EAGME Participated in the European project MultiMiner

The European project MultiMiner has officially begun! This new EU-funded HORIZON-RIA initiative employs innovative Earth Observation (EO) technologies to enable safer, more efficient, and environmentally responsible exploration and monitoring of Mineral Raw Materials (MRMs).

The MultiMiner project aims to enhance MRM exploration practices and mine-site monitoring through advanced machine learning (ML) solutions that require minimal or no ground-based data. It leverages EO data from the European Copernicus Earth Observation programme, as well as commercial and governmental European satellites. Data from satellite systems such as COSMO-SkyMed, EnMAP, PRISMA, and TerraSAR-X, along with high- and low-altitude drone surveys, will contribute to improving the safety, environmental performance, and economic efficiency of MRM exploration and mining site monitoring. The applicability of the developed algorithms will be demonstrated at four pilot sites in Finland (Siliinjarvi), Austria (Hochfilzen), and Greece (Kallintiri, Chalkidiki).

EAGME participates in the project with the pilot site of Kallintiri, under the leadership of Dr. Konstantinos Laskaridis (Director of DOPME) and team members Dr. Alexandros Liakopoulos (Head of GEP), Dr. Marianthi Anastasatou, and Dr. Konstantinos Mavrogonatos.

Fieldwork in the Kallintiri Public Mining Area (PMA)

As part of the implementation of MultiMiner, EAGME carried out fieldwork in May 2023 at the Kallintiri PMA, one of the project’s four pilot sites (Fig. 1). The area of interest was delineated, field measurements were conducted, and representative samples were collected for laboratory analyses. These ground-based data will contribute to the development of innovative algorithms for the more effective use of EO technologies in identifying new MRM deposits and monitoring mining activity areas.

1^st Project Progress Meeting – MultiMiner – Hochfilzen, Austria

The first progress meeting of the MultiMiner project took place in Hochfilzen, Austria, from May 22 to 26, 2023 (Fig. 2). The meeting included a visit to the Weissenstein magnesite mine—one of the project’s pilot areas—as well as two days of presentations by project partners. EAGME presented the Kallintiri pilot site, the work completed so far, and the plan for upcoming activities, to be carried out in collaboration with other partners (laboratory analyses, spectral data acquisition, etc.). Additionally, EAGME took on the co-organization of the 3rd progress meeting, scheduled to be held in Northern Greece in the summer of 2024.

In brief:

The MultiMiner project (“Multi-source and Multi-scale Earth Observation and Novel Machine Learning Methods for Mineral Exploration and Mine Site Monitoring”) is funded by the EU with a total budget of €4.4 million and will run for 42 months (January 2023 – June 2026).

The MultiMiner consortium includes: Geological Survey of Finland (GTK), Technical Research Center of Finland (VTT), Yara Suomi Oy (Yara), Hellenic Authority for Geological and Mineral Research (EAGME), European Science Foundation (ESF), Czech Geological Survey (CGS), University of Leoben (MUL), Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR), Veitsch-Radex GmbH & Co OG (RHI Magnesita), GeoSphere Austria, Hellas Gold S.A. (HG), EFTAS Remote Sensing Technology Transfer GmbH (EFTAS), Technical University of Munich (TUM), and Nordkalk.