Epiroc's Q3 Signals a Tighter Aftermarket for Parts Buyers

Epiroc, the Swedish manufacturer of drilling equipment, rock excavation tools and hydraulic attachments, closed the third quarter of 2026 with double-digit growth across the board — and the detail that matters most for equipment buyers sits in the services line.

Group orders reached SEK 17.5 billion, up 15% from SEK 15.1 billion a year earlier, with organic growth of 12%. Revenue rose 10% to SEK 16.8 billion, reflecting 7% organic growth. Mining dominated the order intake at 83% of group orders, up from 78% a year ago, while infrastructure demand held steady. Equipment orders grew 16% organically, driven largely by underground mining demand and growing interest in the company's diesel-electric product range. The quarter also included a contract worth roughly SEK 610 million from MMG to expand the Khoemacau copper mine in Botswana — Epiroc's second-largest individual order ever — within SEK 790 million of total large equipment orders.

The aftermarket told an even stronger story. Service revenues grew 13% organically, outpacing overall revenue growth, with mid-life equipment upgrades highlighted as a key growth area alongside rising demand for automation and safety-focused digital solutions. Operating profit rose 22% to SEK 3.4 billion, lifting the operating margin to 20.3% from 18.4%. Earnings per share came in at SEK 2.00 against SEK 1.62 a year earlier, while operating cash flow eased to SEK 1.44 billion as the company built inventory to support equipment demand. Net debt-to-EBITDA stood at 0.70.

Management expects mining demand to remain high in the near term with infrastructure markets stable, and Epiroc is expanding manufacturing and logistics capacity in Sweden, India and Mexico. During the quarter it also launched technology that lets autonomous haul trucks move seamlessly between underground and surface operations.

For buyers, the services number is the signal worth reading. When a major OEM's service and parts revenue grows faster than its machine sales, it usually means fleets are keeping existing machines alive longer — upgrading mid-life rather than replacing — and that component demand across the installed base is strong. In practical terms, that tends to translate into fuller order books at parts desks and longer lead times on popular components for popular platforms.

Fleets running drilling rigs, hydraulic breakers and similar attachment-heavy equipment have the most exposure to that trend. Ordering wear parts ahead of need, and keeping per-machine records of what has already been replaced, are the two cheapest defenses against waiting on a back-ordered component in a tight aftermarket.

Source: Aggregates Business

Cover image: Epiroc SmartROC C50 surface drill rig by Alexandre Prevot, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.