- The vendors have deployed a private network for a deep mining testbed
- It is due to run till the end of this year
- Some of the testing is for Level 4 autonomous driving, noted an SNS Telecom & IT analyst
Nokia and Boldyn Networks are going deep with their latest 5G private network project.
The pair are working on Callio FUTUREmine project at the Pyhäsalmi mine in Finland. The project started in 2023 and is intended to run till the end of this year. The goal of the European Union and Business Finland-funded initiative is to turn the Pyhäsalmi mine into a digital test bed for the industry.
Boldyn deployed a private network for the project, using Nokia radios and a 5G standalone (5G SA) core, nearly a mile – or 1.5 kilometers – deep. That depth, like Ron Burgundy, is kind of a big deal.
"In the European context, it's probably the deepest private network deployment in a mining environment," a Nokia spokesperson told Fierce, adding the network is based on the Nokia Modular Private Wireless solution.
SNS Telecom & IT's 5G research director Asad Khan told Fierce that the deployment initially started in the second quarter of 2023, when Cellnex's private network unit Edzcom initiated the project with Nokia. Boldyn then bought Cellnex's private network business for $32 billion in November 2023, which is how Boldyn and Nokia ended up working together in the deep.
Automatic extraction
Khan noted that the total budget for the project is around $2.5 million. Some of that money has gone toward automated mining equipment.
"The 5G network delivers ultra-low latency and high bandwidth, with seamless coverage across the entire underground site - no blind spots [and] always-on connectivity," noted a Boldyn spokesperson. This is enabling the testing of semi-autonomous machinery from Normet to validate the network’s responsiveness for safe and efficient remote operation.
Indeed, Khan concluded that one of the key objectives of the testbed is to prove out "reliable wireless connectivity to support the operation and testing of autonomous mining equipment, with a focus on Level 4 autonomous driving."