Balanced-skip haulage systems are one of the mining industry’s most mature technologies. Now thyssenkrupp is offering with its new Skip Way System it says “the advantages of rope running incline skips to open pits and quarries where haul truck operating costs are reducing profitability.”

The capital and operating economics of that system are very compelling, with dramatic reductions in CO2 emissions. With this system, haul trucks have a short, flat haul before discharging their loads into a waiting skip. With a system capacity of more than 2,000 t/h one of the skip discharges at the surface into a crusher station that – in turn – loads to an overland conveyor system for onward transport or in the case of overburden offers alternate parallel truck re-loading.

“The thyssenkrupp Skip Way System is a cost-effective and eco-friendly steep-angle conveying technology that can be integrated easily into existing steep open-pit mines or quarries. Many mine operators using truck haulage will face increasing production costs as their mines get deeper. The new steep-angle conveying system now offers an ingenious, cost-effective alternative to truck haulage. Obviously such a steep-angle conveying system will need to be adapted to the conditions of an existing mine and the technical/financial aspects of capex/opex will need to be clarified in advance – jointly with the mine operator.”