IM 2018 May 18 | Page 20

MINING TRUCKS the Volvo Group’s operating income when the transaction is closed. Closing of the transaction is expected within six months. “The divestment will impact the Group’s cash flow and net financial position positively with an amount of approximately SEK0.9 billion at closing. NHL, which is listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, produces and sells among other things rigid haulers to the mining industry. Volvo Construction Equipment will continue to sell components for rigid hauler production to NHL also after the divestment.” New 290 t offering from BELAZ The Belarussian automobile engineering company BELAZ is about to make a new haul truck for a new carrying capacity class, BELAZ representatives told Belarussian news agency, BelTA. BELAZ’s experimental shop has nearly finished assembling a haul truck BELAZ 75320 with the carrying capacity of 290 t. “The new vehicle will expand the lineup of haul trucks with a large carrying capacity, giving customers more options to choose the vehicles that match their operational conditions. The new vehicle is designed to handle heavy loads on its reliable chassis, which incorporates cast components at top-tension points. The chassis, the drive axle, and the front axle boast high reliability thanks to modern design solutions, which rely on precise calculations throughout the entire engineering process.” “Reliability has also been proven by in-house trials. The new haul truck uses a 2,125 kW (2,850 hp) Cummins engine coupled with a new-generation alternating-current transmission from General Electric Company to operate with optimal power on uneven surfaces. The suspension is pneumohydraulic with an inbuilt hydraulic shock absorber.” system by reducing the number of moving parts, which not only improves the reliability of the transmission control system, but also improves the performance of the truck by more optimal and rapid switching of the operating modes of the truck. This, in turn, will allow customers to reduce the total cost of ownership of the whole fleet by optimising fuel consumption and reducing tyre wear.” Following the traditional policy to provide customers with the widest possible choice in terms of available optional systems and components in the autumn of 2018 the factory will also assemble the mining dump truck BELAZ 75605 with payload capacity of 360 t and equipped with an electromechanical AC transmission produced by General Electric. Finally, at the dealer facility in Poland (Polmark-Kielce company) the assembly of the new generation of mining dump truck BELAZ 75454 with payload capacity of 45 t powered by a Scania engine and conforming to Tier 4/Stage IV emissions regulation has been completed. The first chassis of this model has been working successfully since 2016 on the extraction of non- metallic building materials. In addition, several new innovative projects are being implemented at the BELAZ R&D facility aimed at development of mining trucks of different payload capacity ranges powered with engines operating on alternative energy sources, including gas fuel and replaceable storage batteries. In the framework of this program in Russia, BELAZ continues testing of the 45 t 75476 powered by LNG. Moreover, within the framework of testing of various gas-diesel systems in May 2017 in the Kemerovo region, a project for conversion of 136 t 75131 trucks to operate on natural gas in gas-diesel mode entered an active phase. By the end of 2017 the Siberia-Energo company converted 20 trucks. The first converted dump trucks have more than 5,000 operating hours in the gas-diesel mode. BELAZ global activities update BELAZ is expanding its activities in North and South America. BELAZ North America already has an office in Edmonton, the corporate oil sands mining hub. Along with standard capacity range dump trucks BELAZ is looking to deploy its biggest mining dump truck, the 450 t 75710 in the oil sands. Another focus of the company is Mexico where mining activity is really ramping up. BELAZ Mexico has been established in Sonora state, one of the most active in mining. Meetings with clients and customers during a recent visit were very positive. BELAZ has also established a regional office in Chile – BELAZ Latin America. The office is responsible for South America and especially for Chile, Peru and Argentina where a service network together with local partners has been established. Regional miners had the opportunity recently to get more acquainted with BELAZ and its market strategy at Expomin in Santiago at the end of April. BELAZ offered a virtual tour at the plant along with a virtual ride in the 75710 cab. BELAZ says it is fully prepared to make its trucks operate efficiently anywhere in the world. Lastly the 2015 deal with Bukit Asam in Indonesia saw fast delivery and commissioning of 40 units of 110 t 75135 trucks. “The BELAZIA team fully supported by BELAZ have spent a lot of time and effort proving to potential Indonesian customers the technical advantages and economical effects of using the BELAZ 130 t “The efforts are aimed at making the form and the integrity of the haul truck more rational. With the new vehicle on the market, BELAZ trucks will be represented in all the carrying capacity classes of the world market of haul trucks. ” Within the framework of the program for continuous improvement, BELAZ has also expanded the range of the steadily growing in demand mining dump truck series BELAZ-7558 with payload capacity of 90 t with a new model - BELAZ-75585 - which is equipped with a new AC drive produced by Russian company Ruselprom. The energy-efficient control system of the AC traction electric drive has already been applied on the 220 t BELAZ 75306, which successfully passed operational testing at Bachatsky coal mine in the Kemerovo region. Based on this at the end of 2017, BELAZ started manufacturing a pilot batch of mining dump trucks with AC drive and payload capacities of 136 and 220 t. “Application of this system significantly reduces the costs and time for maintenance of the drive 18 International Mining | MAY 2018 BELAZ trucks working in Indonesia. SE Asia is a major growth market for the company