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September 29, 2022

NEWS / edition 27

EDITORIAL

DANKO MORALES
UNDERGROUND MINING DIRECTOR

Our clients began planning years ago that their open pit mines were going to progressively evolve towards underground mining. As a company, we could not sit back with our arms crossed, so we created the Underground Mining Management in 2016 to offer solutions based on technology, innovation and, above all, safety.

We planned the development of the area and soon began with important milestones in the development of technology for this type of mining, such as the implementation of mechanized loading in Chuquicamata Underground and the milestone of the first sinking blasting with our UBEX ONE remote-controlled equipment in 2019.

This technological breakthrough in the first 3 years had a single focus: to use innovation and technology to fulfill our purpose of HUMANIZING THE MINING INDUSTRY with more automated processes, less physical effort and thus improve the quality of work of our employees.

All this effort and work has given results that make us proud, such as the first blasting with 100 percent robotized equipment. The idea that unifies all this is to remove people from exposure to risk by enhancing value-added services such as bulk emulsions, mechanized processes, the use of electronic detonators, and engineering through software.

And while we have had great results in the medium term, the challenges are not over. Today we have the challenge of robustly applying the Enaex Bright QA/QC module for continuous improvement, implementing the Daveytronic Swift in tunnels, blasting with a centralized system and especially the electromobility of the equipment, committing ourselves to a more sustainable mining with clean energy.

In addition, the challenge of continuing to grow and learn is always present, so we are prioritizing the exchange of knowledge and good practices with other subsidiaries so that together we can continue to advance and add value to our customers.

The hard work of the Underground Mining Management, together with its focus on technology and innovation, has allowed us to reach such a powerful level of development that now it is the clients who drive us to carry out tests and feel part of this technological evolution, an important cultural change if we look at how it was a few years ago. Today, it is a domino effect among customers, which in turn, gives us more credibility.

Our vision for the future of underground mining, then, is clear: to position Enaex as a reference in mining solutions at a global level with an integral view, to identify our internal strengths to put them at Enaex’s disposal and to transfer the knowledge to other areas. Only in this way, we will be able to continue delivering the best solutions to our clients.

NEWS

We invite you to review some Enaex’s news!

CHILE

ENAEX HAS OFFICIALLY ADHERED TO THE UNITED NATIONS (UN) GLOBAL COMPACT, NETWORK CHILE

Our company has officially joined the UN Global Compact, Network Chile. This consolidates the integration of sustainability in its corporate strategy through the implementation of 10 principles focused on areas such as human rights, workplace relations, environment, and anti-corruption.

This milestone reinforces our extensive track record in the field of sustainability, while leveraged to the three pillars of ESG (environment, social & governance). Our purpose is to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.

“As an organization, we are not only concerned about doing well economically, or being a profitable company, but also about contributing to the society. We want to be able to offer better and safer jobs; and of course, to take care of our environment, guaranteeing the well-being of future generations.”, said Juan Andrés Errázuriz, CEO of Enaex.

FRANCE

FRANCE STAFF MEETS AGAIN

After two and a half years of pandemic, during which face-to-face meetings in France were strictly controlled, Davey Bickford Enaex and Enaex Europe personnel were finally able to meet face to face in Auxerre.

In an event attended by more than 480 people, the company’s CEO, Juan Andrés Errázuriz, supported by the French executive committee, explained Enaex’s strategy until 2025 and then answered questions from the audience.

Afterwards, the attendees enjoyed lunch, and engaged in entertaining games that helped to create a pleasant atmosphere among the different teams.

AUSTRALIA

ENAEX AUSTRALIA IMPROVES ITS SERVICES

A year and a half after starting operations, Enaex Australia continues to advance with its clients, ensuring new implementations to give greater value to its services.

Recently, the test of robotics equipment at Newmont’s Boddington Mine in the state of Western Australia was agreed upon. This test will involve state-of-the-art technology used in Chile with the main objective of accessing new areas of the site that are dangerous for the collaborators.

In addition, the Product Development team has successfully launched a new emulsion to the Australian market. The “1200X” is ready, licensed, and available for customers. It was designed to cope with the challenging conditions at the Whitehaven mine, with benefits for other similar sites.

BRAZIL

ENAEX BRAZIL ATTENDED THE 2ND ISEE LATIN AMERICAN SYMPOSIUM

On September 1st and 2nd, Enaex Brazil participated in the second edition of the Latin American Symposium, promoted by ISEE. The event took place in Porto Alegre City, Rio Grande do Sul State. Visitors who were at the event and stopped by our booth could learn about our blasting solutions and check out, in practice, how Daveytronic Swift® works, our new electronic initiation system for tunnels and underground mining. In a space that depicts an underground tunnel, visitors had access to a simulator that reproduces a real-life situation of the product’s deployment and settings.

