A copper mine high up in the mountains of Tibet has achieved site-wide autonomous operation of 60 battery-electric mining trucks thanks to technology developed by a Perth-based mining technology company.
In Tibet’s Gangdese Mountains, also known as the Kailas Range, 60 autonomous battery-electric mining trucks are now operating at altitudes above 5,000 metres. According to Eacon, this is the largest single-site autonomous haulage fleet at a metal mine in China and the world’s first site-wide autonomous battery-electric vehicle project above 5,000 metres.
Conditions above 5,000 metres present challenges including extreme cold, low atmospheric pressure, reduced oxygen levels and increased ultraviolet (UV) exposure. Together, these conditions make working at such altitudes particularly demanding.
That’s why Tibet Julong Copper, a subsidiary of Zijin Mining Group, a publicly traded partly state-owned mining conglomerate and one of the largest producers of gold, copper, and zinc in China, has turned to an autonomous electric haulage fleet developed by Perth based Eacon Mining Technology.
The electric trucks arrived on site back in September 2025 and were initially operated by drivers. However, Eacon’s autonomous haulage technology was retrofitted into the trucks, using multi-sensor fusion and adaptive vehicle control to support vehicle operation in challenging environments.
Validation of Eacon’s technology was completed at Zhibula within two weeks and was followed by expansion of autonomous operations in line with site readiness and its operational schedule.
By the end of September, all 60 trucks had been converted and achieved site-wide autonomous operation.
So far, data from the validation and operation of Eacon’s autonomous haulage solution indicates an 80 per cent reduction in driver requirements, a 16 per cent increase in daily effective working hours, and an expected reduction in carbon emissions of approximately 12,000 tonnes annually.
Eacon is also in the process of retrofitting 18 NTE240 electric rigid dump trucks at the adjacent Julong Copper Mine with autonomous technology, similarly situated at up to 5,400 metres above sea level.
The 220-tonne trucks are progressively being retrofitted and completing validation for operation without safety drivers, with some of the fleet already operating autonomously on site.
The decision to automate operations with battery electric trucks is part of a much wider effort by parent company Zijin Mining Group to electrify its operations.
Earlier this year, subsidiary Zijin Longking unveiled the ZL230E, the largest-tonnage battery electric mining truck in China. Boasting a pair of 800 kilowatt (kW) motors, the truck is backed by what Zijin Longking describes in its press release as “a large-capacity, long-life superchargeable battery system” that is capable of rapid charging to 90 per cent in only 25 minutes.
Zijin Mining Group also built its own battery electric haul trucks because it couldn’t find another supplier. The LK220E began rolling off the production line in December 2025, and as of June, the company has produced around 300, with some weighing up to 140 tonnes and featuring swappable 776 kWh batteries.
The company delivered the first batch of LK220E haul trucks in May to the Julong Copper Mine.
