Abstract

Today’s mining environment has witnessed massive digitization in the area of GPS based truck dispatch system, monitoring of equipment health/ production/inventory/ROM quality etc. Also contract mining has become major concern in India presently. The contract between Mines owner and Contract Miners/MDO are being managed and executed ased on many data from various above activities which are produced by digitally and manually. Now the major challenge is how to protect these data from manipulation of original supply chain data, coal fraud and delivery delay of material and cost minimization. Many operational and commercial practices remain inefficient and antiquated, leading to critical data missions, security vulnerabilities and even corruption. So, as the era of artificial intelligence and automation, security has become one of the major concerns for the complex Mining  businesses. And when we talk about security, the one technology which is gaining huge acceptance is Block chain Technology.

Blockchain is an immutable and cryptographically secure archive of records stored on a distributed ledger, which uses smart contracts built on the Ethereum platform. Blockchain technology applications provide three major features: security, immutability, and accountability. Since it is based on the concept of distributed database, wherein every computer in the network has a copy of the database, there is no single point of failure. Each and every transaction is verified by all the computers (nodes) participating in the network, and whenever a transaction happens, it is known immediately by the whole network. So, it is almost next to impossible for a hacker to do any changes in the network or steal any data, also because records of the transaction are stored in the form of a ‘block’. Each block has a reference to the other block and hence, to hack a Blockchain, all the blocks in the chronological order needs to be hacked. The technology facilitates stakeholders connected on a chain to securely exchange critical trade documents, such as bills of lading and letters of credit, via the use of smart contracts. The benefits of blockchain technology link perfectly to the commercial and operational aspects of mining, metals and other industries in the broader value chain. Blockchain can be used to track materials in the mining value chain from the blocks to the final receiving by customer of Mine’s owner. Blockchain could lead to the automation of invoice reconciliation. Ore is assigned a quality certificate and the customer sends it for lab testing for reassurance. There may/may not be a dispute over the ore quality and price. This whole process can leverage block chain technology with the three parties involved – miner, customer and the arbitrator.

Potential losses in a coal supply chain may be addressed by block chain:

• Losses in mining and preparation
• Coal Logistic
• Methods of coal mining
• The scale of loss from preparation
• Verifying coal quantities and qualities in the supply chain
• Reconciling planned production with actual output
• Measuring output using truck quantities
• Measuring materials during conveying
• Measuring the mass and volume of stockpiles
• Coal loss in storage and transit
• Losses from rail transportation
• Theft of coal in transit
• Spillage from loading and unloading floating vessels
• Losses at the end of the supply chain

The Methodology

Block chain can also be used to develop comprehensive end-to-end tracking of ores and minerals. The process would require sealed bags/containers/trucks etc of concentrates and ore to be stamped with a unique identifying ID that will subsequently be logged on the block chain. The ID will contain information on the quality and quantity of each parcel of ore or concentrate, as well as being continually updated with an ongoing timeline tracking and logging movements.

The initial applications of this are twofold; first, it will provide clients with peace of mind when transporting high-value minerals and second; it will help confirm that the minerals being purchased are from compliant and conflict-free regions. However, the risk that concentrates and ores could be mixed with materials of undetermined origin prior to being sealed in a bag and assigned an ID remains a possibility.

Block chain technology can be applied in coal mining like each coal bag/rake/truck etc are imprinted with a QR code that links to a digital token verifying their quality, ethical extraction, and authenticity. This is helping minimize fraud, theft, and related insurance costs, as well as creating a much more robust, transparent end-to-end view of the custody of goods. Materials could be tracked and traced from the moment of extraction to the point of sale, satisfying increasing consumer demand for both increased supply chain transparency and more environmentally sound products.

From the miner’s perspective, Blockchain could also be used to provide peace of mind on products sourced in less regulated environments as well as easily identify any supply chain weak spots or substitution risks. More radically, Blockchain could be employed to transform the identification, trading, and management of ore bodies. For example, a gold mining company could identify its ore body and subdivide it into smaller parts, say one cubic meter segments. This information, verified by a trusted on-ground third party, would be recorded in a Blockchain as a cryptographic token.

This project is focused on security and analyzing the distributed technology of Blockchain and its application in Contract mining mainly.

Here a model shall be created where it can secure the original data and protect against the fraud. Also the gaps to be identified to address by technology adaptation. After this, value chain to be implemented where supply cost minimization and material supply timely to end customers. Finally smart contract framework to be build based on the philosophy of contractual terms among the stake holders in contract mining. The transaction among stake holders shall be based on smart contract terms & obligation. Blockchain help to record, track, assign, link, monitor and secure the supply chain data and task. Blockchain brings the transparency to both of the parties. It may not depends on third parties/Auditors etc to audit the process. It destroy the centralize system into decentralize systems through decentralize database through insertion of transaction data. Finally the benefits transmission to the stake holders are much faster and transparent than conventional practices.

Our solution for Smart contracts can address following key attributes :

• Function as ‘multi-signature’ accounts, so that funds are spent only when a required percentage of people agree.
• Transaction to be made automatically only when all the required terms to be fulfilled by the supplier/miner etc.
• Manage agreements between parties.
• Provide utility to other contracts (similar to how a software library works).
• Store information about an application, such as domain registration information or membership records.

A private blockchain can be set up by anyone who would like to permit entry only to select, verified participants. Private blockchains run on a shared database with a blockchain structure that requires participants to obtain permission before reading or writing to the chain.

Large organisations that would prefer to be in control of who can access their blockchain are likely to gravitate towards a private blockchain. In a private blockchain network, the organisation has the authority to initiate and change transactions, modify balances and add new blocks.

Because private blockchains afford tighter control over the ledger, larger organisations, such as large listed mining companies, will likely prefer the use of private rather than public blockchains. The choice of private over public will determine the potential applications of blockchain in the mining and metals global supply chain.

Coal Supply Chain For A Typical Export Coal

Here a typical supply chain has been given from mining to export of coal. Block chain shall help Indian miners to export of coal which should be the ultimate agenda for Indian economy.