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Mining · head to head

MinePlan vs Vulcan Geological Modelling

M

MinePlan

Mining

Life of mine planning and scheduling

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Vulcan Geological Modelling logo

Vulcan Geological Modelling

Mining

Industry-leading geological modelling for mining

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: MinePlan the Internet Archive's capture of mineplan.com.au on 4 March 2020 already showed only a generic 'Website Coming Soon' hosting placeholder rather than a product page, indicating the domain has not hosted a live MinePlan site for at least several years.; Vulcan Geological Modelling user interface is dated compared to modern mining software
  • They diverge on capability: MinePlan covers Life of mine planning, Vulcan Geological Modelling covers Implicit modeling.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which MinePlan and Vulcan Geological Modelling actually diverge.

Attributes where MinePlan and Vulcan Geological Modelling differ
AttributeMinePlanVulcan Geological Modelling
Founded20081981

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (subscription), free tier (No), platforms (Windows), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Mining).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in MinePlan

  • Life of mine planning
  • Long-term scheduling
  • Economic modeling
  • Scenario analysis
  • Feasibility assessment
  • Vulcan
  • Whittle

Only in Vulcan Geological Modelling

  • Implicit modeling
  • Explicit modeling
  • Kriging estimation
  • Simulation
  • Variogram analysis
  • Vulcan Mine Planning
  • Leapfrog
  • Database systems

Both cover

  • Surpac
  • Excel
  • Windows support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

MinePlan

  • Life of mine planningnot Vulcan Geological Modelling
  • Long-term schedulingnot Vulcan Geological Modelling
  • Feasibility studiesnot Vulcan Geological Modelling
  • Economic analysisnot Vulcan Geological Modelling
  • Strategic planningnot Vulcan Geological Modelling

Vulcan Geological Modelling

  • Resource estimationnot MinePlan
  • Geological modelingnot MinePlan
  • Grade controlnot MinePlan
  • Reporting compliancenot MinePlan

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

MinePlan

  • The Internet Archive's capture of mineplan.com.au on 4 March 2020 already showed only a generic 'Website Coming Soon' hosting placeholder rather than a product page, indicating the domain has not hosted a live MinePlan site for at least several years.

Vulcan Geological Modelling

  • User interface is dated compared to modern mining software
  • Requires extensive training and certification to use effectively due to software complexity
  • High-performance hardware requirements increase capital expenditure for infrastructure
  • Solids operations take an extremely long time to compute, limiting responsiveness
  • Premium pricing makes the software unaffordable for small and mid-sized mining companies

Pricing, plan by plan

MinePlan

On request
  • MinePlan Standard$16000/year
    • Life of mine planning
    • Long-term scheduling
    • Economic analysis

Vulcan Geological Modelling

On request
  • Vulcan GM Standard$7500/year
    • Drill hole management
    • Explicit modeling
    • Grade estimation
  • Vulcan GM Advanced$12000/year
    • All Standard features
    • Implicit modeling
    • Conditional simulation
  • Vulcan GM Enterprise$22000/year
    • All modules
    • Multi-site license
    • Priority support

Which should you pick?

Choose MinePlan if

  • You need life of mine planning.
  • You work on Windows.
  • You also want long-term scheduling.
MinePlan review

Choose Vulcan Geological Modelling if

  • You need implicit modeling.
  • You work on Windows.
  • You also want explicit modeling.
Vulcan Geological Modelling review

Questions people ask

Is MinePlan or Vulcan Geological Modelling better?
Neither clearly leads. MinePlan starts at On request and Vulcan Geological Modelling at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, MinePlan or Vulcan Geological Modelling?
MinePlan starts at On request and Vulcan Geological Modelling at On request.
Does MinePlan or Vulcan Geological Modelling run on more platforms?
Both run on Windows, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
What is MinePlan best used for?
MinePlan is most often used for life of mine planning, long-term scheduling, feasibility studies, economic analysis. Of those, life of mine planning and long-term scheduling are not what Vulcan Geological Modelling is typically brought in for.
What can MinePlan do that Vulcan Geological Modelling cannot?
MinePlan covers Life of mine planning, Long-term scheduling, Economic modeling, Scenario analysis. Vulcan Geological Modelling covers Implicit modeling, Explicit modeling, Kriging estimation, Simulation. Both handle Surpac, Excel, Windows support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Vulcan Geological Modelling: What is Vulcan?

Vulcan is Maptek's 3D geological modeling and mine planning software used for exploration, geological modeling, resource estimation, mine design, and production planning. More than 19,000 licenses are used globally across the mining industry.

Source
Vulcan Geological Modelling: What mining tasks can Vulcan perform?

Vulcan handles geological modeling, drillhole data management, block modeling, resource estimation, pit optimization, mine design, grade control, geotechnical analysis, scheduling, geostatistics, and rehabilitation planning.

Source
Vulcan Geological Modelling: What training does Maptek provide for Vulcan?

Maptek provides comprehensive training programs, documentation, and workshops for Vulcan users. However, the tutorials and workshops are limited and cover only basic functionalities, making advanced use of the software difficult without extensive hands-on experience.

Source
Vulcan Geological Modelling: What are the system requirements for Vulcan?

Vulcan requires a high-performance computer system with significant processing power and RAM to run effectively, which may necessitate additional hardware investment for smaller operations.

Source
Vulcan Geological Modelling: Is Vulcan difficult to learn?

Yes. Vulcan has complex components requiring extensive training to use effectively. Tutorials and workshops are limited and cover only basic functionalities, making the learning curve steep for new users.

Source
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