WHAT’S NEW Articulated truck underground

An articulated truck, manufactured by Kiruna Truck ab, has been installed in an underground limestone mine in Finland. The truck, a Combi-60 with a load capacity of 60 tonnes, is being operated in conjunction with more than one container. While one container is transported, the other is being loaded. During dumping, the container is locked automatically to the truck, which functions as a conventional dumper. Since the empty container rests on the ground at the loading station, back heights required are low. The truck is also protected against the shock of loading. It takes about one minute to exchange containers, the company says.

The truck is being used to haul limestone a distance of 1,500 m, of which 400 m is at a grade of 7% and a further 250 m has a 13% grade.

Operating five days a week and 45 weeks a year, the mine is expected to move at least 520,000 tonnes per year using one truck.