UNDERGROUND DRILLING
BHP has unveiled a battery-electric Epiroc Boomer M2 jumbo at its Olympic Dam mine in South Australia
BHP rolls out BEV Epiroc M2 jumbo at Olympic Dam
BHP has unveiled a battery-electric Epiroc Boomer M2 jumbo at its Olympic Dam mine in South Australia to help support the company ’ s target to reduce operational greenhouse gas ( GHG ) emissions , including by minimising reliance on diesel .
The 28.7 t , 14.5 m long battery-electric rig will be powered by a 150 kW traction motor and 150 kW battery system , eliminating greenhouse gas emissions from diesel-powered tramming . It will be tested for efficiency , productivity and comfort over the 12-month trial period , BHP said .
Jumbos are used in underground mining development to drill holes , which are then loaded with explosives and open up new areas . Post-blasting , jumbos install large bolts to stabilise mine walls . BHP currently operates 16 Epiroc jumbos at Olympic Dam .
The fully-electric machine will also break new ground in its user experience by reducing noise and vibration , and eliminating heat and the emissions of diesel particulate matter , the miner said .
Andrew Harris , General Manager Olympic Dam Mine , said : “ The world is going to need a lot more of South Australia ’ s high-quality copper , and the team at Olympic Dam is behind our push to produce that copper more sustainably .
“ Collaboration with supply partners like Epiroc will be critical to developing the technology required to reduce emissions , while ensuring we continue to improve the safety and productivity of our operations . I can ’ t wait to see what this new fully-electric jumbo can do .”
BHP ’ s Group Procurement Officer , James Agar , said : “ The fully-electric jumbo is yet another innovation that will support our progress towards achieving our medium-term target of reducing operational greenhouse gas emissions by 30 % by financial year 2030 .”
Alisa Bennett , Underground Business Manager
for Epiroc Australia and Mongolia , said : “ Epiroc are excited to partner with BHP in a new era of electrification in Australia . Epiroc ’ s ambitious sustainability targets like halved carbon emissions by 2030 matches BHP ’ s sustainability agenda well . The Boomer M2 Battery rig will facilitate a healthier and safer underground working environment for our customers without compromising on productivity .”
BHP has a medium-term target to reduce operational GHG gas emissions by at least 30 % by the 2030 fincial year , from a financial year 2020 baseline . Approximately 40 % of BHP ’ s operational emissions in its baseline year came from diesel-powered vehicles .
The trial of the jumbo also supports BHP ’ s efforts to minimise the operational impact of diesel particulate matter in underground mining operations by 2025 , as part of BHP ’ s participation in the International Council on Mining and Metals ’ Innovation for Cleaner , Safer Vehicles initiative .
AARD brings more low profile options to Epiroc
Epiroc also recently completed its acquisition of AARD Mining Equipment , the South African mining equipment manufacturer . AARD , based in Chamdor near Johannesburg , South Africa , designs , manufactures , services and supports a wide range of mining equipment , specialising in low-profile underground machines for mines with low mining heights .
The high-quality products include drill rigs , bolters , loaders , scalers , and more . The company ’ s customers are mainly in the southern Africa region where its machines are present in over 30 large mining operations from gold to platinum to diamonds , including the Venetia Underground Project .
AARD has approximately 200 employees .
The AARDMASTER LP from AARD Mining Equipment
Epiroc first announced on August 25 , 2022 , that it had agreed to acquire AARD . Helena Hedblom , Epiroc ’ s President and CEO said at the time : “ AARD has reputable and reliable products that complement our underground product portfolio well . This acquisition will further strengthen our growth ambitions in Africa and beyond . We are looking forward to welcoming the great team at AARD to Epiroc .”
Aard underground drills include the low profile AARDMASTER LP , and the standard height SINGLEMASTER drill rig .
Komatsu to launch new range of midsized hard rock jumbos
It is also a big year for Komatsu ’ s underground hard rock drills as it gears up to officially launch its range of new Z3 mid-sized models , building on the success of the compact Z2 category drills . Komatsu jumbos in terms of their control system fall into two types - a ‘ pilot-hydraulic ’ control system and ‘ intelligent ’ control system as an
In August Komatsu is set to launch a range of new category 3 hard rock drills to complement its smaller category 2 models ( pictured )
option . The smaller range for now will stay as pilot-hydraulic only , as well as the new bolter ZB31 . Both control systems will be available for the jumbos ZJ31 and ZJ32 , plus for these jumbos there will also be battery options .
So there will be four options for the jumbo : ZJ32 ( pilot-hydraulic , diesel Tier 3 or Euro Stage V ); ZJ32i ( intelligent , diesel Tier 3 or Euro Stage V ); ZJ32Bi ( Intelligent , battery tramming ) and ZJ32B ( pilot-hydraulic , battery tramming ). This driveline flexibility in driveline options while maintaining a common platform is targeting a global mining customer base aligned with regulatory bodies in each mining cluster .
The same variants will be available for the ZJ31
34 International Mining | JUNE 2023