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Sandvik’s Toro® LH518iB battery-electric loader has met the performance targets during nearly 10 months of operation at Codelco’s El Teniente mine in Chile, the OEM reports.
Operating with AutoMine® on the same transfer level and under the same operating conditions as six automated diesel Sandvik loaders, the Toro LH518iB has integrated successfully into the mine’s day-to-day operations while meeting its production requirement.
Since operations began in October 2025, Sandvik and Codelco have evaluated the loader across safety, production, availability, utilisation, energy, maintenance and automation. The Toro LH518iB achieved mechanical availability of approximately 87%, with performance described as competitive with the diesel equipment operating in the same area, the company reported. No safety incidents were recorded in connection with Sandvik’s delivery of the maintenance service during the evaluation period.
Battery performance has also supported integration into the mine’s production cycle. Each battery delivered an average of five hours and 20 minutes of effective operating time, while battery swaps were completed in less than five minutes, it reported. Sandvik’s battery service supported operating continuity without delays related to energy availability.
“The main achievement has been demonstrating that electric and semi-autonomous technology can be successfully integrated into underground mining operations, delivering tangible results in safety, sustainability and operational performance,” Diego Arce, Head of the El Teniente 7 Unit and Codelco Contract Administrator, said. “Beyond commissioning the equipment itself, I value having contributed to building confidence in this new way of operating and paving the way for the future adoption of new technologies within the division.”
Close cooperation between Codelco’s operations and maintenance teams and Sandvik specialists in maintenance, automation, reliability and remote monitoring has supported a smooth implementation, the OEM says. Together, the teams have used field data to track performance, guide decisions and identify improvement opportunities. The work has also drawn on Sandvik product expertise in Camarillo, USA, and Turku, Finland.
Tommi Valkonen, Head of BEV Strategy at Sandvik Mining, said: “The experience at El Teniente is another example of battery-electric equipment meeting the demands of day-to-day underground production. The significance is not one individual result, but that the Toro LH518iB met expectations across the full range of KPIs while operating with AutoMine in a mixed production environment. Close cooperation with Codelco has also helped make the implementation as smooth as possible.”
The results provide Sandvik and Codelco with a strong operational basis for evaluating further battery-electric applications at El Teniente and other Codelco operations, it says.
“Participating in this project has meant not only operating an innovative piece of equipment, but also being part of the transformation of the mining industry of the future, driving safer, more efficient and more sustainable operations for Codelco and for Chile,” Cristóbal Figari, Head of Processes at El Teniente 7, said.
Sandvik and Codelco will continue to evaluate the application and use the operational findings to identify opportunities for further adoption of battery-electric technology underground.
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