UNDERGROUND RAIL
Elsewhere in the world, in Canada,
NMT/Schalke recently replaced a rail system for
Vale’s Thompson nickel mine in Manitoba that was
originally put in operation in 1998. This included
three new 30 t locomotives and a new train control
system operating double traction between the two
locomotives of one train (one on each end of the
train) using a new wireless network. Over in China,
NMT will soon start supplying solutions for one of
China’s largest underground iron ore projects yet
as part of a consortium with two Chinese partners,
one supplying infrastructure and the other a
remote-control system. The contract involves up to
ten trains with the first train of 12 NMT mining cars
of 20 m 3 , two loading chutes and one unload
station to be built in Canada and the rest of the
contract to be completed in China. The 22 Mt/y
underground iron ore mine is the new Macheng
mine, part of steel giant Shougang Group.
Furthermore, Schalke announced in late 2019
that it has signed a contract with Kyokuto Boeki
Kaisha Ltd from Tokyo to supply a 140 t locomotive
to Japan. The purchase of a second locomotive is
planned for 2020. This large locomotive will be
used in a Japanese steel plant and will pull trains
with weights up to 1,400 t. It will be Schalke’s
heaviest four-axle loco, 10 t heavier than the 130 t
locomotives supplied to Codelco in Chile. This
diesel-electric locomotive will be equipped with all
Schalke's typical features like electro-dynamic
braking up to standstill. A further special
requirement of this vehicle is the narrow gauge of
1,067 mm. Delivery of the first locomotive is
scheduled for 2021.
Clayton’s comprehensive offering
Clayton Equipment Ltd based in Burton-on-Trent,
UK is a famous name in mining, tunnelling and
surface rail solutions and is notable for the range
of customisation and scale it can offer. The
company can deliver locomotives from 1.75 t right
up to 135 t, with prime movers ranging from
diesel, battery and trolley line options in its
conventional range, to hybrids and super hybrids
in its technology range. Overall design options are
customisable delivering the best return per tonne
hauled for clients, with the best selling class in
mining and tunnelling being nominally 20-30 t and
for surface applications 90 t. While in recent years
its business has been dominated by surface
applications, a reflection of the overall mining
market demand, it has recently had a number of
new major projects for the mining sector, including
a contract to build a Li-ion powered, high capacity,
automation ready, locomotive fleet for a major
new deep mining base metals project in Canada.
The company also offers a range of flamerproof
ATEX machines for Group 1 environments. Control
systems include everything from manual to
remote control and full automation.
On the difference between the tunnelling and
mining markets, Steve Gretton, Clayton Executive
Chairman told IM: “The two markets could not be
more distinct from each other – tunnelling is very
price sensitive due to the projects having a short
defined time period and the big contractors having
very tight margins, sometimes as low as 2%. In
fact, the market is now dominated by leasing and
buy back deals which further reduces OEM
margins. The nature of the market means the
machines don’t have to stand up to the same
punishment as mining locos, which might have to
work for 10 years or more before they are even
subject to a major overhauled. Mining locos need
to be very heavy duty and therefore have a
resulting higher cost but when you factor in
advances in design, materials and today the
added technology elements, the TCO argument is
crucial. Most significant mining tenders involve
having to present highly detailed performance
analysis, including payback for the solution
offered over the lifetime of the project. This is
especially the case when upgrading an existing
lower spec rail haulage system, as comparing
customer performance and reliability data is key
to proving the cheaper capital cost options
available in the market turn out to be significantly
more expensive over the mine life. It has been
proven over and over again that selecting the
cheaper cost options in mining means those
customers will come back to us or other
established OEMs after a few years given the
resulting OPEX costs associated with buying
More on
www.paus.de
Power
Grader
Hermann Paus Maschinenfabrik GmbH
Tel.: +49 (0) 5903 707-0
Fax: +49 (0) 5903 707-333
www.paus.de
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