Delivering an end-to-end mining haul truck battery swap solution that supports decarbonisation efforts in mining.
Background:
Founded by BHP, Rio Tinto and Vale, in partnership with Austmine, the Charge On Innovation Challenge encouraged innovative technology development to support the mining industry’s decarbonisation efforts. The challenge set for participants was to develop effective solutions to safely deliver 400 kWh of electricity to 220 tonne battery electric haul trucks in a way that maintains or improves current productivity levels.
Solution:
Ampcontrol partnered with Tritium to develop a compelling submission based on a battery swap concept. Existing mechanical and diesel-electric haul trucks will be retrofit with a swappable battery module which slides into the chassis, replacing the existing diesel engine. A battery swap station has been conceived featuring an automated system for removing batteries from haul trucks before placing them into a rack for charging. The automated system then selects and installs a fully charged battery, allowing the haul truck to continue its cycle.
Outcome:
In collaboration with Tritium, we were able to deliver an end-to-end mining haul truck battery swap solution that is fully automated, relocatable, scalable, and cell agnostic. This solution was also selected as one of the eight winning submissions of the Charge On Innovation Challenge, offering a host of benefits to the mining industry, including:
- Faster charging rate
- Improved battery lifetime
- Reduced battery lifecycle costs
- Improved productivity due to higher output power compared to mechanical or diesel-electric equivalent
- Minimised thermal management
- Customised functionality due to it being cell chemistry agnostic
- Lowered peak load on the electrical system of mine sites.
We will now collaborate with interested mining companies, OEMs, and investors to accelerate the technology development to support the future roll-out of zero-emissions fleets.
