Tag Archives: 798 AC

BHP to trial Cat Dynamic Energy Transfer solution at Escondida

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BHP is the first customer to announce plans to trial Caterpillar Inc.’s Cat® Dynamic Energy Transfer (DET) system on battery electric and diesel electric mining trucks at BHP sites.

Caterpillar announced the launch of the Cat DET solution last week ahead of displaying a Cat 798 AC with a DET attachment at MINExpo 2024, this week. The technology can transfer energy to both diesel-electric and battery-electric large mining trucks while they are working around a mine site. It can also charge an electric haul truck’s batteries while the machine is on the move, and the system’s infrastructure is flexible, which allows it to be easily relocated when compared with current commercialised offerings, including large, fixed overhead trolleys.

The planned trials are the result of over two years of close collaboration between BHP and Caterpillar to find sustainable and viable energy transfer solutions. The trials include validating the solution in BHP Iron ore and Copper businesses, including CAT 793 fleet at Jimblebar and CAT 798 fleet at Escondida. BHP also intends to trial Cat DET as an integrated system with Cat autonomous solutions.

BHP announced in 2021 a collaboration with Caterpillar to deploy zero-exhaust emissions mining trucks at BHP sites to reduce operational greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, enabling more hands-on learning opportunities to ensure successful deployment at BHP sites. The collaboration has helped shape the processes, technology and infrastructure that will be required to support diesel-electric and battery-electric mining trucks and the mine sites of the future, the company says.

BHP’s Chief Commercial Officer, Ragnar Udd (right), said: “We are pleased to be able to trial the DET technology that Caterpillar has developed, and it is a welcome addition in our plans to enable zero-emissions mining truck deployment at BHP. Innovation and technology will play a crucial role as we work towards BHP’s goal of net zero operational emissions by 2050, and we are determined to keep building partnerships like this to achieve this objective.

“This collaboration is testament of our commitment to find solutions that are sustainable and viable – for us and the broader industry.”

Denise Johnson (left), Caterpillar Group President, said: “BHP has been part of our Early Learner program from the beginning, providing valuable feedback. We look forward to continuing that collaboration as we work together to trial the Cat DET system on both diesel-electric and battery-electric trucks at BHP’s sites. This is an important next step to validate the crucial energy management solutions needed to support not only BHP and Caterpillar, but also the broader mining industry.”

Caterpillar surpasses 5 billion tonnes of material autonomously hauled

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Roughly nine months after reaching the 4-billion-tonne (4.4-billion-ton) autonomously hauled milestone, trucks equipped with Cat® MineStar™ Command for hauling have now moved over 5 billion tonnes (5.5 billion tons), the OEM says.

Cat autonomous trucks are on pace to eclipse previous record totals of materials hauled in a calendar year, projected to be more than 1.4 billion tonnes (1.57 billion tons) in 2022.

Currently, more than 550 mining trucks are equipped with Command for hauling, operating across three continents. Over the last nine years, trucks equipped with Command for hauling have journeyed nearly the average distance between the Earth and Mars with zero loss-time injuries, according to the mining OEM.

Denise Johnson, Group President of Caterpillar Resource Industries, said: “In 2013, we placed our first fleets of autonomous trucks in Western Australia at FMG Solomon and BHP Jimblebar. Since that time, trucks using Command for hauling have safely travelled nearly 200 million km, more than twice the experience in autonomous operations of any automobile manufacturer. Caterpillar has grown the number of autonomous trucks in operation by 40% in the past two years.

“We believe that automation is one of many keys to implement technology that unlocks the value miners need when it comes to the energy transition toward more sustainable operations.”

One of the company’s recent contract wins on the automation front relates to BHP’s majority-owned Escondida mine, in Chile.

Marc Cameron, Vice President of Caterpillar Resource Industries, said of this agreement: “The new Cat 798 AC electric drive trucks replacing BHP’s entire haul truck fleet at the Escondida mine will feature technologies that advance the site’s key initiatives, including autonomy and decarbonisation. The agreement allows Escondida…to accelerate the implementation of its autonomy plans by transitioning the fleet with autonomous haulage system (AHS) technology.”

Caterpillar has enabled 13 customers at 23 different locations to succeed with full site autonomous haulage solutions. Starting with iron ore at Solomon (Fortescue Metals Group) and Jimblebar (BHP), its solutions now manage oil sands, copper, gold, coal, lithium and phosphate. Spanning the 190- to 370-t class sizes, the Cat 789D, 793D, 793F, 797F, and electric drive 794 AC and 798 AC mining trucks are capable of fully autonomous operation. Retrofit kits allow miners to expand Command for hauling to existing Cat mining trucks.

