Optimal Slope secures £400,000 from Digital Catapult to cut mining waste and carbon emissions

The investment will enable the startup to secure more partnerships with global mining companies, as it looks to scale its solution, decarbonise mining operations, and equip the sector to be future ready through the application of its deep tech solution.

Founded in 2021, Optimal Slope developed the world’s first software platform to automate, optimise, and digitalise the design of mine pit walls, which are the stepped rock faces that form the sides of an opencast mine, and is a process that traditionally relies upon manual trial-and-error by engineers.

By intelligently minimising the excavation of waste rock, Optimal Slope’s solution reduces costs, increases mine profitability, and significantly cuts the carbon footprint of mining operations, which is critical to decarbonising the sector and driving industrial supply chain resilience. While mining is often associated with a negative environmental impact, it is also essential for producing the metals required to build solar panels, wind turbines, electric vehicles, and other clean energy technologies.

By reducing waste and energy usage in the excavation process, Optimal Slope helps the mining industry to deliver the resources needed for the global energy transition, playing a key role in shifting perceptions of the sector and strengthening the resilience of supply chains for critical minerals.

Optimal Slope’s platform is already in use with international mining companies, and the investment will support expansion into key international markets such as Australia, Canada, South America, and Africa, where metal mining is critical to both local economies and the global clean energy supply chain.

With Digital Catapult’s £400,000 investment in the form of a convertible loan note (CLN), the company will also refine its product with user feedback and strengthen its commercialisation and marketing efforts.

Read the article online at: https://www.globalminingreview.com/environment-sustainability/16102025/optimal-slope-secures-400000-from-digital-catapult-to-cut-mining-waste-and-carbon-emissions/