WORLD PROSPECTS
XDE150 136 t mining truck chassis, along with a battery grader, the GR350EP. The XDE150E( sometimes referred to as the XDE150ES to distinguish it from the electric XDE150E mining truck) is cited by XCMG as the world’ s largest electric powered water truck, designed for green dust suppression and efficient operation in ultra-large open-pit mines.
The GR350EP is equipped with a 528.6 kWh lithium iron phosphate battery, delivering 6-8 hours of continuous performance. It also offers dual-gun fast charging for quicker turnaround. The grader has a mouldboard width of over 5 m and a travel speed of up to 42 km / h.
Of course, the most anticipated addition to the line up for Fortescue is yet to come – the all battery version of the 240 t class XDE260. This will form roughly half of the battery electric large mining truck fleet for Fortescue – around 150 to 200 units; the other 150-200 units being 240 t battery electric T 264 trucks from Liebherr. The first XDE260E trucks are set to be ready for testing in 2027 before being shipped to Fortescue in 2028.
Liebherr for its part has already shipped over 100 diesel electric T 264 mining trucks to Fortescue which are already in use across multiple operations including Iron Bridge and Eliwana plus its Green Energy Hub testing area at Christmas Creek. The 100 unit milestone was reached earlier this year. The first battery electric units are understood to be conversions of these existing trucks that will take place in Australia with a Fortescue Zero battery power system, with the initial trucks set to be running by end-2026.
Liebherr originally had the contract for all of Fortescue’ s battery mining truck requirements up to around 360-400 units dating to a signing in September 2024 at MINExpo – Fortescue subsequently passed half of the truck order to XCMG in 2025 with Fortescue Founder and Executive Chairman Dr Andrew Forrest stating at the time:“ China is scaling and manufacturing green technologies at unprecedented speed and our partnerships give Fortescue access to that capability.”
https:// www. xcmgglobal. com /; https:// zero. fortescue. com / en
RKX Rock Extraction set to unveil electric pulse rock breaking
Arguably there are limitations of the two conventional approaches to rock breaking. RKX Rock Extraction Ltd, based in Lisburn, Northern Ireland states:“ Blasting demands the transport and handling of extremely dangerous materials, with serious security and environmental implications, and remains unavailable or in short supply across much of the world.”
It adds:“ Hydraulic hammers, while useful across a range of applications, break by vibration, an inherently inefficient means of energy transfer, and one that progressively shortens the life of the carrier excavator.”
It was long familiarity with both methods that led to the founding of RKX in 2021,“ and to the conclusion that breaking by controlled and precise shock, produced electrically, offered a fundamentally better path.”
While the use of electrical pulses to fracture or break rock – sometimes referred to as pulse or pulsed power – has been and is being trialled by others – I-Pulse and its various divisions like I-Mine and I-ROX being a good example – the RKX offering is an interesting development.
It has built a machine which uses the instantaneous torque of electric power to develop up to 100,000 joules per strike, yet is light enough to mount on a 20 t class excavator.“ Developing a genuinely new approach to rock breaking takes time, and the engineering challenge was significant. Converting the concept of productive electric breaker capable of operating in the world’ s most demanding environments required five years of development and testing.”
It adds that finding the right technology partners was central to that process.
RKX has built a quality supply chain, including YASA, a cutting-edge British electric motor manufacturer( wholly owned subsidiary of Mercedes-Benz). The result it says is a thoroughly researched and tested breaking tool, able to replace or supplement explosives across a wide range of applications including demolition, primary and secondary breaking, and recycling.
From the outset, several design priorities shaped the development of the RKX-Volt 100k, all of which have been incorporated into the production machine.
The most fundamental was giving a 20 t class excavator access to 100,000 joules of breaking energy, with a strike every three to five seconds.“ Twenty-tonne excavators are the most widely deployed machines in quarrying, construction, and demolition worldwide – which creates a significant market opportunity, but more importantly means the machine gives any individual, company, or community the ability to undertake work that would not otherwise be possible with the equipment they already own.”
RKX adds that electric power makes telemetry possible, enabling remote diagnostics and the early identification of potential technical problems before they become failures. The modular design simplifies maintenance and component replacement, minimising downtime.
“ Noise, vibration, and dust are welldocumented environmental problems associated with both blasting and hydraulic hammer use. The RKX-Volt 100k generates minimal noise, principally the sound of impact and the ability to regulate strike power from 10-100 % means vibration near buildings or environmentally sensitive sites can be strictly controlled. The breaking mechanism itself produces minimal dust.” The final priority was ensuring the machine does not shorten the life of the carrier. The system incorporates design features that eliminate the transmission of shock into both the breaker itself and the excavator.
It says the RKX-Volt 100k underwent an extensive period of trials across a range of applications. In demolition, the shock shattered concrete and separated rebar cleanly, simplifying the downstream recycling process.“ In primary extraction, principally limestone, performance was efficient and consistent. The machine also demonstrated the ability to separate layers of rock from narrow, high-value ore veins, avoiding the mixing and contamination of ore that blasting typically causes. Performance on the largest hard rock oversize exceeded expectations.”
The company concludes:“ As regulatory pressure on blasting continues to tighten and demand for cleaner, more precise extraction grows, the case for a genuinely
8 International Mining | JUNE 2026