Mining Electrification

Finding

China runs hundreds of battery mining trucks with battery swapping; the 240-ton Western trucks are still in trials

The largest battery-electric mining fleets are Chinese and mid-sized: 290 battery trucks of about 90 tons at Zijin's Xinjiang zinc mine, and 100 driverless XCMG trucks with six-minute battery swaps at Huaneng's Yimin coal mine in Inner Mongolia. About 72% of the world's battery mining trucks are in China.

The ultra-class trucks that move most Western ore are a harder problem: a loaded 240-ton truck climbing out of a pit uses far more energy than a battery small enough to carry can hold. Caterpillar's 793 XE, trialed by BHP and Rio Tinto at Jimblebar in the Pilbara since March 2026, carries about 564 kWh and matches diesel speed, and Fortescue has ordered about 360 battery Liebherr T 264s, but BHP has said battery trucks meeting its scale are arriving more slowly than planned. The answers are charging power - Fortescue's charger is rated up to 6 MW - and trolley assist, where trucks draw power from overhead lines on the ramps.

Underground mining electrified first, because every diesel engine below ground needs ventilation to clear its exhaust. Battery loaders, trucks and drills from Sandvik, Epiroc, Komatsu and Normet are standard in Canadian, Nordic and Australian mines, and cutting diesel can reduce ventilation energy by up to 40%. Electric mines also become large grid customers in remote places, so they arrive with on-site solar, wind and batteries; Texas's planned Round Top rare-earth mine is covered on AustinIO.

Segments

What electrifies in a mine

Makers

Electric mining equipment plants

From the ElectronsX industrial gigafactory dataset. For models, see the electric mining equipment directory.

Related

Related coverage

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