We’re thrilled to announce that CanRock Mining has signed a contract to immediately cease mining operations as part of a partnership to digitize its entire Red Granite Mine.
Red Granite Mine is the first mine in history to commit an entire portfolio of in-ground assets to the blockchain, immediately ceasing mining operations in return for access to the Element United Digital Economy.
The agreement represents a first of its kind: A potentially profitable mine deciding that there is more value in the digital application of its assayed elements than in their actual extraction.
“We know what’s in the ground. We have the assays and N.I. 43-101 geological survey,” says mining consultant Ryan Chomiuk, noting that the Red Granite Mine has a value of over $103 billion USD.
“We could spend millions of dollars, and a whole lot of CO2, in order to bring this granite to the surface at a profit,” says mine owner Gene LaPointe. “Or we could pledge to keep it in the ground and get access to all the amazing things Element United is building in the blockchain. Our agreement allows us to protect the environment and potentially profit from digital representations of our mine’s assets.”
This is big news, but here at Element, we believe it is just the beginning. Our goal is to reduce the environmental toll of mining by creating products such as NFTs, nodes, digital communities and metaverses that live on the blockchain.
We do it by partnering with mines and representing their physical assets and precious metals as digital products built on the Ethereum Blockchain. These digital products interact with the unmined precious elements of each mine in a way that is collectible and rewarding, while leaving the elements in the ground and the natural environment untouched.
We are creating a way to mine gold and precious elements without actually digging them out of the ground, bringing an eco-conscious mindset to mining that uses blockchain instead of heavy machinery.
It’s a boon for everyone involved: digital miners, local communities, and of course, our environment. We couldn’t be more excited to have the Red Granite Mine as our very first mining partner.
