THE LEADER VOLUME 19 • NUMBER 11 / 12
Wide body truck traction
Editorial Director Paul Moore BSc ( Hons ), MSc Email : paul @ im-mining . com
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There is no doubt that wide body trucks are making their presence known in mining in the smaller payload range up to 100 t . Essentially , they are larger , more powerful and much more robust versions of tipper trucks . They have already taken the Chinese mining market by storm over the past decade , with models being supplied by numerous manufacturers - Tonly , Yutong , SANY , Liugong , Sinotruk , XCMG , LGMG , Lovol , Shantui , Weichai , Zoomlion , along with a host of others . And their influence is now being seen in other important mining countries and markets , such as Thailand , Pakistan , Indonesia , Mongolia , Chile , Brazil , Guinea , South Africa , Botswana and Uzbekistan to name a few .
Many mines are operating large fleets of them running to many 100s of trucks – so they also suit autonomy – and a significant proportion of the trucks automated by China ’ s autonomous mining truck technology companies like TAGE Idriver , Waytous , EACON Mining and CiDi are wide body types .
Also significant is their powertrain flexibility given their simplicity of design and size - many of those delivered to the global market have been fully battery electric versions , but wide body trucks powered by diesel alternative fuels like methanol have been supplied as well . Recently , XCMG shipped 30 70 t class XGE105 mining trucks to the Winnng Consortium Simandou ( WCS ) mining company in Guinea which are already operating at Blocks 1 and 2 of the huge Simandou iron ore mining project .
Not only that but , as detailed in this month ' s news pages , Rio Tinto has announced it is collaborating with China ’ s State Power Investment Corporation Ltd ( SPIC ) green energy company SPIC Qiyuan to pilot battery swapping technology at the Oyu Tolgoi copper mine in Mongolia . The two-year project will showcase a full battery-electric truck ecosystem , featuring eight 91 t Tonly brand wide body trucks , 13 batteries ( each 800 kWh ), and a batteryswapping station , allowing for quick energy replenishment and minimising downtime .
Caterpillar has also responded to customer demand and is offering a wide body off-highway truck within the smaller-class size , IM learned during a pre-MINExpo 2024 trip to Tucson , Arizona , in September this year . Caterpillar has an SEM Machinery branded 3090F wide body truck available in China and Mongolia currently . This 60-t rated payload truck could soon be joined by the 70-t rated 3110 , David Rea , VP for Rigid Frame Trucks , said .
Rea also confirmed that the company was developing a Cat 707 wide body truck , which would also have a 70-t payload , for the international markets . Machines are currently being tested in field-follow trials in Africa , Asia and China , he said , ahead of a planned launch in 2025 .
During MINExpo 2024 , IM sat down with Ren Hua , General Manager of XCMG ’ s Global Mining Machinery Business Division . XCMG is today China ’ s leading mining equipment supplier and a growing force in mining globally . We asked him why wide body mining trucks are increasingly being used in place of other options in mining .
He commented : “ Because of their strength and also flexibility . When compared to conventional tipper type off highway trucks , they have a much stronger chassis plus a better and more robust suspension system . Plus they can carry a higher payload in relation to their size which means increased productivity . Then compared to the traditional two axle rigid mining truck , they are much more economical to run , with a very competitive initial cost as well as low ongoing maintenance costs . A rigid truck in the 80-90 t class will cost in excess of $ 1 million , with a wide body truck coming in at less than half of that with the same payload . Plus the parts prices are also lower . This is why wide body trucks are very rapidly becoming the mining truck of choice in mining globally in the smaller size classes – they already dominate in China but are becoming important in most major mining countries elsewhere as well including in South America , Africa , Europe and Southeast Asia .”
He added : “ And their payload is going up – we believe that in these size classes , even up to 100 t , that the wide body truck is set to replace the rigid truck in mining . Plus they are easier to electrify and there are many battery electric wide body trucks operating in the market already .”"
On suppliers , he agreed that it is a very competitive market but argued that it has some upsides . “ We have the advantage in China of being the number one player in both construction and mining equipment , including in large rigid trucks . In fact we draw on some of the technologies we have developed for our rigid trucks for our wide body designs . For example our 80 t wide body truck has a hydraulic suspension system instead of a spring-based system . Plus our wide body chassis I would say is more sturdy that those from other wide body truck OEMs . And we have been able to achieve a lower fuel consumption than competitors .”
Paul Moore Editorial Director paul @ im-mining . com
NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2024 | International Mining 3