Swedish truck manufacturer Scania and state-owned mining company LKAB have intensified their collaboration on mine transport electrification, deploying a new, fully electric 8×4 heavy tipper at LKAB’s Malmberget mine in northern Sweden.
The vehicle, which Scania has named “Sleipner,” is the first electric truck from the company worldwide to be equipped with two steerable front axles. Developed on Scania’s modular electric platform, the 8×4 configuration is designed to provide increased stability and capacity for heavy loads on challenging mine roads, serving as a direct replacement for its internal-combustion equivalent.
The truck is operating on a demanding 5-kilometer route with a 250-meter elevation gain, transporting waste rock from a loading station to a backfilling site. Fully loaded, the vehicle weighs 60 metric tons, carrying a substantial 38-tonne payload. It is powered by two MP20 battery packs with a total installed capacity of 416 kWh and a 400 kW electric motor.
The new deployment follows the successful operation of a fully electric Scania 6×4 heavy tipper at Malmberget since 2022, underscoring the companies’ joint effort to test and refine electrified solutions in real-world, high-stress environments.
See also: Scania Launches Industrial Batteries to Expand Electrification in Off-Road Applications
Peter Gustavsson, Project Manager for Electrification of Mobile Machines at LKAB, highlighted the significance of the trial. “If it performs as expected, we will have a fully fossil-free solution for transporting waste rock in truly demanding mining operations,” Gustavsson said. Considering LKAB transports over 5 million tonnes of waste rock annually, the potential for carbon dioxide savings is considerable.
Tony Sandberg, Head of Scania Pilot Partner, emphasized the mutual benefits of the partnership. “Partnerships like this are essential for learning and accelerating progress,” Sandberg said, noting that each new vehicle helps the companies understand how to scale electrification across the toughest environments. He added that this vehicle is merely the start of many more mining solutions to come.
