Image courtesy of Movitecnica

Companies are establishing new facilities across the country. Trucks and other vehicles are getting bigger, with higher capacities. Service providers regularly introduce all-new methodologies and options for their clients. Automations are becoming more intelligent, more integrated, and delivering more efficiency. Frequently identified impulses for this period of apparently rapid expansion included a buoyant commodity market, global trends including moves toward sustainability and intelligent technologies, and businesses' ambitions to expand further into new, often international markets. 

Mining equipment

"In Peru, demand is growing especially for higher load capacity products, both in dump trucks and tractor-trailers […] When prices rise, mines seek to produce more, which means they need more machinery and more productive equipment," commented Jorge Masías, general manager for Peru at Volvo. 

Comparing pre-pandemic sales to those in 2024, Masías highlighted that the number of 16-ton trucks sold in Peru has grown by at least 40%, from 6,000 to over 8,500, indicating heightened demand for these high-capacity vehicles. 

Julio Molina, CEO of Komatsu-Mitsui Maquinarias del Perú (KMMP), explained: "Rising copper prices are driving investment, but machinery purchasing decisions depend on factors such as permits and customers' ability to expand operations." 

With projects such as Antamina and Cuajone set to expand, Molina expects increased investment to follow: "Many operators are investing in fleet renewal, especially in new trucks and equipment with more advanced technologies."

KMMP is also looking to further develop its offer for underground miners and grow its presence in Arequipa. 

Giorgio Mosoni, co-general manager at IPESA (local dealer for Wirtgen and John Deere), is planning to introduce DAF dump trucks, which can provide a more integrated service for those clients who already rely on John Deere equipment, such as loaders, because contractors are under pressure to do more with less and every minute matters:  "It is not just about selling equipment; the number one priority is keeping it running at 100%. We offer service contracts, continuous monitoring, and cutting-edge technology to ensure our clients experience minimal downtime," he explained. 

Nikolas Gremler, general manager at Divemotor, which distributes trucks, buses, and other vehicles from brands including Mercedes-Benz, Freightliner and Jeep, observed increasing momentum for low-emission and electromobility in Peru's mining transport market: "As mines adopt international regulations that demand more sustainable technologies. At Divemotor we continue to drive solutions that help our customers meet these standards, optimizing their operations without compromising performance." 

Ricardo Begazo, ABB's local division manager, shed some light on transportation's CO2 emissions footprint and the importance of embracing e-mobility: "In large-scale mining operations, up to 70% of emissions come from heavy haul trucks. Electrifying these fleets could cut these emissions while also boosting productivity as much as 25%." 

Zamine Perú is the local representative of Hitachi and, more recently, expanded its offerings suite to represent the Chinese-based Tonly. During the last year, Zamine partnered with San Martín Contratistas Generales to supply the contractor with a fleet of 62 Tonly TLH135 hybrid trucks to be deployed at Shougang Hierro's Marcona iron mine. "These hybrid trucks will save around 15% to 20% of fuel. I am more than confident that this will catch the attention of other contractors who would consider this solution an option for their operations as it serves as an intermediate step to electromobility," explained Yuji Tanaka, Zamine's general manager. 

A primary concern when adopting expensive new and clean technologies is always return on investment. For Víctor Cano, general manager at the contractor San Martín, it all boils down to the length of the contract itself: "Depending on the solution, timelines vary from five to 15 years. The problem is that many contracts are short-term, which makes it hard to recover the investment. In those cases, the contractor assumes a bigger risk, which usually translates into higher rates. Clients must adopt a long-term planning mindset to ensure these solutions are both viable and mutually beneficial," Cano said. 

Reducing fuel consumption by 20% is every miner's dream, especially when fuel accounts for 30% to 40% of a mine's operational costs. Luciano Macías, general manager for Peru and Ecuador at Terpel, explained that keeping fuel clean can save between 4% to 5%. Since 2018, Terpel has invested US$13 million in its plant to boost capacity and modernize its packaging system to cut downtime. Now, Terpel is moving further by using data analytics to assess used oil and predict equipment health. Macías said: "Analyzing oil is like running a blood test because it shows the current health of the machine. By taking samples every 500 to 1,000 hours, operators can track changes over time and anticipate catastrophic failures while extending the life span. No other company in the market currently offers this kind of predictive capability." 

Underground equipment 

A market that has been stagnant for a while seems now to be expanding, at least for the technology and equipment sector. For instance, Buenaventura awarded a US$31.8 million contract to Sandvik for three of its mines (Uchucchacua, Yumpaq, and El Brocal), an order that included 36 machines, featuring various models such as the Toro low-profile loader and the DD322i and DD312i jumbos. 
Armando Sugobono, general manager of Sandvik Peru, was bullish on the potential for automation to spark major evolution in Peru's underground mining sector: "In surface mining, Peruvian companies are already aligned with global trends," he said, "but the real opportunity lies in underground mining. Many companies, such as Buenaventura, are already investing in automation, which means that we will see this technology become widespread in the next few years." 

