Brazil’s Vale aiming at 2024 5G network implementations

Brazilian iron ore giant Vale expects to have the first use cases involving 5G networks in its mining operations in 2024.

The company is developing a 5G laboratory in São Paulo in partnership with technology research institute IPT and equipment supplier Nokia.

“The first step is to complete the implementation of the 5G Lab, in partnership with Nokia and IPT. The main objective of this lab is to test use cases in mining, focusing on applications that demand more bandwidth and less response time than those provided by 4G,” Márcia Costa, Vale’s head of technological infrastructure services, told BNamericas.

“The expectation is that, in 2023, we will be able to explore opportunities to start deployments in 2024 selectively and where these requirements are present.”

Previously, Mario Azevedo, Vale's general manager of engineering and technology foundation projects, said the company’s first 5G use cases will be presented in the second half of 2021.

Costa did not allude to the delay or the reasons for the new schedule. According to her, however, Vale is prioritizing 4G networks, which already offer good latency and availability at some operations.

Furthermore, Vale, like other companies, had to deal with supply chain issues and delays with equipment deliveries, in addition to reprioritizing some projects during the pandemic.

At present, Vale operates 20 autonomous machines at its Carajás complex, including 14 trucks and six drills, using 4G. It also has another 13 trucks and 13 drills at its Sudeste system, comprising the operations in Mariana, Itabira and Minas Centrais, "using legacy network technology and in transition to 4G."

Costa said, “we do not plan to replace 4G. The idea is that both technologies coexist, each with its own purpose. Some possible use cases [for 5G] are augmented reality in maintenance, robotics, teleoperatorions and computer vision for detecting anomalies.” 

PARTNERSHIP

Vale started proofs of concept with cellular networks in its plants in 2017 and 2018. In 2019, it moved to implement private network projects in Brazil, in partnership with Telefônica Brasil and Nokia. 

Vale also has 4G networks implemented in different global operations. One of the first was in a port in Malaysia, in partnership with a local operator.

In Canada, the connectivity challenge differs, as, unlike in Brazil, most operations are underground.

Azevedo said in 2021 Vale was pondering the use of a local operator’s frequency at the Thompson open pit nickel mine in Canada.

Elsewhere in Latin America, the Telefónica group has 13-15 private networks deployed or about to be deployed besides Vale's.

By end-November, Telefónica had three private 4G networks at Chilean mining sites and another two were in the implementation phase, Telefónica Chile B2B director Rodrigo Sajuria told a press conference. In addition, it has projects in ports.

In Peru, the company has eight private 4G networks, he said. At one, together with Nokia, the telco installed a private 4G network 4,600m above sea level for the digitization and automation of the Las Bambas copper mine.

Picture source: Vale