China’s Shanghai Qiyuan Green Power, the green energy heavy duty truck technology company affiliated with state-owned power company SPIC, has given an update on one of its latest electric mining truck projects, located in Inner Mongolia.
The Datang International Xilinhot Shengli East No. 2 open-pit coal mine has an approved construction scale of 30 Mt/y and a long-term planning capacity of 60 Mt/y. Qiyuan Green Power says it has put 30 145 t driverless mining trucks and two charging and swapping stations into operation for mining trucks together with its ecosystem enterprise partners. The mining trucks are using autonomous driving technology supplied by Shanghai Boonray Intelligent Technology, in which SPIC is also a strategic investor.
These battery-swapping mining trucks, which undertake the transport work from the midpoint of the stripping section to the midpoint of the dumping site, are all equipped with Qiyuan’s CTB800 mining truck battery system. Compared with traditional small-capacity batteries with 396 kWh or 528 kWh capacities, Qiyuan says its CTB800 mining truck batteries have longer endurance, plus highly efficient thermal management and charging and discharging efficiencies, which can also operate steadily under the extreme cold conditions in northern China.
The large battery capacity it adds has significantly increased the cruising range, effectively reducing the time loss caused by frequent battery swapping and ensuring the continuous and stable operation of the mining trucks. The electric mining trucks are equipped with dual motors and a 4-speed AMT gearbox, demonstrating outstanding heavy-load climbing ability.
In addition, the PK10 charging and battery swapping station for mining trucks of Qiyuan Green Power closely cooperates with the mining trucks with its advanced dual battery swapping robots, side-extending and top-lifting battery swapping technology to shorten the time for battery swapping to less than 5 minutes.
Qiyuan Green Power adds: “The innovative hydraulic transmission system effectively reduces the operating power consumption and enables the battery swapping station to operate normally in a low-temperature environment. The station can also complete the ongoing battery swapping action even in case of power failure, fully satisfying the needs of the mining trucks and ensuring the continuous and stable operation of the mining trucks.”
It says the operation mode of ‘double unmanned’ + ‘electrification’ has brought extraordinary economic benefits to the mine. Benefiting from the application of intelligent, electrified and unmanned technologies, Qiyuan estimates the project can save about RMB18 million in annual energy consumption (calculated on the basis of 30 mine trucks travelling 280 km per day and operating for 350 days in a year), and reduce diesel fuel consumption by about 550 t.
The company argues that large-capacity driverless mining trucks and automatic battery swapping stations can reduce costs and improve efficiency for enterprises as well as promoting the sustainable development of the industry. The second batch of 20 new energy battery-swapping mining trucks and two charging and battery swapping stations for mining trucks at Datang Xilinhot it adds will also begin operate soon.