Having observed two key trends in mining equipment – autonomous technology and lowering pollution –  Sandvik's product releases aim to match market demand. Heightened commodity prices, he added, have been a key factor in their adoption: "The rise in copper and gold prices has led many mines to renew their equipment, with underground mines in particular betting heavily on automation to reduce risks for operators," commented Sugobono. 

Buenaventura also awarded a contract to Epiroc to supply underground drilling rigs, rock bolting equipment, and loaders for its San Gabriel project. Epiroc has grown through more than 20 acquisitions, targeting companies specialized in electrification, fleet control, data transmission, to build a complete ecosystem without requiring clients to rely exclusively on a single brand or OEM: "The idea is to give our clients the freedom to choose what fits them the most and provide them the autonomy they are looking for. True transformation happens when each company has the freedom to adopt the most advanced solutions on the market, and our role is to enable that leap into the future by providing the tools they need to make those decisions on their own terms," said Alfredo Bertrand, general manager for Epiroc's Andean Region. 

James Valenzuela, general manager of Resemin, takes a broadly more conservative approach to automation, and argued that often less can be more: "The simplest solutions tend to be the most effective, and excessively complex solutions often turn into new problems." 

Entirely automated equipment often fails to meet expectations. "Fully automated equipment generally requires constant support, such as specialized engineers, which increases operational costs," he asserted. 

This is not to imply, however, that Resemin's product offering contains no automation – indeed, its 'one-hole automation' system available for its drilling rigs is contributing to the company's international growth, with it recognized as a stand-out provider in a range of African markets. 

A bigger cake 

Automotive OEMs also serve the mining industry, though their vehicles are mainly used for transporting workers within the mine or from nearby cities using pickups. Jaime Obreros, president and CEO of Nissan Peru, estimated that around 35% to 40% of the company's pickup sales go to the mining industry. According to Obreros, mature and consolidated industries like mining cannot afford to remain stagnant: "Companies are focusing on their core business and outsourcing fleet management to specialists. While many keep their own fleets, outsourcing is becoming increasingly common, as it offers access to better solutions and direct support from experts," he said. 

Also providing outsourcing service, we find SK Rental, part of Chile's Sigdo Koppers Group. Whether through traditional short-term renting, long-term renting, or the sale of semi-new and used equipment, Edmund Egg, general manager, believes there is still plenty of room for growth in Peru—especially when compared to Chile, where the market is more mature and receptive to this business model: "We are now focused on increasing our share of the Peruvian market. We want a bigger piece of the pie, but we also believe the pie itself can grow," said Egg. 

SK Rental has also worked with Buenaventura at San Gabriel. To increase its share of the market - particularly in the underground segment – it has been actively participating in bids to deploy its jumbos, scoops, dumpers and drilling rigs: "There will always be critical assets that large contractors prefer to buy, especially for earthworks or leach pad expansion. However, in production contracts, having the knowledge to operate an asset safely and efficiently is more important than the asset itself. We are a compelling option because we can take care of the equipment, and our clients can focus on their core business," Egg continued. 

The jewel of the south 

Located near several of Peru's largest mining projects, among them Cerro Verde, Cuajone, Toquepala and Quellaveco, Arequipa is a hub of mining activity, hosting the all-important biannual PERUMIN conference and serving as a primary or secondary base for a wide range of mining sector companies. The advantages of an equipment provider's presence in the city are obvious: proximity to the aforementioned range of major mining projects, as well as other mid-tier and junior operations; access to excellent, mining-tailored infrastructure, including Puerto Matarani, which is set to receive investments totaling US$600 million by 2029 for upgrades; and, as an increasing number of businesses establish themselves there, a close-knit enterprise network in one of Peru's most important industrial cities. 

Bosch Rexroth, offering a suite of mining processing products including valves, hydraulics and conveyors, opened a new headquarters in Arequipa in November 2024. According to the company's general manager for Peru, Kai Rothgiesser: "This was an important step that reflects our confidence in the Peruvian market." 

Bosch Rexroth's Arequipa branch will work on the assembly of its HydraForce valve system and will be equipped with a workshop for servomotors used in automated equipment, among other products and services. Predicting that other businesses will likely elect to make a similar move, Rothgiesser continued: "Lima remains key for decision-making and clients, but I see the beginning of a movement to Arequipa that promises to intensify, marking an interesting evolution in the sector." 

Another of the businesses within that evolution is Metso, manufacturers of a wide range of processing equipment and machinery. Although the company already has a well-established base in Arequipa – where around 25-30% of its staff are based – it is expanding its presence to a new plant. With a planned investment of around US$15 million and a footprint of over 20,000m2, the facility, said Joe Pezo, Metso's vice president of services for Peru and the Andean countries, offers benefits both in the short and long term: "Our new plant not only helps us be closer to clients, but it also reflects our commitment to developing local talent." 