In addition, Rafael Serrão Vieira, Specialist Engineer from Davey Bickford Enaex, and Gustavo Calegari Teodoro, EMTS Engineer, gave a talk on the use of electronic detonators in civil construction and new tunnel initiation technologies. At the end of the event, VP Latam East & North America, Antonio Cyrino de Sá, participated in the panel “The Future of the Explosives Industry in Latin America”.

The event brought together several customers and offered moments for important commercial networking and new businesses prospects for the company. Enaex Brazil’s Commercial Manager, Danilo Vieira, defined the occasion as “a relevant opportunity for updates on international best practices and future trends in blasting solutions.”

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SOUTH AFRICA

THARISA DEAL SUPPORTS STRATEGIC GROWTH

A three-year contract to provide a full blasting service to our new customer, Tharisa Minerals, is a significant step in our regional growth strategy.

The deal calls for 1 400 tonnes a month of bulk opencast emulsion and, perhaps more significantly, about 5 000 electronic detonators. A total of six mobile manufacturing units (MMUs) and about 57 people will work on the project.

While many of the team members will be drawn from other units and regions of Enaex, at least 27 people will be recruited from the local community via a local partner, to be trained and employed as blasting assistants.

“The training lasts 4-6 weeks and includes theoretical and practical components. It really helps cement relations with the local community and adds some economic stability as well,” says Comfort Mathenjwa, Senior Manager, Sales at Enaex Africa.

Johan Fourie, Marketing and Sales Director, says the success that Enaex Africa has achieved with this deal is the result of many years of hard work, and an incredible team effort. “Being a specialised global explosives and blasting services company makes a big difference in these types of discussions. It is a big factor in how we approach customers, but also in how they see us and the scope of expertise we can offer from around the world.”Phase 1, a transition phase with down-the-hole service, began at the end of August, with full blasting services commencing on 1 December.

PERU

SUCCESSFUL IMPLEMENTATION OF DAVEYTRONIC DETONATORS

As part of the consolidation plan of the area in the Underground segment of the Peruvian market, tests for “Selective blasting using DaveyTronic detonators” were successfully conducted at the Kolpa mine located in Huancavelica.

These tests consisted of the separation of mineral material from the waste rock in a single blasting process, which minimizes dilution. A total of 25 blasting operations were conducted between July and last August, thus Enaex Peru managed to detonate the first 572 electronic detonators in blasting fronts in the national underground mining industry.

ARGENTINA

REMOTE BLASTING: OPERATIONAL SAFETY AND EXCELLENCE

We have reached 100 remote blasting operations with Leaky Feeder! This constitutes a milestone not only for Enaex Argentina, but for the whole mining sector in the country. It was conducted in the Cerro Negro mine of our client Newmont, in August.

After a learning process, the certification of users by Enaex Brazil in the DaveyTronic UG Electronic Blasting Initiation System, three training stages, and joint tests that included our collaborators and those of the mining company; 100 successful blasting operations were conducted in five different levels of the mine. This major achievement in safety and operational productivity is the result of the teamwork with the Cerro Negro Mine team, which made it possible.

AUSTRALIA

NEW EDITION OF R U OK? DAY

September is Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Month. Therefore, on the second Thursday of this month, Australia holds R U OK? Day, which promotes mutual concern for mental health.

For this edition, the subsidiary provided a guide to help teams address this important issue. All Enaex plants and offices received this document with the objective of discussing it among colleagues over breakfast.

In line with the priority value of LIFE, Enaex Australia is convinced of the importance of the confidence to talk about mental health in work environments and, in the process, be able to help a colleague who is not having a good time.

Find out more about R U OK? DAY here.

FRANCE

A SPECIAL ACKNOLEDGEMENT

On the occasion of the visit to France of Enaex CEO, Juan Andrés Errázuriz, the Héry Plant team had a special day of acknowledgement.

On August 25th and 29th, the production area achieved a new manufacturing record, reaching a total of 29 392 pieces on those two days. This important milestone was acknowledged by the CEO himself at the facilities, and the personnel was awarded with a diploma in recognition of their hard work.

PERU

GREAT PERFORMANCE OF EMULTEX PDBG®

During July and August, Enaex Peru conducted the EMULTEX PDBG® pumpable emulsion tests, loaded on horizontal fronts in the Marcapunta underground mining unit of the El Brocal Mine. This belongs to Compañía de Minas Buenaventura S. A. A., and is located in the Pasco region.

A total of 31 loadings with EMULTEX PDBG® pumpable emulsion and UBT-XS equipment were conducted in the fronts. These excellent results will allow safety management and will mechanize the loading process. It made it possible for us to generate a value proposition with significant savings for the monthly program.

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