China’s Xiangtan Electric Manufacturing Corporation (XEMC) is reporting sustained demand for its ultra-class, fully battery-electric rigid mining trucks, positioning them alongside early deployments such as Caterpillar’s 793 XE “Early Learner” units in the US and Australia and Hitachi’s EH4000 battery trolley fleet at FQM’s Kansanshi mine. XEMC’s trucks target the >220 t payload class traditionally dominated by diesel and diesel–electric haulage. For mine planners and geotechnical teams, large-scale adoption of such full-battery fleets will drive changes in pit ventilation design, ramp power distribution, and haul road geometry around charging or swap stations.

Engineered transfer points are becoming central to plant performance as mines push higher throughput, with Weba Chute Systems’ Technical Director Dewald Tintinger warning that poorly designed chutes can disproportionately constrain material flow and equipment life. Misaligned or under-designed chutes accelerate liner wear, increase blockages and spillage, and drive up dust emissions, directly affecting conveyor availability and downstream crushers and screens. Better-controlled flow paths and impact angles at transfer points are now being used as a primary lever for debottlenecking existing plants without major capital upgrades.

Load and haul attachment specialist Schlam is expanding its global operating model by adding a wider range of mining buckets, new high-quality ground engaging tools (GET) and installation kits for truck bodies and buckets. The move consolidates all product categories – including truck trays, buckets and GET – under a strengthened global leadership team focused on international market development. For mine operators, the broader portfolio and standardised installation kits signal more options for matching tray and bucket designs to specific loading tools and material conditions.