Market Insight from

Steep growth continues in the use of autonomous haul trucks, particularly in Australia and Canada

The popularity of autonomous haul trucks is gradually growing across surface mines, with miners taking advantage of improvements to productivity, reductions in accidents and operating costs, increased machine life and tyre life, and lower fuel consumption.

As of May 2021, GlobaData’s Mining Intelligence Center was tracking 769 autonomous haul trucks operating on surface mines across the globe. This compares to 476 at the same point in 2020, an increase of 61%.

The largest collection of autonomous trucks is in Australia with 561, up from 381 a year earlier, followed by Canada (143), Chile (18), and Brazil (14).

Credit: GlobalData

Rio Tinto has the largest number of autonomous trucks in operation, with 184, followed by Fortescue Metals Group, with 179 trucks. BHP has 175 trucks running autonomously or autonomous-ready and Suncor Energy has 76.

Amongst the major developments underway are BHP’s acquisition of an autonomous fleet of up to 86 Komatsu trucks at the Goonyella Riverside coal mine by 2022, and the deployment of 41 new model Komatsu 930E-5 ultra- class haul trucks at the company’s newly-commenced South Flank iron ore mine. BHP is also implementing a transition to a fully autonomous fleet of 34 trucks at the Daunia Mine.

Meanwhile at Newmont’s Boddington mine, the first of 36 planned autonomous units became operational in April 2021. Also in Australia, Caterpillar is supplying a fleet of 20 autonomous 793F trucks for Rio Tinto’s Gudai-Darri iron ore operation. First production is expected by the end of 2021.

In Canada, Suncor Energy and Komatsu reached an agreement in 2018 to add 150 Komatsu autonomous trucks over a six-year period at its oil sands mines. At its Steepbank mine and Fort Hills mine, 29 units and 47 units respectively are already working autonomously, and Millennium mine will have around 100 units by 2024.

Meanwhile, Teck Resources has undertaken an autonomous haulage pilot at its Elkview Operations in Canada using Komatsu autonomous trucks and now has over 20 autonomous trucks in operation. By the end of 2021, the mine is expected to make the entire fleet autonomous.

Caterpillar and Komatsu are the two main suppliers of autonomous vehicles, accounting for over 87% of the trucks tracked by the Mining Intelligence Center, with the 793F and 930E the most popular models for the two OEMs respectively.

For more insight and data, visit GlobalData's Mining Intelligence Centre.

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02/17/2024 13:00:08

Market Insight from

Private players to drive India’s coal output despite Covid-19 and renewables

Coal production in India is expected to grow from 777Mt in 2020 to 827.8Mt in 2021, a 6.4% increase. This follows a growth of 3.1% in 2020, despite the operational disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Key to the increase in output will be the entry of private players in the Indian coal industry. Since August 2019, the government has looked to encourage greater domestic production and reduce dependency on imports by permitting 100% foreign direct investment in coal mining.

It has also incentivised the auction process by offering to reduce the government’s share of revenues by 20% if the company begins production two years early and a 10% reduction when companies start production one year prior. After successfully auctioning 19 coal blocks in November 2020, the government listed 75 coal blocks to be auctioned in the second phase, of which 68 are thermal coal mines.

Credit: GlobalData

Overall, the government is targeting production of one billion tonnes of coal by FY2023-24 to help reduce its dependence on imports and GlobalData expects India’s coal production to grow at a CAGR of 9% to reach 1.2 billion in 2025.

Covid-19 will present some short-term challenges to this. There has been a sharp increase in new Covid-19 cases since the beginning of March 2021, leading to a series of fresh lockdowns across key coal-producing states such as Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Telangana.

Coal India’s operations have also been hampered during the second wave as employees tested positive. Despite this, a slight recovery in coal offtake was observed in April 2021, indicating a revival in demand over the coming months.

In the longer term, whilst power demand is growing, coal is gradually declining as a proportion of the power generated. In 2020, around 73% of the electricity in India was generated from coal.

However, India has environmental commitments to reduce carbon emissions to 50% by 2030. As a result, the share of coal-fired electricity generation is forecast to fall to 70.6%, while the share of renewables rises from 2.9% in 2020 to 4.2% in 2025.

