For the primary time within the firm’s 40-year historical past, Liebherr have transformed one in all their R 9400 excavators from a traditional diesel to an electrical powertrain.
The re-powered mining machine was commissioned at Fortescue’s Christmas Creek mine web site in Western Australia – however what’s extra vital is that the conversion was carried out throughout the usual service lifetime of the machine.
“The modular design of Liebherr tools makes it potential to repower current diesel excavators to new zero emission configurations, resembling electrical powertrains,” explains Oliver Weiss, Govt Vice President of R&D, Engineering, and Manufacturing for Liebherr Mining. “Which means the diesel tools clients purchase as we speak can be future-proofed for a few years to return. The truth that we will ease the transition from conventional to decarbonized mining fleets for our clients is likely one of the key methods of the Liebherr Zero Emission Mining Program.”
Liebherr partnered with mining purchasers Fortescue to execute the repower, with engineers from each corporations working to make sure that the newly electrical excavator can be to the on a regular basis challenges of mining. The upgrades themselves, in the meantime, have been carried out at Liebherr-Australia’s Perth department in Western Australia.
Liebherr repowered R 9400 excavator
![Liebherr and Fortescue repower R 9400 excavator to electric configuration](https://electrek.co/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/01/image_480.png?w=1024)
“That is an thrilling milestone for each Fortescue and Liebherr as we work collectively to develop the zero emission options the world must step past fossil fuels,” says Fortescue Metals Chief Govt Officer, Dino Otranto. “Our partnership with Liebherr is an instance of true collaboration and the way heavy business can work collectively to decarbonize and eradicate fossil fuels.”
The transformed R 9400 will be linked to a continuing energy supply for power, both on to the grid or to a big scale BESS. For now, the excavator is linked to a hydrogen-fueled Offboard Energy Unit (OPU), designed and developed by Fortescue, that’s at the moment present process site-based testing.
Electrek’s Take
Changing fuel and diesel-fueled automobiles to electrical at scale is an idea that’s fraught with issues. Far too many to record right here, in truth. However heavy tools?
Every little thing from excavators to loaders to heavy vehicles are constructed to be powertrain agnostic, and producers will usually provide the identical fundamental car with Cummins, Detroit Diesel, or Volvo energy, so there’s a level of openness baked into these techniques already. Libeherr is simply taking that to the following degree by putting in an electrical drive motor rather than an inside combustion engine. And, if the challenge is profitable, it may very well be the primary of many.
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