What to buy now
The clear leader in autonomous mining vehicles is equipment manufacturer Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT). It currently has more than 580 unmanned haulage vehicles working around the world in 24 different mines. It has also developed a platform, Cat MineStar Solutions, that makes it easier to control a single machine remotely, automate multiple types of equipment across a mixed fleet, or implement a completely autonomous fleet of haul trucks that operate around the clock with no human intervention. Caterpillar currently trades on a 2024 price/ earnings (p/e) ratio of 16 and yields 1.82%.
Caterpillar’s main competitor in the automation of mining haulage is Japan’s Komatsu (Tokyo: 6301). Its autonomous haulage vehicles, which now operate in five countries – combined with its FrontRunner fleet management and dispatch platform – promise cost savings of up to 15%, as well as increased production, lower maintenance costs and reduced risk of accidents.
It is working with Toyota to produce an unmanned light vehicle for use in the mining industry, which is expected to arrive early in 2024. Komatsu currently trades on a 2024 p/e of nine and has a dividend yield of 4%.
EnviroSuite Ltd (Sydney: EVS) is a software firm that helps industrial and mining companies meet and exceed environmental standards, which in turn bolsters their environmental and social governance (ESG) credentials. Its EnviroSuite system takes data from a wide range of sources to measure the pollutants produced by a mine or a plant, which can then be used to give the customer an idea of what they need to do to operate in a more sustainable manner. EnviroSuite’s technology is now used at 443 sites around the world, including several copper and iron-ore mines run by BHP. While EnviroSuite doesn’t make any money, its sales are growing strongly.
Another high-risk, smaller company worth watching is Tribe Technology (Aim:
TRYB). Located in Belfast, Tribe Tech develops and manufactures autonomous mining equipment with the aim of improving safety and efficiency. It focuses especially on drill rigs. The group claims that its rigs enable drilling to take place around 70% of the time in a typical shift in a mine, compared with only 35% for a traditional rig. Tribe Tech has already sold one of its products to a Canadian driller and it is due to go into operation by the start of 2024.
In addition to investing in a company providing advanced technology to the mining industry, investors could consider a mining company “adopting and using innovative and greener mining methods and technologies”, says WS Amati’s Mark Smith.
One company that Smith thinks fits the bill is Sigma Lithium (Vancouver: SGML).
Sigma operates a mine in Grota do Cirilo, Brazil. It aims to become the world’s largest producer of lithium and one of the greenest, doing so by using automation to recycle all the water it uses and minimising the impact on the nearby area. Sigma recently turned its first quarter of operating profit, as it begins to ramp up production.