State of Mining - Mesabi Daily News

LAS VEGAS — What happens in Vegas, will end up in the mine pit.

At least what happened at the 2016 MINExpo International will find its way to a mine site near you.

That was the message during the three-day créme de la créme of mining technology and new machinery, which took over a part of the Strip at the Las Vegas Convention Center in September.

The site was a like a dream for any young boy or girl who’s ever touched a diecast Tonka truck, but it was as real as it gets.

“You’ll see the real deal everywhere,” said Caterpillar CEO Doug Oberhelman at a convention press conference, “ready and available today. Not aspirational or conceptual.”

It’s hard to walk through any industry’s convention and feel like the sky is falling, but after the 2015 collapse of the industry, the quadrennial MINExpo was a needed shot in the arm of optimism.

Their reasons — miners, suppliers and vendors — may differ in context, but not in nature. They all believe mining is on the comeback trail.

One thing they all had in common at the Vegas show was the goal of making the industry safer and more cost-efficient. Oberhelman talked about making a stronger iron, extending the life of machines and creating lower costs and less downtime for customers due to repairs.

CAT introduced an array of new analytical technology, along with its new line of haulers and shovels displaying just that — stronger, smarter iron for when the customers need gear.

So why spend on new machines for a dying industry? The answer lies on the comeback trail: Mining isn’t dying anytime soon.

As Oberhelman reasons, world population figures are expected to grow from 7 billion people to 9 billion in 2042, which will create a greater demand for certain commodities. Factor in rising economic growth and emerging economies from this population rise, and the commodities harvested by mining are put to use.

Coal will help fuel plants and light homes, he says. Iron ore will build a new hospital, gold will go in a new cell phone and copper wiring in a school bus. It seems like mining’s version of Mayberry, but the products of mining are so seamlessly intertwined in everyday life that it’s logical to argue the industry won’t dry up anytime soon.

“We believe in mining because we know minerals and ores are necessary to meet a growing world population demand for energy, transportation, housing and water,” Oberhelman said. “Countries must build infrastructure to meet those demands, and they can’t build it without the minerals and ores the mining industry harvests from the ground.”

More specifically on Minnesota’s Iron Range, that optimism is defined by the current waiting game for market correction.

Lourenco Goncalves, chairman, president and CEO of Cliffs Natural Resources, puts it this way: The illegal imports are being circulated out of the current stockpile, meaning it’s just a matter of time before supply gets low.

When it does, American steel is the only option left thanks to high tariffs and increased crackdowns on steel dumping.

Goncalves is releasing the company’s third quarter report Thursday, and says the results will show that the moment of reckoning for the 2015 downturn is on its way. Inventories are running low, he says, and prices are ready to increase.

“When the first ones realize they cannot run the price down any longer, everyone will come to buy all together,” Goncalves said in a recent phone interview. “The supply is not there, so it will create a compelling case for steel prices to increase.”

Back in Vegas, the technology on display on at MINExpo 2016 showed an expansive focus on sustainability for the industry.

In the coming pages, some of those technologies are featured that will help the Range mines now — and some not for a long time.

We’ll take a look at what’s happening in the world of big data from Caterpillar and General Electric, the possibility of autonomous trucks roaming Range mines, and a new piece of gear designed for cold weather issues.

It was all under one roof in Las Vegas and a sign, according to Oberhelman, of just how far mining has left to go. And how much of a low-cost environment equipment suppliers like CAT are creating for the industry.

“They see a future in mining like we do,” he said. “In the not-too-distant future, mining will be a great place to be.”