Abstract
Conference summary
At a time when diesel vehicles are responsible for significant greenhouse gas emissions and high operating costs, the Innovative Vehicle Institute (IVI), Propulsion Québec and the National Research Council of Canada (NRCC), in collaboration with CanMET Mines, Adria Power Systems, Dana TM4, Fournier et fils and Nouveau Monde Graphite, have been working since 2020 to develop a 100% electric mining truck, entirely designed and assembled in Quebec and intended for the open-pit mining industry.
Since December 2023, this truck has been in the field-testing stage at the Uniroc quarry in Quebec. The truck has been subjected to a variety of Canadian weather conditions, from snow to mild and cold temperatures. During the conference, conclusions drawn from field trials of the electric mining vehicle will be presented, as well as the advantages and strengths of this innovative vehicle for the mining industry.
During his talk, Romain Gayet will present the stages of the project to convert a Western Star 6900XD truck with a 40-ton loading capacity, from the research and development phase through to testing of the vehicle and its recharging infrastructure. He will address the issues and solutions encountered in relation to the differences between this type of truck and its diesel equivalent.
Prototype highlights:
- Expected autonomy of several hours, with recharging time limited to 1.5 hours to be competitive with a diesel truck;
- Ore hauling capacity similar to its diesel equivalent;
- Significant fuel savings compared with its diesel equivalent;
- And much more, to be assessed as field trials progress!
Biography
Romain Gayet has been with Propulsion Québec since 2020, starting as a Project Manager and acts now as Director, Technology Deployment and Supply Chain for Propulsion Québec. Since joining the team, Romain has coordinated various projects and brought them to fruition. Graduated with a degree from École Polytechnique de Montréal, Romain is a mechanical engineer that has many years' of experience in managing a wide variety of projects.
Over the past few years, he has developed an expertise in issues and technologies related to the electrification of vehicle fleets, autonomous vehicles, and solutions for more sustainable mobility in our cities.
He has been assigned to Propulsion Québec's electric mining vehicle project since 2020 and has also been responsible for several other strategic mandates.