Drillcon - Diamond Core Drilling and Raise Boring

Our business concept is to be a leading specialist in the fields of diamond core drilling and raise boring.

The main activities are diamond core drilling above and below ground, directional core drilling, raise boring and horizontal raise boring. In 2006 Drillcon employed nearly 120 persons, of whom 10 are staff and engineers.

Drillcon have been in the diamond core drilling business since the early 1960s. Through the years we have developed a high degree of competence through projects on the Nordic markets and in several countries around the world. Today our overseas activities account for approximately 35% of total sales.

Our strategy is to continuously improve both techniques and methods in order to better meet the needs of our customers for short project times, appropriate quality and good economy.

Our assignments are quite diversified and include everything from small projects over a few days to multi-million contracts reaching over several years.

Drillcon consists of three companies each with its own area of expertise. Drillcon AB manages the group and provides the financial support. Drillcon Core AB performs core drilling mainly in Scandinavia. Drillcon Geotecnia & Sondagens Lda carry out core drilling in the Iberian Peninsula and raise boring, around Europe. Drillcon's head office is situated in Nora, just outside Örebro in Sweden.

RAISE BORING

Drillcon's raise-boring division operates out of Portugal. Drillcon has worked throughout Europe all the way from Greenland to Greece. We have also recently carried out projects in Turkey and Israel. Clients range from hydro power utilities and mining companies to wastewater authorities.

Drillcon introduced horizontal raise boring into the area in the early 1990s and, as mentioned above, pioneered the use of directional core drilling to keep the pilots holes for these drilled tunnels straight and on target. Drillcon has over 55,000m of raise boring experience. The company has five raise boring machines, the chart on the right shows their typical capacities.

DIAMOND CORE DRILLING

Drillcon Core AB, as its name suggests, is the core drilling company within the Drillcon group. Drillcon owns and operates approximately 20 rigs for surface and underground drilling. The equipment is modern and well maintained and consists primarily of the latest Hagby and Craelius hydraulic rigs. The crews are highly trained and have experience in all different aspects of core drilling.

The clients are mostly international mining companies active in the Nordic countries and in southern Europe but much specialist work is carried out for the civil engineering market as well as for geotechnical investigations. Our annual diamond core drilling volume is roughly 120,000m.

• All types of core barrels are available from conventional double tube to standard and thin wall wireline
• Thinwall double tube from 46mm to 56mm
• Conventional double tube, from 46mm to H
• Standard wireline, Q series, from B to H
• Thinwall wireline, GM series, from B to N
• Hagby wireline 46-76

This wide range of rigs and 'in the hole' equipment ensures that Drillcon Core runs the most effective system for the given rock conditions and required core diameter. There is no reason to cut more rock than necessary.