Telkomsel and Freeport Indonesia Implement the First 5G Underground Smart Mining in Southeast Asia

• Telkomsel and PT Freeport Indonesia (PTFI) presented the first 5G Underground Smart-Mining technology in Southeast Asia to support the digitalization and transformation of the mining industry operations in Indonesia.
• The President of the Republic of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, was joined by his Minister of State-Owned Company (BUMN), Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM), Minister of Investment/Head of BKPM, and Minister of State Secretary in launching the 5G Underground Smart Mining at PTFI workshop in Tembagapura, Papua (9/1).
• Before launching the 5G Underground Smart Mining technology, Telkomsel Enterprise implemented several infrastructure renewals, strengthening networks, and platform development for mobile edge computing.

Tembagapura, September 1, 2022 – Telkomsel and PT Freeport Indonesia (PTFI) partner up to implement the first 5G Underground Smart Mining technology in Southeast Asia to support digitalization and operational transformation in the mining industry in Indonesia. 5G Underground Smart Mining by Telkomsel enables automatization and remote operation to improve work safety and productivity across PTFI. The President of the Republic of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, was joined by his Minister of State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN), Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM), Minister of Investment/Head of BKPM, and Minister of State Secretary in launching the 5G Underground Smart Mining at PTFI workshop in Tembagapura, Papua (9/1).

Minister of State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN) of Indonesia Erick Thohir said, “One of our key priorities is to realize technology leadership. Referring to a study by Deloitte International in 2021, 5G has been tested and implemented in the US, Sweden, China, and Russia, resulting in productivity improvement of up to 25% of operational cost, particularly in the drilling sector, which decreased to 40% and energy saving up to 20%. This improvement is the type of result that we would like to see across the Mind-ID group, not only on the operational side but also its digitalization to ensure continued efficiency across the Mind-ID as the holding company of Indonesia mining industry.”

“I am confident that this breakthrough implementation of 5G Underground Smart Mining supported by Telkomsel can also be applied to others within the mining industry ecosystem in Indonesia and allow more digital innovations in the mining industry to happen, which in turn will bring plenty of benefits for society and the country,” Erick added.

Telkomsel CEO Hendri Mulya Syam explained, “Following the successful implementation of the first 5G networks in Indonesia, today, Telkomsel continues its commitment to strengthening the ecosystem of 5G implementation by presenting the first 5G Underground Smart Mining in PTFI. Telkomsel believes that implementing 5G networks will bring more benefits and additional value to support transformation in the mining sector. It will strengthen our national digital sovereignty through Industrial Revolution 4.0 through automation of mining sector and improvement of human resource’s digital capability.”

PTFI CEO Tony Wenas revealed, “Mining development in over 1.500 meters under the surface has a high risk for the safety of our staff and asset. Therefore, it requires smart planning, world-class technology implementation, and qualified human resources. The implementation of 5G Mining in PTFI will allow the company to contribute to advancing the mining industry of Indonesia and support Industrial Revolution 4.0.”

Before launching the 5G Underground Smart Mining technology, Telkomsel Enterprise implemented several infrastructure renewals, strengthening networks, and platform development for mobile edge computing. Today, Telkomsel has deployed six units of 5G BTS that cover PTFI mining sites in Tembagapura, including the underground area.

Telkomsel 5G Underground Smart Mining enables PTFI to monitor and prevent work accidents through its optimum camera connected to artificial intelligence. Furthermore, a Hyperconnected Network, a combination of Telkomsel Private Network and Edge Computing, can provide more artificial intelligence benefits to implement a more optimum smart mining.

The implementation of 5G Underground Smart Mining by Telkomsel in PTFI has passed the network proofing and testing to ensure that the technology will be the best solution to support the operational side of PTFI and enable the company to digitalize its underground mining. Smart mining is the latest technology concept that drives mining optimization by implementing AI (Artificial Intelligence), IoT (Internet-of-Things), Machine Learning, and Big Data in the mining sector.

The benefits of implementing smart mining supported by 5G are its low latencies that will ensure that supervision happens in real-time, where the company can integrate all data to create safer work processes. Furthermore, faster access to the network enables real-time data, allowing companies to utilize data and resulting in a quicker decision-making process, granting better experience among mining managers. Also, a broader 5G network coverage with more connected devices will result in a more efficient operational cost.

The future of 5G Underground Smart Mining is not limited to the on-field operation but also across all the company lines of business, such as research, mining, management, storage, and shipment. As a digital ecosystem enabler, Telkomsel can develop solutions and technologies to support Smart Mining, such as production performance monitoring, remote blasting, asset, and people tracking, drone surveillance and inspection, video monitoring and analytics, and more.

Hendri further explains that 5G Underground Smart Mining can also drive an eco-friendlier technology because the 5G network enables devices to operate with less emission, which means less environmental harm. Telkomsel believes that 5G technology will make operations around remote areas more manageable. As the latest technology, 5G can be optimized as a solution to ensure a smooth and seamless process in rural areas with challenging geographical and connectivity situations.

As the first successful digital company in Indonesia that deploys 5G networks across the country, Telkomsel has provided Hyper 5G networks in 39 cities in Indonesia, supported by 248 units of 5G BTS. Previously, to implement 5G technology across industries and corporate, Telkomsel collaborated with Schneider Electric in Batam to implement 5G Smart Manufacture, and PT Jababeka Infrastruktur (Jababeka) to implement Smart Industrial in Jababeka, West Java.

“Telkomsel continues to move beyond boundaries to open more collaboration opportunities as the company accelerates the digital transformation roadmap across the industry sectors by utilizing a more comprehensive 5G technology. We will ensure that the digital transformation will also contribute to digital economy growth in Indonesia, inclusively and sustainably,” Hendri concluded.

For more information on Smart Mining solutions by Telkomsel, please visit tsel.me/smartmining.