Since 2019, Caterpillar says it has won eight of nine greenfield autonomy sites on offer.

Sean McGinnis, Vice President and General Manager for Cat Mining, said: “In 2023, we will expand Command for hauling to the 139-t truck class at ioneer Ltd’s Rhyolite Ridge lithium-boron mine. This is the first greenfield project in North America to use an AHS. We are now seeing a shift toward autonomy requested on new Cat trucks. Whereas large mines with fleet sizes of more than 70 trucks were the early adopters of the technology, we are seeing economic viability for autonomy at smaller mines with a fleet of less than 15 trucks.”

Caterpillar says it continuously monitors the industry for opportunities to broaden the use of automation to help drive safety and efficiency.

Beyond expansion of Command for hauling to the Cat 785 for ioneer, Caterpillar sees potential for Cat autonomy in quarry and aggregates. Additionally, Caterpillar’s AHS technology has been deployed on the Cat 789D autonomous water truck (AWT) operating at Rio Tinto’s Gudai-Darri mine in Australia, the world’s first AWT, for automated watering of haul roads.

Caterpillar, Barloworld to talk up mining equipment and power solutions at Indaba

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Caterpillar and its southern Africa dealer, Barloworld Equipment, are set to present a broad range of machines, technology and support services at next week’s Mining Indaba, in Cape Town, South Africa.

The Caterpillar exhibit at Indaba, running from February 3-6, will feature digital displays of electric power generation systems, surface and underground mining equipment, and Cat MineStar™ technology capabilities – ranging from vehicle safety systems, such as operator fatigue monitoring, to production systems using teleremote, semi-autonomous and autonomous machine operation.

Caterpillar has recently introduced several new underground hard-rock mining vehicles in Africa. The new R1700 underground LHD brings the latest technology for semi-autonomous and fully autonomous operation to the region. The loader also delivers more than 30% greater fuel efficiency, 65% more lift and tilt force, and 15 t capacity – 20% more than its predecessor, yet in the same dimensional envelope, according to Cat.

Using MineStar Command for underground, the new R1700 (pictured) can be operated from a remote location to keep miners away from potential hazards, Cat says. “The system also boosts utilisation by allowing immediate entry after blasting and by reducing shift change time to nearly zero.”

In addition to the R1700, Caterpillar has introduced several LHDs and underground trucks equipped with EU Stage V engines and emission controls. “Reducing emissions helps miners improve the underground working environment,” it said. On top of this, and with the goal of zero underground emissions in mind, Caterpillar is continuing to develop the battery-powered R1700 XE.

Erik Elsmark, Region Manager for the Caterpillar Underground Mining Division, said: “Caterpillar and Cat dealers are supporting the whole African continent and all types of underground mining applications – big and small mines and all minerals.

“In the past several months we have delivered machines covering our full product range, demonstrating that we are well positioned to meet our customers’ needs.

“Starting with our AD22 underground articulated truck to our R2900 LHD, our equipment delivers exactly the size class and power needed for the application. With distribution centres in Southern Africa and Middle East and our dealer network in all countries of the African continent, we are able to achieve world-class service.”

The extensive line of Cat surface mining machines and technologies will also be a talking point at the event.

Caterpillar has recently expanded its line of electric drive mining trucks in the past year to include the 794 AC, 796 AC and 798 AC. Recently, a South Africa mining operation took delivery of several 794 AC trucks (pictured above), which have 291 t capacity, the company said. “This model has already proven its high productivity and superior speed on grade in a wide variety of applications,” Cat remarked.

In the Cat drill line, the latest model is the MD6200 rotary blasthole drill, designed as a production drill with the flexibility to do pre-split drilling – all in a package that Caterpillar says is its most transportable rotary drill yet. The MD6200 is designed to perform rotary or DTH drilling in single-pass or multi-pass modes and can drill holes of 127 to 200 mm in diameter, according to Cat.

Cat MineStar Command now includes systems for autonomous operation of mining trucks, semi-autonomous operation of dozers, and semi-autonomous as well as autonomous rotary drills. These systems enhance safety, boost production and lower cost per tonne, Cat says.

Mine power experts will also be on call at the show, with the representatives keen to talk about the ability for Cat generators to deliver reliable, continuous power, temporary power, or a combined heat and power solution. “The Cat team customises and installs systems for every phase of mining,” it said.

