Epiroc Drilling Solutions has acquired 34% of Utah-based ASI Mining, a company which provides on-board hardware and software which concert vehicles to autonomous operations.
Helena Hedblom, Epiroc’s senior executive vice president mining and infrastructure, says the investment is part of a strategy to expand in the automation and interoperability in the mining segment.
Under the terms of the agreement, ASI Mining will operate as a separate company partly owned by US-based Epiroc Drilling Solutions.
ASI Mining, a subsidiary of Autonomous Solutions, also offers system level software platforms for command and control of autonomous fleets across a range of mining applications.
ASI’s solutions are expected to integrate with various mobile mining applications while the business is estimated to have revenues in 2018 of more than $6 million.
“This is the future in mining, and the great team at ASI Mining has developed state-of-the-art solutions that will enhance Epiroc’s delivery of productivity and safety improvements to customers worldwide,” Hedblom adds.
The purchase price of the transaction is not disclosed.