FLEETS

Epiroc heading in right direction before it even started

ON ANZAC day Epiroc took its first steps as a company in its own right. The day before Atlas Copco shareholders had voted to calve it off. Its business is already heading in the right direction.

 Epiroc has taken off under its own banner.

Epiroc has taken off under its own banner.

According to Atlas Copco's financial figures for the three months to March 31, Epiroc enjoyed an 18% growth in orders received from the same period in 2017.

It also had an 11% jump in revenues to 8.2 billion Swedish krone ($A275 million) and a 7% rise in operating profit to 1.5 billion krone

The reported operating profit includes 95 million krone in one-time costs related to the split and the listing process.

The demand for equipment and service continued to increase, with organic order intake up 22%.

The strong order growth was primarily related to miners starting to expand investments in or adjacent to existing mines. That had a particularly positive development for rock drilling equipment for surface applications.

The reported operating margin was 18.4%, down from the 19.1% for the same time last year.

That margin was negatively affected by currency and one-off costs related to the split and listing process. Those costs equated to 1.2% of revenues.

During the quarter Epiroc introduced a line of diamond coring tools.

The new bits cover a wider range of applications, which means fewer bit types than before are needed, making it easier to select the optimal bit for the job. This helps drillers improves productivity and helps drilling contractors reduce the risk of failing to meet deadlines.

Epiroc also bought Australian company Hy-Performance Fluid Power, which remanufactures, services and repairs hydraulic components for drill rigs.

Hy-Performance Fluid Power had annual revenues of 50 million krone in the 2016-17 financial year.

A growing series of reports, each focused on a key discussion point for the mining sector, brought to you by the Mining Monthly Intelligence team.

A growing series of reports, each focused on a key discussion point for the mining sector, brought to you by the Mining Monthly Intelligence team.

editions

Mining Magazine Intelligence Future Fleets Report 2024

The report paints a picture of the equipment landscape and includes detailed profiles of mines that are employing these fleets

editions

Mining Magazine Intelligence Digitalisation Report 2023

An in-depth review of operations that use digitalisation technology to drive improvements across all areas of mining production

editions

Mining Magazine Intelligence Automation Report 2023

An in-depth review of operations using autonomous solutions in every region and sector, including analysis of the factors driving investment decisions

editions

Mining Magazine Intelligence Exploration Report 2023 (feat. Opaxe data)

A comprehensive review of current exploration rates, trending exploration technologies, a ranking of top drill intercepts and a catalogue of 2022 Initial Resource Estimates and recent discovery successes.