ORICA MONGOLIA AT MONGOLIA MINING 2024: SHAPING THE FUTURE WITH TECHNOLOGY AND SUSTAINABILITY

We conducted an interview with S.Mandakhbat, the Executive Director of Orica Mongolia LLC, during the Mongolia Mining 2024 International Mining Exhibition to discuss the company’s contributions to the mining sector and their impactful community initiatives in education and sustainability.

Orica Mongolia LLC

S. Mandakhbat \The Executive Director of Orica Mongolia LLC\

Orica, a global leader in mining and infrastructure solutions with 150 years of experience, operates in Mongolia with our flagship project at Oyu Tolgoi. Our company provides advanced products and services, including digital and automation solutions, mining chemicals, and safety management. Orica’s GroundProbe™ radars are used at Oyu Tolgoi for slope stability monitoring, and we aim to support Mongolia's mining sector by offering tailored solutions that optimize operational costs and meet ESG goals.

Safety is a core value at Orica, with standards that often exceed local regulations. We use advanced technologies like i-kon™ and WebGen™, the world’s first fully wireless initiation system. These innovations enhance safety by reducing risks like misfires and wire-related cut-offs. WebGen™ will soon be introduced in Mongolia, enabling safer operations in both open-cut and underground mines by eliminating wires and allowing pre-charging of blast holes.

A primary focus for mining companies is reducing operating costs amid volatile commodity prices to deliver shareholder value. Digital technology and automation play a crucial role in this effort. We recently established the Blasting Analytics Center of Excellence (BACoE) in Hyderabad, India, which supports Orica’s global customer projects. BACoE focuses on advancing digital blasting technologies and leveraging data analytics, machine learning, and real-time data to improve blasting performance, safety, and operational efficiency, while minimizing environmental impact.

Additionally, we have launched the first Orica Digital Solutions Centre in Asia, located at our Asia headquarters in Jakarta. This center will showcase our digital solutions, including:

- BlastIQ™: A secure cloud platform for managing and sharing blast-related information.

- FRAGTrack™ Gantry: A market-first solution for real-time oversized material detection in haul trucks.

- Integrated Extraction Simulator (IES): A simulator for assessing mine optimization scenarios.

- OREPRO™ 3D Predict: Software for modeling blast movement without hardware, enhancing design outcomes and grade control.

Orica’s initiative for Community Developments has been widely recognized by our customers and the communities that we work. Our focus for Community engagement is aimed mainly for contributing to the future generations: education, sports etc. We have invested in KB school #2 science subjects teaching and learning, KB development centre for children with disabilities, Khurmen School English language linguistic cabinet, Bagakhangai marathon etc. We are grateful these contributions have been recognised by relevant communities awarding us as best company with social responsibility and so on.