SURFACE MINING TRUCKS
The fuel cell / battery module , designed together with First Mode , being installed recently in one of Anglo American ' s 930E trucks at Mogalakwena platinum mine , South Africa , which is being converted to run as a Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle ( FCEV )
efficiency from production to consumption ( capture of regen and efficient delivery of trolley power to batteries and direct to wheels ). Siemens trolley systems are used as an example at FQML Kansanshi working with its Hitachi EH4500 fleet .
ABB is making a big market contribution with its ABB Ability™ eMine portfolio which includes its ABB Ability eMine Trolley System and 600 kW FastCharge . Built up-on open standards and designed based on OPPCharge – an initiative aiming at establishing a common interface for opportunity charging of electrical vehicles – the charger leverages a connection device from Stäubli . ABB Ability™ eMine FastCharge remains the fastest and only fully automated charging system for mining haul trucks offering up to 600 kW of power , resulting in multiple productivity and cost benefits . ABB argues that there remains a bottleneck to the adoption of high-power charging infrastructure , however . “ Battery technology – incorporating the battery unit , the connector from the charger to the truck , and the pin socket on the vehicle- is not sufficiently advanced to receive higher currents specified by the battery property known as the C-rate . For example , a 150kWh battery needs a minimum C- rate of four to be able to receive a charge at 600 kW .”
Copper Mountain Mining Corporation has successfully commissioned its trolley assist project , which consists of an approximately one kilometre trolley-assist haul ramp and seven pantograph-equipped Komatsu 830E-5 electric haul trucks . This project is in partnership with SMS Equipment , Komatsu , ABB , Clean BC , and BC Hydro , and is aimed at cutting carbon emissions at the Copper Mountain Mine by at least 30 %, paving a solid foundation to achieve the company ’ s goal of net zero carbon emissions by 2035 .
Zero emissions deals
On zero emissions the big news has been the collaboration partnerships signed between OEMs and the big miners – for Caterpillar this includes Newmont , BHP , Rio Tinto and Teck . As an example , Rio Tinto will work with Caterpillar to advance the development of the manufacturer ’ s future 220 t 793 zero-emissions autonomous haul truck including the validation of Caterpillar ’ s emerging zero-emissions technology . Rio Tinto and Caterpillar will progress a series of development milestones to include a 793 prototype pilot program , testing and pre-production trials . It is anticipated that the world ’ s first operational deployment of approximately 35 new Caterpillar 793 zeroemissions autonomous haul trucks will be at Gudai-Darri once development is complete . Gudai-Darri is Rio Tinto ’ s most technically advanced iron ore mine , in the Pilbara , Western Australia .
Komatsu ’ s zero emissions way forward with customers is its collaborative Greenhouse Gas Alliance in which the founding members are Rio Tinto , BHP , Codelco and Boliden . Its initial target is advancing Komatsu ’ s power-agnostic truck concept . Again using Rio Tinto as an example , it has publicly said it will conduct pre-production trials of the new equipment at a site and has the option to purchase some of the first trucks from Komatsu once they are commercially viable .
In addition , Canada-headquartered Kinross Gold Corporation recently announced details of its Climate Change Strategy and greenhouse gas ( GHG ) reduction action plan , which includes the company ’ s commitment to working towards the goals of the 2015 Paris Agreement . To tackle Scope 1 emissions , it includes entering into an agreement with Komatsu to take an active role in the development of a Zero Emission Haulage Solution , which will target the development of zero-emission haul trucks . Kinross is a major global gold mining company ( production of 2.07 Moz in 2021 expected to rise to 2.65 Moz in 2022 ) with mines and projects in the United States ( Fort Knox , Alaska ; Bald Mountain & Round Mountain , Nevada ), Brazil ( Paracatu ), Mauritania ( Tasiast ), Chile ( La Coipa ) and Ghana ( Chirano ).
It is worth pointing out that most of these deals will see zero emissions implemented along with autonomy on the same fleets , simply as they will go together . As Denise Johnson , Caterpillar Group President , Resource Industries told IM at MINExpo 2021 : “ Think about a traditional truck with a driver – they will look at how much diesel fuel they have and generally , a tank is enough for three shifts or 24 hours . As you move to electric – you need to charge those trucks much more frequently . You are in a position where , depending on where you are on the minesite , you may not get back to a charging station and the truck will get stuck . The layer of
Komatsu ' s power agnostic development truck being put through its paces at the company ' s Arizona Proving Grounds - this one is based on an 830E platform and is all electric with battery power and trolley capability
52 International Mining | MAY 2022