General Assembly del proyecto OPTIMINER en Freiburg, Alemania
On 21 and 22 January 2026, the Iberian Sustainable Mining Cluster (ISMC) actively participated in the OPTIMINER General Assembly, held at the facilities of Fraunhofer ISE in Freiburg im Breisgau (Germany). The meeting brought together project partners to review progress, align next steps and reinforce collaboration towards more sustainable and innovative mining practices in Europe and Chile.
Progress Review Across Key Work Packages
The first day of the General Assembly focused on monitoring the progress of Work Packages WP1, WP2, WP3 and WP6. WP6, coordinated by ISMC, plays a strategic role within the project, covering key horizontal activities such as:
Dissemination and communication
Health & safety assessment
Stakeholder engagement
Clustering activities
Promotion of strategic Europe–Chile cooperation
During the session, each task leader presented the current status of their activities, key achievements to date and the next planned milestones, enabling a comprehensive overview of the project’s evolution.

Visit to Fraunhofer ISE Laboratories
As part of the agenda, consortium members took part in a guided tour of Fraunhofer ISE, including a visit to one of its laboratories. Researchers presented several pilots developed within the project and provided detailed explanations of their operation, offering first-hand insight into the technological solutions being advanced under OPTIMINER.

Focus on Project Coordination and Demonstrators
The second day was dedicated to project management and coordination activities (WP7), as well as to the analysis of pilots, demonstrators and use cases (WP4). These sessions enabled partners to assess technical progress, identify synergies and ensure alignment between technological development and project objectives.

Strong Cluster Representation
In addition to the ISMC team, other cluster members involved in OPTIMINER also attended the meeting, participating on behalf of their respective companies: Álvaro Serrano, representing SALORO; Raúl Fernández Abad, representing LEONORE Development; and Raúl Carrillo, representing Ecocastulum. Their participation reinforced the strong commitment of the ISMC ecosystem to the project.
Advancing Sustainable and Innovative Mining
Overall, the General Assembly proved to be highly productive, reaffirming the consortium’s shared commitment to advancing towards more sustainable, safe and innovative mining solutions. Through collaborative work, technological development and strong stakeholder engagement, OPTIMINER continues to contribute to strengthening the European and Chilean mining value chains.

