Hitachi Construction Machinery Co Ltd says it has completed the test machine version of an engineless, full battery rigid frame dump truck and on January 20, 2024, the test machine will be shipped from Hitachi Construction Machinery’s Hitachinaka-Rinko Works in Japan to the Kansanshi copper and gold mine operated by First Quantum Minerals Ltd in the Republic of Zambia. The company also confirmed to IM that this test machine is based on the EH4000 AC-3 platform and has a nominal payload of 200 tons.
The OEM stated: “With environmental awareness on the rise in the mining industry, there is growing interest in the electrification of mining machinery as part of efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. To meet the high customer demand for the electrification of dump trucks in particular, which are operated in large numbers at mining sites, Hitachi Construction Machinery began collaborating with ABB Ltd in June 2021 to develop the full battery dump truck. On March 1, 2023, Hitachi Construction Machinery signed a letter of intent (LOI) with First Quantum to establish a zero-emission partnership, and the companies plan to conduct technological feasibility trials using the full battery dump truck test machine at First Quantum’s Kansanshi copper and gold mine.”
Conceptual image showing how final assembled all battery truck will look
Hitachi Construction Machinery adds that it has accelerated the development speed of the full battery dump truck by applying proven technology from the current trolley charging type rigid dump trucks. Hitachi Construction Machinery tested the basic operations of the full battery dump truck test machine at Hitachinaka-Rinko Works, by gradually combining the battery charging and discharging system, pantograph, and other power supply systems with the drive system that controls the travel of the dump truck.
After it was confirmed that all systems were operating properly, the test machine was ready to be sent to the mining site in Zambia. The technological feasibility trials, which are set to begin in mid-2024, aim to verify the basic performance of operations required of a dump truck, such as traveling, turning, and stopping under actual operating loads, as well as the battery charging and discharging cycles.
First Quantum, which presently operates 41 Hitachi Construction Machinery (diesel) trolley trucks (39 EH3500AC-II and two EH3500AC-3 rigid dump trucks) at the Kansanshi copper and gold mine, already has much of the infrastructure required for full battery dump trucks in place.
Going forward, Hitachi Construction Machinery Group says it will continue collaborating with customers while leveraging their expertise in the development of (diesel) trolley trucks, as well as their extensive delivery record, to accelerate the development speed of the full battery dump truck, thereby contributing to the achievement of virtually zero greenhouse gas emissions from mining machinery.