Caterpillar says it offers the industry’s widest range of diesel, gas and dual fuel generator sets; automatic transfer switches, and switchgear for seamless integration. Additionally, it offers microgrids, fully-integrated power systems that utilise solar panels, energy storage and monitoring and control systems in conjunction with any configuration of Cat gen sets.

Caterpillar talks up its new ultra-class electric drive mining trucks

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Caterpillar has announced more details on the two new ultra-class mining trucks to join its portfolio, the Cat 798 AC and Cat 796 AC.

IM was on site in Tinaja Hills, Arizona, to witness the grand unveiling and saw the 798 AC in action.

The company said the decision to add the new models was based on providing its customers with more options at the highest end of its payload scale regarding electric or mechanical drive.

The 798 AC features a 372 t payload and joins the mechanical-drive Cat® 797F in the 400-short-ton size class. The 797F has been a popular choice with more than 1,000 sold to the oil sands, copper, coal and iron ore markets.

The electric-drive 796 AC delivers 326-tonne (360-ton) payload. With Cat deciding the 795 AC will not being offered in Tier 4 Final configuration, the 796 AC is likely to act as a replacement in regions where engine emissions are highly regulated, such as the US and Canada.

When comparing field test data of the 795F and 798 AC, the new and larger model was shown to carry, on average, carry 12.9% more payload, boost productivity by 17.2% and exhibit 4% faster cycle times.

Cat’s Jeff Castleman, in charge of new product introduction in the large mining trucks range, said at the truck unveiling the company was able to move from design to production in the field with the 798 AC in just one year.

It was able to achieve this as the machine is based off the old Unit Rig MT6300 AC design, a product line that came with the 2011 acquisition of Bucyrus.

Cat says both trucks will be available in June quarter of 2019, but IM understands two 798 ACs have been undergoing trials at Arch Coal’s Black Thunder coal mine in Wyoming, US, for close to six months, an operation that formerly used at least one MT6300 AC.

While the company expects the mechanical drive 797F to remain a leader in the Canadian oil sands sector – around a third of sales have been to this market segment – studies comparing the two showed the new 798 AC could more than hold its own when it comes to hauling on grade and getting out of the sticky underfoot conditions sometimes present at these mines. This is also backed up by the fact two MT6300 ACs previously operated in the Canadian oil sands.

The design of the new trucks focuses on delivering class-leading payload, high reliability and simple serviceability, Cat says. These attributes are built on the frame and chassis design proven in 18 million hours of legacy truck operation and now used by the Cat 794 AC.

The AC powertrain of each of the two new trucks draws from the Cat 795 AC and Cat 794 AC, which have been operating successfully for about 5 million hours. The electric drive is developed and manufactured by Caterpillar and is the single source for the entire powertrain, a key selling point of the truck when it comes to serviceability and operation in the field.

The Cat C175-16 diesel engine powers both trucks. With more than 21 million hours of operation in mobile equipment and power generation, the engine can be configured to meet US EPA Tier 4 Final emissions regulations and offers a choice of 2,610 kW (3,500 hp) or 2,312 kW (3,100 hp) to meet the mine’s needs.

“To further adapt to the mine, software changes can adjust system power to help meet production targets or to work smoothly in mixed fleets,” Cat says.

Both truck models are designed to minimise empty machine weight, as configured in the field, enabling the 798 AC to carry its class-leading payload of 372 t and to haul more material each cycle on 59/80R63 tyres.

Both new trucks feature four-corner, oil-cooled disc brakes as well as dynamic braking for stable handling and fast stopping. Superior retarding capability, blended braking and the Cat Traction Control System help boost productivity and enhance safety.

The Cat AC drive is a high voltage system (2,600 volts) that operates at lower current than most competitors’ systems. When combined with full integration of the power train, the result is lower heat generation, smaller and lighter components, and longer component life.

In terms of the trucks’ body design, the Cat High Efficiency body is sized and configured to meet the specific needs of the mine, dictated by fragmentation, abrasion, cohesion and the loading tool. The curved floor, front, and canopy strengthen the entire body, which is integral to the truck. The body is sized to meet the payload requirements without compromising vehicle balance, braking or control.

Open engine access and service platforms ease maintenance tasks, with the modular design allowing easy removal and installation of components. The engine, traction alternator, motors, inverter, grid and final drives can be removed independently, again speeding up maintenance tasks.

Traction alternator and optional inverter platforms allow for easier inspections, diagnostics and component swaps. The result is less service time and greater uptime, Cat says.