Berk Kutay Gokmen
15 May 2025•Update: 15 May 2025
ISTANBUL
China on Thursday deployed the world’s largest fleet of driverless electric mining trucks in Inner Mongolia, consisting of 100 vehicles equipped with autonomous driving technology from tech firm Huawei Technologies, the South China Morning Post reported.
Li Shuxue, chairman of Huaneng Mengdong, a subsidiary of the state-backed energy giant Huaneng Group that developed the trucks, stated that the “Huaneng Ruichi” vehicles mark the largest single deployment of autonomous electric mining trucks in the world, according to the newspaper.
Li said that the vehicles utilize cutting-edge technologies such as 5G-A communications, artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing platforms, intelligent battery swapping systems, and high-precision mapping.
The technology providers for the project include Huaneng Group, Xuzhou Construction Machinery Group, and the Beijing University of Science and Technology.
The trucks are built to autonomously load and unload mining materials and function reliably in harsh weather conditions at a coal mine in China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.
Li further noted that the vehicles could boost overall transport efficiency by 20% compared to traditional manned trucks.
The China National Coal Association estimates that more than 5,000 automated mining trucks will be in operation nationwide by the end of this year, with the number projected to reach 10,000 by 2026, according to the South China Morning Post.
