustainable future. The company develops silicones, silicon products and carbon solutions by combining natural raw materials, renewable energy and human ingenuity. Elkem helps its customers create and improve essential innovations like electric mobility, digital communications, health and personal care as well as smarter and more sustainable cities. With a strong track record since 1904, its global team of more than 6,800 people has a joint commitment to stakeholders: Delivering your potential. In 2020, Elkem was rated among the world's top 5% on climate and achieved an operating income of NOK 24.7 billion. Elkem is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange (ticker: ELK). www.elkem.com

While contract mining services typically allow completion of mining processes at lesser turnaround time, mining companies have been particularly benefiting from the most desirable advantage, i.e. the complete land optimization. Several small and mid-sized companies have gone through the route of contract mining services, and a number of new businesses are currently planning to step in the contract mining services landscape.

Key Findings – Contract Mining Services Market

• The global demand for contract mining servicesis projected to experience approximately 1.2X decline between 2019 and 2027.
• Mining automation is gaining momentum, leading to the considerable fall in the revenues of contract mining services market.
• Asia Pacific excluding Japan (APEJ) and Middle East and Africa (MEA) are likely to remain leading markets for contract mining service providers.
• Australia and South Africa will particularly continue to represent high-growth countries.
• North America and Europe are poised to remain important target markets for vendors in the contract mining services market.

Although contract miners assure to align their services with risk management in terms of workforce and occupational health and safety, they are repeatedly failing to build the certainty of sustainable jobs as a result of a few prime challenges, such as labor broking, sub-contracting, casualization, relatively lenient legislation, and a fair amount of political interference.

Top Factors Shaping Contract Mining Services Market

The Degree of Mechanization Is Increasing

Mines are typically characterized by low mechanization levels and thus, continue to face challenges thrown by massive labor spend of nearly 35-40% of the overall mining costs. Rising automation of the mining industry is however shaping the industry differently, since the recent past, which is prominently impeding the growth of contract mining services. However, in the backdrop of narrow mine shafts that remain unprofitable when subject to mechanization, manual labor continues to sustain demand, sustaining revenues of the contract mining services space. 

Governments Are Pushing the Number of Mining Projects

Increasing R&D spending targeting exploration of new areas will remain among the key factors sustaining contract mining services market. Moreover, rapid urbanization and the increasing spending on mining are expected to create potential growth opportunities for the contract mining services market. Another strong influencer identified by the research includes rapidly improving awareness about safety and security services across the mining industry.

Several governments also play a significant role in boosting the growth of mining landscape, thereby reserving pointing to potential opportunities to contractors. For an instance, the Argentinian government had signed a collaborative agreement with the country’s provinces, in 2017, regarding the increase in mining projects across Argentina.

Automated Mining Equipment Is Trending Among Service Providers

While cutting edge technology enabled mining equipment is gaining ground recently, a majority of service vendors prefer delivering fully automated mining equipment in order to gain edge over the competition, in contract mining services market. The demand for technologically advanced contract mining service equipment is thus likely to grow at a steady yet promising pace and will mark an important trend among the participants in global contract mining services market.

While automated contract mining service equipment provides high efficiency without compromising on the safety of workers, research anticipates that it will be among the most vital factors responsible for the mining industry’s revival, thereby the growth of contract mining services market.

Commodity Prices Remain Key Indicators of Market Performance

Recently, the global economic slowdown and subsequent slump of commodity prices are heavily affecting miners, eventually pulling the overall demand for contract mining services and thereby, the profit margins of contract mining service providers. To combat this scenario creating a declining market for contract mining services, mining companies are highly likely to prioritize outsourcing rather than fresh investments, which will potentially help them optimize expenditure.

In the light of recently changing picture of mining industry owing to a strong increase in mining activities, companies will be compelled to exclusively focus on the core mining operations, outsourcing rock breakage, material handling, and other chores to contract mining service providers. Research points to a possible resurrection of the contract mining industry, however, at a gradual pace.

Contract Mining Services Market Structure Analysis

Slumping commodity prices translates into deterring mining investments, eventually leading to stoppage of mine expansion projects. While this has had a considerably negative impact on the contract mining industry, high labor dependence is also a crucial factor contributing to the decline of contract mining services market. Some of the globally recognized mining players are targeting new investments to achieving the reduced capital spend, which is strongly influencing the commodity prices. This, coupled with in-demand mining operations such as drilling and development, will hold a far-reaching impact on the growth of contract mining services market. 

Some of the most prominent players in the global competitive landscape of contract mining services industry, include Ledcor IP Holdings Ltd., Brierty, The Redpath Group, SGS SA, Saumya Mining, Mining Plus, Byrnecut Group, Macmahon, CIMIC Group, BGC Contracting Pty Ltd., Exact Mining Group, Downer Group, PYBAR Mining Services, and Laxyo Group. Leveraging the flexibility in terms of equipment offerings, a majority of companies active in contract mining services market are focused on offering advanced technology enabled machinery, to maintain an edge over other service providers

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