The Weir Group PLC has made a strategic investment in CiDRA Minerals Processing Inc. to accelerate the global rollout of CiDRA’s P29 mineral separation technology—an engineered hydrophobic media platform poised to transform the economics and sustainability profile of base metal mining.
Under a newly signed collaboration agreement, Weir and CiDRA will jointly develop and deploy next-generation mineral processing flowsheets powered by P29. The partnership is aimed at solving mining’s most pressing challenges: falling ore grades, water scarcity, energy constraints, and increasing environmental regulation.
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P29 Mineral Separation at the Core of the Deal
At the heart of the agreement lies P29, a proprietary mineral separation platform developed by CiDRA. The system redefines conventional mineral recovery through a decoupled approach that separately optimizes particle selectivity, transport, and release. This allows for highly selective recovery across both fine and coarse particle size ranges while minimizing hydraulic entrainment—long a bane of flotation processes.
Weir’s investment will expedite commercial deployment of P29, which has already drawn interest from major miners like BHP. At its Carrapateena copper operation in South Australia, BHP is trialling P29 technology for coarse particle recovery (CPR) as part of efforts to increase mill throughput and reduce energy consumption.
In a 2024 environmental filing, BHP stated: “The CiDRA process treats the whole MPP tails… with very high selectivity such that the resultant mass recovery is as low as 1% to 3% with a concentrate grade equal or greater than the rougher flotation concentrate grade.”
A Sustainability-First Approach
As global mining players face growing pressure to decarbonize and conserve water, CiDRA’s P29 technology offers an ESG-aligned route to higher recovery and lower emissions per tonne of metal produced. The solution enables innovative flowsheets that use less water and energy while enhancing metal yield from lower-grade ore bodies.
Andrew Neilson, President of Weir’s Minerals division, said: “CiDRA’s P29 technology has the potential to unlock enhanced productivity and sustainability for customers and we’re pleased to help bring that impact to mines around the world.”
Kevin Didden, CEO of CiDRA, echoed the sentiment, calling the partnership “a transformative opportunity to scale P29 with a global leader embedded in the mining value chain.”
Leveraging Global Reach and Innovation Synergies
The collaboration brings together CiDRA’s tech-focused R&D capabilities with Weir’s expansive international customer base and vertically integrated product platform. Together, the companies aim to produce cutting-edge flowsheet solutions that integrate high-efficiency comminution, coarse particle recovery, and P29 mineral separation.
The goal: reducing water and energy use per tonne of metal produced, while unlocking trapped value in tailings and low-grade ores.
Weir’s global operating model and customer-centric distribution will be critical to scaling the technology across markets where resource nationalism, climate policies, and operational efficiency are reshaping mine planning.
Broader Implications for the Mining Sector
This partnership underscores a broader trend in the sector: a pivot from brute-force extraction to precision recovery technologies that maximize resource use and minimize impact. With investors and regulators demanding tighter ESG compliance, such alliances could soon define the future of mining flowsheets.
As miners chase higher productivity and lower environmental footprints, P29 mineral separation is positioned as a cornerstone of that transition.
