{"id":1028,"date":"2026-01-21T11:53:54","date_gmt":"2026-01-21T11:53:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.greatmining.com\/mining-news\/?p=1028"},"modified":"2026-01-21T11:53:54","modified_gmt":"2026-01-21T11:53:54","slug":"top-shaft-mining-contractors-to-watch-in-2026-usa-whos-really-building-underground-mine-shafts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greatmining.com\/mining-news\/top-shaft-mining-contractors-to-watch-in-2026-usa-whos-really-building-underground-mine-shafts\/","title":{"rendered":"Top Shaft Mining Contractors to Watch in 2026 (USA): Who\u2019s Really Building Underground Mine Shafts?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

When people talk about \u201cshaft mining,\u201d the spotlight usually lands on the mine owners. But the truth is, the projects don\u2019t move without the specialist contractors who do the tough, technical work underground\u2014sinking new shafts, deepening old ones, rebuilding infrastructure, and fitting everything out for hoisting and ventilation<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And these aren\u2019t small jobs. A mine shaft isn\u2019t just a hole in the ground\u2014it\u2019s the mine\u2019s backbone. It\u2019s how crews and equipment get down, how ore gets hauled up, how airflow is managed, and how services like power, water, and communications are routed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Heading into 2026, a handful of contractors stand out in the U.S. and North America for their experience with exactly this kind of high-stakes vertical work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1) Redpath (including Redpath USA)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Why they matter:<\/strong>
Redpath is one of those names you hear again and again in underground mining. They\u2019ve built a reputation for complex projects, and with Redpath USA based in Nevada<\/strong>, they\u2019re firmly in the North American mix. When the scope involves serious underground access and long schedules, Redpath is often on the shortlist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What to watch in 2026:<\/strong>
More operators are under pressure to cut delays and lower risk on deep projects. That usually means working with contractors who\u2019ve already proven they can handle major shaft systems\u2014and Redpath fits that profile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2) Frontier-Kemper (USA)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Why they matter:<\/strong>
Frontier-Kemper is one of the best-known U.S.-based underground contractors, especially when the work involves deep shafts<\/strong>\u2014production, ventilation, or service. They\u2019re a familiar player in American underground construction, which makes them a go-to option for projects that need conventional shaft sinking and heavy-duty support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What to watch in 2026:<\/strong>
As more U.S. mines push deeper, underground expansions become more common\u2014and that\u2019s exactly where Frontier-Kemper tends to show up. If a mine needs a reliable team for traditional shaft construction in the U.S., their name usually comes up fast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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3) Thyssen Mining<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Why they matter:<\/strong>
Thyssen has been around a long time, and they\u2019re known for their underground expertise\u2014including shaft sinking capability<\/strong>. They\u2019ve built a strong presence across North America and have the kind of experience that matters when the work gets tricky.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What to watch in 2026:<\/strong>
Aging infrastructure is a growing issue across the mining industry. Mines don\u2019t just build new shafts\u2014they also need to rehabilitate, upgrade, and extend the life<\/strong> of existing ones. Thyssen often gets involved when the job is more about keeping a mine running safely and efficiently than starting from scratch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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4) DMC Mining Services<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Why they matter:<\/strong>
DMC is positioned more like a full underground partner than just a contractor. Along with mine development work, they also support specialized vertical scope like shaft sinking and vertical raising<\/strong>, plus engineering and planning support that many owners want bundled into one package.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What to watch in 2026:<\/strong>
A big trend right now is owners wanting fewer handoffs between vendors. Instead of juggling separate engineering and construction teams, many prefer one partner who can manage both. That plays right into DMC\u2019s strengths.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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5) Cementation & Dumas (two separate firms, same top tier)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

These are two different companies, but they often get mentioned in the same breath because both are well-known in the Americas for shaft-related work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cementation<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Why they matter:<\/strong>
Cementation is frequently seen as one of the \u201ctop tier\u201d contractors for technically demanding shaft projects. When the scope is deep, complex, or high-risk, they\u2019re one of the names that tends to enter the conversation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dumas<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Why they matter:<\/strong>
Dumas is also a major underground contractor with a strong reputation for shaft-related projects and underground mine services across the Americas.<\/p>\n\n\n

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When people talk about \u201cshaft mining,\u201d the spotlight usually lands on the mine owners. But the truth is, the projects don\u2019t move without the specialist contractors who do the tough, technical work underground\u2014sinking new shafts, deepening old ones, rebuilding infrastructure, and fitting everything out for hoisting and ventilation. And these aren\u2019t small jobs. A mine…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1031,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[82,4,83,65,46,5,52],"tags":[44,32,20,42,22],"class_list":["post-1028","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-contractors","category-mining-companies","category-mining-contractors","category-mining-industry","category-mining-news","category-mining-techniques","category-usa","tag-mining-companies","tag-mining-industry","tag-mining-methods","tag-mining-techniques","tag-shaft-mining"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greatmining.com\/mining-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1028","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greatmining.com\/mining-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greatmining.com\/mining-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greatmining.com\/mining-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greatmining.com\/mining-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1028"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.greatmining.com\/mining-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1028\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1032,"href":"https:\/\/www.greatmining.com\/mining-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1028\/revisions\/1032"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greatmining.com\/mining-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1031"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.greatmining.com\/mining-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1028"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greatmining.com\/mining-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1028"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.greatmining.com\/mining-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1028"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}