Metso aims to help clients achieve both efficiency and sustainability through its products. Fernando Samanez, vice president of equipment for minerals in South America, pointed to the possibility to retrofit older processing equipment with modern attachments, potentially providing significant productivity boosts at older mines as the industry works to meet rising commodity demand, and highlighted how the company's Arequipa service center will contribute to that task: "We will have a space dedicated to the repair and manufacturing of hoppers for any OEM, which has attracted much attention from our clients, and represents a US$80 million market." 
Weir, has also expanded to Arequipa with a new facility that contains a remote monitoring control room to help the clients with predictive and preventive maintenance services: "Through our cloud-based intelligent system, NEXT, our team can analyze the data and provide recommendation to optimize energy and water consumption, and the overall efficiency of our equipment at our clients' site," explained Juan Daniel Rojas, managing director at Weir Peru. 

Conveyor belts and material handling 

Daniel Bacigalupo, managing director for Spanish-speaking Latin America at Weir ESCO, noted another trend spurred by rising commodity prices as miners seek to produce more in response to a strong market: "This implies operating more hours, working at greater depths, and reallocating equipment to move more ore, which naturally increases the consumption of wear parts," he said. 

Weir ESCO, which in 2024 launched Nexsys, a rope-shovel lip system promising a 30% reduction in repair time and improved worker safety, is also betting big on automation and intelligent solutions. Nexsys integrates with the ShovelMetrics system offered by its sister company, Weir Motion Metrics, which monitors wear-and-tear in real-time, alerting operators to lost or broken Nexsys teeth – of increased importance given the increased wear speed Bacigalupo mentioned. 

Describing Weir Motion Metrics' wider offer, with five modular, automatic monitoring solutions usable individually or in a centralized 'ecosystem,' Bacigalupo explained that efficiency gains are possible virtually throughout the mine production cycle: "Motion Metrics' systems allow tools to work together, optimizing every stage of the mining process, from the shovels to the crusher feed." 

Eduardo Espinosa, managing director for the Andean Region at Martin Engineering, observed that investments are increasingly directed toward technologies that maximize tonnage per hour and ensure operational continuity: "With integrated solutions like air cannons and dust suppression systems, we can reduce a plant shutdown frequency. Where operations once stopped every 30 days, we are now extending that window to 90 or even 120 days," he explained. 

Roxana Burgos, general manager at Movitécnica, pointed out that shutdowns are no longer a technical hurdle but a skilled labor one: "Planned shutdowns are standard in mining, but the real challenge is that many operations schedule them around the same time, creating a shortage of qualified personnel, as the demand spikes across multiple sites," she explained. 

To address this, Movitécnica is exploring partnerships with technical institutes and even the Armed Forces to train technicians and ensure a steady pipeline of workers. 

Technology 

Vixora is a company from Ferreycorp, recently acquired a 20% stake in Torsa, a Spanish start-up focused on anti-collision systems that has been long working in Peru and Chile. It is promoting an ‘Open Lab’  platform where start-ups from around the world propose solutions to three specific gaps that Vixora has identified in the Peruvian and Chilean mining market: increasing production by focusing on the ore grade without boosting throughput, detecting and removing uncrushable elements, and optimizing fuel consumption: "We estimate that these three gaps represent a TAM (total addressable market) of US$1.75 billion between 2025 and 2030. There are many opportunities and potential for us here," added Carlos Calderon, managing director at Vixora. 

Against the odds, many Peruvian-based companies have identified gaps left by big players. For Fernando Sagastegui, CEO and founder of Astay Systems, big companies' business models are built on maximizing profitability and grow by acquiring scalable and standardized products. That is precisely where they can help, by developing custom solutions without the delays of corporate bureaucracy: "Although these niches may seem small, they have allowed us to grow sustainably and finance the development of products like our digital twin, in which we have invested over US$1 million," he said. 

Today, all mines use some sort of automation, the difference lies in the level of integration and the speed of implementation. "Each operation has a different level of automation, and not all have the necessary infrastructure that enables data extraction. In brownfield projects, integrating these infrastructures can take months or even years, depending on the level of existing digitization. Once the mine has overcome this phase, the next challenge is to train the staff to leverage automation. Professionals with an agile mindset are required, capable of managing technological projects within the mining operation and ensuring that automation translates into efficiency and safety," explained Santiago Thomassey, CEO for Peru and Ecuador at Siemens, when discussing how mining is embracing AI. 

Thomassey remarked that greenfield projects are already exploring new communications protocols, such as MQTT and Python, for data analytics. However, he highlighted that this would necessitate a stronger focus on cybersecurity: "Progress comes with cybersecurity challenges, so the industry is adopting defense-in-depth strategies and working on the architecture of its systems to minimize vulnerabilities and prevent operational disruptions," concluded Thomassey. 

Mining and Metals ISAC is a not-for-profit industry-owned information sharing and analysis center that provides an annual report on the cyberspace of the mining industry. Based on its data, around 40% of new projects related to innovation are canceled or delayed, or their scope is reduced because of security concerns in cyberspace; additionally, cyberattacks have increased to number 30 reported in 2024 compared to 10 in 2023. "Cyber risk is a real threat, yet we have found that many large corporate clients and mining companies do not buy cybersecurity policies. It remains a sensitive topic, especially in mining, where many companies prefer not to discuss their vulnerabilities," shared Andrés Guiulfo, CEO at Lockton Perú, when referring to the risks miners face that are often left uninsured.