Goldcorp sinks $1M into #DisruptMining 2018 winner Acoustic Zoom

The winner of this year's #DisruptMining 2018 contest - a yearly event sponsored by major miner Goldcorp to find new technologies to solve some of the most prominent challenges facing the often change-averse mining industry - has closed a C$1 million investment from the major.

Henry Lazenby in Vancouver

On site at Goldcorp's Red Lake complex

As part of the deal, Newfoundland-based technology start-up Acoustic Zoom will deploy a $150,000 pilot programme this summer at Goldcorp's Red Lake gold mines, in Ontario.

Acoustic's innovative seismic technology impressed judges during a March gala event held on the fringes of the 2018 Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada's yearly convention, in Toronto, garnering the top prize.

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The firm has developed an innovative technique using sound to ‘see' into the earth's crust, that can be deployed to enhance the value of seismic surveys. The technology maps complex geologic formations with high frequency three- and four-dimensional imaging.

The patented and patent-pending suite of technologies is intended to help exploration teams drill smarter, guide planning and achieve investment value quicker with more actionable and accurate information.

As part of the investment, Goldcorp's director of geophysics Sergio Espinosa will join the Acoustic board.

"#DisruptMining completely accelerated our business, and we thank Goldcorp for sharing our vision to drill smarter using innovative technology. The strength of our approach is the ability to adapt our imaging techniques to the requirements of a particular site. Working with Goldcorp's geologists, we will use our winning seismic technology to deliver unique imaging data that adds risk-mitigating value from exploration to mine planning," Acoustic Zoom CEO, professor Jacques Guigné said.

Meanwhile, Goldcorp separately announced it had struck "impact and benefit" agreements with three First Nations, including Brunswick House First Nation, Chapleau Cree First Nation, and Chapleau Ojibwe First Nation, on development of the Borden gold project, in northern Ontario - Canada's first all-electric underground mine.

Goldcorp now has collaborative agreements in place with 26 First Nations which assert Aboriginal and treaty rights in the vicinity of its operations in Canada.

Borden is slated to extract a 30,000-tonne bulk sample by the end of the summer. Commercial operation of the mine is pencilled in for 2019.