Epiroc to supply battery electric equipment to mine

Epiroc will supply battery-electric mining equipment to a green field mine site in South Africa.

Epiroc, a Swedish supplier to the mining and infrastructure industries, said it has won a significant order for battery-electric mining equipment from Ivanplats for a green field mine in South Africa.

Ivanplats, a subsidiary of Canadian mining company Ivanhoe Mines, has ordered several Boomer M2 Battery face drill rigs and Scooptram ST14 Battery loaders. The new Platreef underground mine, which will trial the emissions-free machines during its initial development phase, will produce palladium, rhodium, platinum, nickel, copper and gold. Ivanplats is aiming to use all battery-electric vehicles in its mining fleet at Platreef.

The order exceeds SEK 90 million ($10.447 million) in value and was booked in the second quarter 2021, Epiroc said.

“It is encouraging that Ivanplats is considering going all battery-electric at Platreef, and we are proud to support them on this journey,” said Helena Hedblom, Epiroc’s president and CEO. “Battery-electric equipment is increasingly embraced by mining companies as it provides a healthier work environment, lower total operating costs, and higher productivity. The technology is now well established, and Epiroc is driving this change toward emissions-free mining.”

Boomer M2 Battery face drill rigs and Scooptram ST14 Battery loaders are built in Sweden and are scheduled for delivery in early 2022. Epiroc will also provide on-site operator and maintenance training to Ivanplats.

“We want to be at the forefront of utilizing battery electric, zero-emission equipment at all of our mining operations,” said Marna Cloete, Ivanhoe Mines’ president and CFO. “This partnership with Epiroc for emissions-free mining equipment at the Platreef Mine is an important first step towards achieving our net-zero carbon emissions goals while mining metals required for a cleaner environment.”

Epiroc said it will offer its complete fleet of underground mining equipment as battery-electric versions by 2025, and its full fleet for surface operations as battery-powered versions by 2030.