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Liebherr

Liebherr offers a Trolley Assist System for its haul truck range. Image: Liebherr.

Liebherr has partnered with ABB for the development of mine electrification technologies, with a particular focus on trolley support, taking advantage of both companies’ global footprint.

The memorandum of understanding (MOU) was announced at the MINExpo International conference 2021 in Las Vegas, as both companies broaden their horizons in autonomy, decarbonisation and electrification.

ABB’s global product line manager for electrification and composite plant Mehrzad Ashnagaran said starting with certain parts of the mine would maximise the partnership’s ability to mitigate carbon emissions.

“Building from our trolley assist infrastructure, which can reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions greatly, we can be part of wider electrification plans and help set bold targets for the near-future,” Ashnagaran said.

“The Liebherr Mining team shares our commitment to developing solutions for mining operations that have net zero emissions at their core.”

ABB has a reputation for electrification partnerships, having already done so in both Sweden and Canada for similar projects.

Liebherr Mining Equipment Newport news managing director Peter Hoeher said ABB was an ideal partner for the nature of this endeavour.

“The ABB team is covering a very large footprint in the surface mining industry with a strong reputation in the supply of electrical infrastructure solutions,” Hoeher said.

“Trolley applications will be the key technology to reduce the overall GHG emissions from surface mining operations in the fastest way possible while maintaining all the benefits of haul trucks in terms of performance, cost and operational flexibility.”

Liebherr’s expertise in electric mining equipment solutions will bring a qualified understanding of the obstacles to electrifying haul trucks.

Liebherr’s T 236 haul truck includes switch back capable trolley technology, while most other Liebherr haul trucks have a trolley solution of some kind.

Also at MINExpo, Liebherr announced a partnership with Hexagon Mining for the development of sensor, software and autonomous mining technologies.

Liebherr’s autonomous solutions provide an eight-layer safety concept in combination with the latest on-board perception technologies for long-range, high-resolution and 360-degree coverage.