Industry intelligence
Southern African growth slows
the region’s GDP,” according to the report. It
further states, “The second largest economy
in southern Africa, Angola, is expected to
grow by 1.2% 2019 and 3.2% in 2020, while
Mozambique will grow at 4.5% in 2019 and
5% in 2020.”
The report points out that in 2018, the five
fastest growing economies were Madagascar
(5%), followed by Botswana (4.2%), Mauritius
(4.1%), São Tomé and Príncipe (4.1%) and
According to the recently released 2019
Southern Africa Economic Outlook Report by
the African Development Bank, the southern
African economy as whole is projected to grow
slower than others on the continent – at 2.2%
in 2019 and 2.8% in 2020.
“At the heart of this slow growth are
major headwinds of high inflation, increasing
government debt and slow growth in South
Africa, which contributes about two-thirds of
Zambia (4%). The five slowest growing
economies were Angola (-0.7%), eSwatini
(-0.5%), Namibia (-0.1%), South Africa (0.7%)
and Lesotho (0.9%) – a mix of large (Angola
and South Africa) and smaller economies
(Lesotho, Namibia and eSwatini). In 2019,
Madagascar is projected to grow faster than
all the other countries in the region, followed
by Malawi, São Tomé and Príncipe and
Mozambique.
Original equipment manufacturer Caterpillar
launched its new R1700 underground mining
loader at the recent bauma trade fair in Munich,
Germany. The loader will serve as a platform
for Caterpillar’s first battery electric Load Haul
Dump truck (LHD).
The design of the new battery electric Cat
R1700 XE will use advanced technology for
lithium-ion batteries and fast, onboard charging
to advance safety and promote high production.
The Cat R1700 was introduced in 2018 as
a completely new design focused on major
productivity improvements for the size class.
These improvements primarily come from its
efficient electrohydraulic system, which saves
fuel and provides greater loader forces, leading
to significantly improved digging performance
in the pile.
The R1700 XE will combine these new
features with a lithium-ion battery operating
and charging system developed by Caterpillar.
The exclusive MEC 500 fast charging system
allows rapid, onboard battery charging with
little or no impact to the mine’s existing
electrical infrastructure. The Cat charging
www.miningmirror.co.za
Caterpillar goes electric
Caterpillar launched its first R1700 underground
mining loader at the recent bauma trade fair in
Munich, Germany.
system eliminates both the hazards of battery
handling during recharging and the necessity to
maintain change-out battery inventories.
In designing the R1700 XE, Caterpillar is
relying on a wealth of experience in designing
electrified machines and power generation
components and solutions. These include more
than 350 patents granted during design of
machines such as the electric drive D7E and
D6 XE crawler dozers, 988K XE wheel loader,
and 794 AC and 795F AC mining trucks. The
R1700 XE programme also uses components
from the Cat Microgrid solution.
For underground mining specifically, this
electrification experience was reinforced by the
development of a proof of concept machine.
Caterpillar converted a conventional diesel
Cat LHD into a battery electric platform.
Concurrent to this programme, the new MEC
500 charging system was tested. Both the loader
and charging system saw substantial testing at
Caterpillar’s Peoria Proving Grounds in the US,
and that was followed by weeks of operation
and testing at a customer’s mine in Canada.
Compared with baseline numbers for a
diesel powered R1300 LHD, the battery
powered model exhibited more than a
tenfold decrease in total energy costs, almost
eight times less heat generated, significantly
less noise at the operator’s ear, immediate
torque availability from the electric motors,
reduced dust levels attributed to not having a
conventional diesel engine radiator fan, and
reduced tyre wear.
JUNE 2019 MINING MIRROR [5]