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Goldeneye · Project

Satellite and Drone Monitoring Platform That Makes Mining Safer and Cheaper

environmentPilotedTRL 7
goldeneye-project.eu

Imagine having a set of eyes in the sky — satellites, drones, and ground sensors — all watching your mine 24/7 and telling you exactly what's happening. Goldeneye built a platform that collects all that data, crunches it with machine learning, and turns it into clear warnings and recommendations. Think of it like a fitness tracker for a mine: it monitors safety risks, environmental impact, and productivity all at once. They tested it at 5 real mine sites across Europe to prove it works in the field.

By the numbers
5
Field trials across European mine sites
17
Consortium partners
12
Countries represented
€8.36M
EC funding
8
SMEs in the consortium
13
Industry partners
76%
Industry partner ratio
3
Operational demo deliverables
The business problem

What needed solving

Mining companies face mounting pressure to improve worker safety, reduce environmental damage, and cut operational costs — all at the same time. Traditional monitoring is fragmented: separate systems for safety, environment, and productivity that don't talk to each other, leaving blind spots that cause accidents, compliance failures, and wasted resources.

The solution

What was built

The project delivered three key toolkits: an operational application toolkit for optimizing mine management, a data integration component with automated feature detection and anomaly detection, and a safety and environmental monitoring toolkit covering open pits, underground mining, and waste disposal. All were demonstrated across 5 European mine sites.

Audience

Who needs this

Open-pit and underground mining operators seeking integrated safety and environmental monitoringEnvironmental consulting firms serving the extractive industriesMining technology companies looking for data fusion and analytics capabilitiesMine closure and rehabilitation specialistsNational mining authorities and regulators needing better oversight tools
Business applications

Who can put this to work

Mining and mineral extraction
enterprise
Target: Open-pit or underground mining operator

If you are a mining operator dealing with safety incidents, environmental compliance headaches, and inefficient exploration — this project developed a data platform combining satellite imagery, drone surveys, and ground sensors with machine-learning analytics that converts raw data into actionable safety alerts and productivity insights. It was validated across 5 field trials in Germany, Bulgaria, Romania, Kosovo, and Finland.

Environmental consulting
mid-size
Target: Environmental monitoring firm serving extractive industries

If you are an environmental consultancy struggling to deliver continuous, high-resolution monitoring data to your mining clients — this project built a geo-hazard and environmental monitoring toolkit that fuses Earth observation data with in-situ sensors. The platform automates anomaly detection and delivers validated environmental assessments, tested across 5 European mine sites.

Mining technology and services
SME
Target: Mine planning or surveying technology provider

If you are a mining tech company looking for a proven data integration layer that combines satellite, drone, and sensor feeds — this project created an operational application toolkit that optimizes mine management from exploration through extraction to closure. With 17 consortium partners including 8 SMEs, the platform was designed for commercial integration from day one.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What would it cost to implement this monitoring platform at our mine site?

The project does not publish per-site pricing. The consortium includes 8 SMEs and 13 industry partners, suggesting a commercial offering is being shaped. Contact the coordinator at VTT (Finland) through SciTransfer for licensing or deployment quotes.

Can this scale to large multi-site mining operations?

The platform was tested across 5 field trials in 5 different countries (Germany, Bulgaria, Romania, Kosovo, Finland), covering open-pit, underground, and waste disposal scenarios. This multi-site validation across diverse conditions is strong evidence of scalability.

Who owns the IP and how can we license the technology?

IP is shared among the 17-partner consortium led by VTT (Finland). With 13 industry partners and 8 SMEs involved, licensing or commercial partnership routes are likely available. SciTransfer can facilitate introductions to the right IP holders.

Does this help with environmental regulatory compliance?

Yes. A dedicated safety, geo-hazard and environmental monitoring toolkit was built and demonstrated. It covers environmental monitoring, safety and security for open pits, underground mining, and mining waste disposal — directly relevant to EU mining regulations.

How long does it take to deploy at a new site?

The project ran for 3 years and completed 5 field trials. Based on available project data, the platform integrates satellite, drone, and in-situ sensor data, so deployment timelines would depend on existing sensor infrastructure at your site. The data integration components including feature detection and anomaly detection are operational.

Does it integrate with our existing mine management systems?

The project built a dedicated data integration component with validation, feature detection, labelling, and anomaly detection. The operational application toolkit was specifically designed to optimize mine management, suggesting compatibility was a design priority. Contact the consortium for technical integration details.

Is there ongoing technical support after deployment?

The project closed in October 2023, but the consortium's 13 industry partners and 8 SMEs represent a strong commercial ecosystem. VTT, the coordinator, is a major Finnish research center with a track record of commercializing research outputs. SciTransfer can connect you with the right support contacts.

Consortium

Who built it

The Goldeneye consortium is heavily industry-oriented — 13 out of 17 partners (76%) come from industry, with 8 SMEs. This is not an academic exercise; it's a technology push toward the market. Led by VTT, Finland's top applied research center, the consortium spans 12 countries including mining-active regions like Bulgaria, Romania, Kosovo, and Germany. The 3 universities and 1 research center provide scientific depth, while the industry-heavy composition signals that the tools were built with real-world deployment in mind from the start.

How to reach the team

VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland — contact via SciTransfer for a warm introduction to the project coordinator

Order a report on this consortiumSee TEKNOLOGIAN TUTKIMUSKESKUS VTT OY profile →
Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want to explore how Goldeneye's mine monitoring platform could work at your sites? SciTransfer can arrange a direct introduction to the right consortium partner for your needs.

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