Russia’s Copper Giant Turns to AI for Smarter Mining

Udokan Copper has rolled out two advanced AI systems that automate decision-making and stabilize production, marking a first for the Russian mining industry.

Udokan Copper, one of Russia’s largest mining companies, says it has pulled off a digital breakthrough by deploying two homegrown artificial intelligence systems — nicknamed “Advisor” and “Maestro” — at its mining and metallurgical plant. According to the company, it is the first project in Russia to implement real-time, end-to-end optimization of industrial processes.

Until recently, human operators handled much of the decision-making manually, sifting through data and adjusting equipment settings themselves. Now AI is doing the heavy lifting. Advisor analyzes hundreds of parameters every 15 to 30 seconds, suggests optimal configurations, and can even tweak machinery automatically. The company claims the system has cut manual interventions by 70 percent and boosted the consistency of output quality.

Maestro plays the role of chief conductor. Acting as a central dispatcher, it coordinates operations across different sections of production, taking into account how each process affects the others. That cross-system view, Udokan says, uncovers efficiency gains that would be impossible to find under siloed control.

Advisor has been fully operational since November 2024, running on critical stages like ore grinding, flotation, and concentrate thickening. Maestro has been in testing since July 2025 and is expected to cover all phases of production by the end of October.