For more insight and data, visit GlobalData's Mining Intelligence Centre.

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02/17/2024 13:00:08

COMPANY INSIGHT

Global Supplier of Innovative, Tough Submersible Pumps for the Underground Mining Market

PumpEng, founded in 2011, is an Australian owned and operated manufacturer and supplier specialising in tough submersible pumps for mining, construction and industrial dewatering.

ounder Paul Meneghel has experience in submersible pumps and mining stretching back to the 1980s. PumpEng evolved from a 2001 venture between Paul and the owners of Galvin Engineering. They set out to improve the design of mass-produced pump components for Australian operating conditions. The PumpEng team built on their own experience by consulting with Australian maintenance and mining staff to become a well-established specialist submersible pump supplier to several industry sectors, with underground mining as the prime focus.

The PumpEng vision has been to be the specialist in ‘tough submersible dewatering pumps’ based on:

Innovative thinking: Solutions are backed by a vigorous R&D program and commitment to improving product performance and installation practices.

Availability: Product sales, hire and aftercare accessible via a branch network.

Reliability: A tried and tested pumping range designed to last longer.

Consultation: The PumpEng Way is a step-by-step process of exploration, inspection and delivery to ensure the right pump is used correctly.

Data: Ongoing support is continuously sought and provided through repair data, site inspections and quarterly reporting to create sustainable improvement.

The PumpEng goal is to create a good day at work for staff and clients. A good day at work means a different thing for different people. However, if the right pump for the job is selected, installed and maintained correctly, the chance of pump failure is greatly reduced. Less pump failure means significantly less impact on project productivity, safety and the bottom line. Performance data from satisfied clients is testimony to the success of this approach.

PumpEng has developed a team of experienced staff whose mission is to create a good day at work for customers. This commitment extends to the design, manufacture and supply of pumps, right through to the expedient repair/rebuild and full aftermarket support of the product range. This work is all aligned with the PumpEng Core Values and Behaviours. PumpEng has also partnered with major foundries and quality engineering facilities located within Australia and abroad to facilitate the reliable supply of quality parts and pumps.

Tought Submersible Pump Range

Design • Manufacture • Sales

JetGuard

JetGuard® has an all-metal wet end with a high chrome impeller and has been designed for use in the harshest environments where polypropylene fibres for shotcrete, high amounts of aggressive sulphides or drill fines and tramp are present in the wastewater. The hydraulic water curtain guards against fibre entering the pump. JetGuard is suitable for underground mining, surface mining and general dewatering applications. It is available in 10kW and 20kW in 415V or 1,000V in 50 cycle and 480V or 600V in 60 cycle.

Guardian

No more pumps with rubber and polyurethane components! The Guardian is an upgrade to the Raptor range. It incorporates an all-metal wet end together with the high chrome impeller which extends pump life and reduces repair costs.

The Guardian is available in 8 kW to suit all markets. With the 20kW model to be available soon in the same combinations.

Raptor

For underground mining, surface mining, construction and general applications. Parts interchangeable with other OEM supplied BIBO range. Troubleshooting and issue resolution. The Raptor is available in 5kW, 8kW and 20kW to suit all markets.

ScatPump

A heavy-duty submersible slurry pump with high chrome impeller and agitator. Flows available up to 100 l/s and heads up to 32 m. ScatPump is available in 1.5 kW - 22 kW to suit all markets.

Metal Vest

The all-metal design of MetalVest™, together with the impeller constructed of Hrc provide a longer wear life which extends the life of this high head dewatering pump and reduces repair costs. The MetalVest™ are available in 37 kW - 110 kW in 415V, 600V and 1,000V. (50 or 60 Hz).

Full-Service Provider

PumpEng® offers a full range of services for submersible pumps including:

Australia Wide Hire
Genuine Parts
Improvement Focused Repairs
Ongoing Consultive Data-Based Support

Markets and Locations

PumpEng has a prime focus on supplying underground mine operators and contractors, together with other operations requiring ‘tough submersible pumps’.

Our fully owned branches in Australia, currently operate in: