Sandvik battery-electric surface concept drill to be tested at Lloyds Metals ops
Having recently completed a trial at Boliden’s Kevitsa mine in Finland – one that saw it drill 17.5 km in 542 drilling hours – Sandvik’s battery-electric surface concept drill is set to soon start up in India.
The concept drill, first revealed in late 2023, can drill DTH holes up to 229 mm in diameter, and blends the autonomy of battery with the continuous endurance of power cable. The battery is primarily intended for tramming and drilling individual holes, while the bulk of a pattern is drilled using power from its 180 m tethered cable.
In trials at both Kevitsa and the company’s test pit in Tampere, the drill has proven itself, Nells Subbiah, Product Manager, Rotary Drills, told delegates during his presentation, ‘From field trials to global momentum: The rise of electric surface drilling,’ at The Electric Mine 2026 conference in Lisbon, earlier this month.
He said four main benefits have been confirmed during these tests when comparing the concept drill to Sandvik’s own diesel-powered Leopard DI650i:
- A notable reduction in energy costs;
- Increased operator comfort due to reduced noise/vibration levels;
- Seamless, safe cable handling; and
- Enhanced availability and maintenance efficiency.
Subbiah confirmed that the next stop for the rig as part of the company’s “product development process” was India and deployment at the Surjagarh iron ore mine, owned by Lloyds Metals.
Lloyds Metals is transitioning the mining fleet at this mine to electric power as a fundamental element of its Green Mine & Green Steel initiative, he said, adding: “The customer is deploying all-electric equipment from the get-go, including trucks, shovels, drills and all the ancillary equipment.”
The operation – India’s largest iron ore mine – will pose a very different challenge to the tests in Tampere and Kevitsa, enabling Sandvik to validate the rig’s use in the high ambient temperature of Maharashtra. The OEM also hopes to post some trial numbers that showcase the electric rig’s ability to enhance operational efficiency with optimal cost.
Subbiah said the three-month trial was set to take place from May to August, with the company then moving on to “productising” the concept rig.
More broadly, Subbiah reviewed progress on the company’s electric drilling offering, saying Sandvik now has the entire rotary drill line – from DR410iE through to the DR416iE (152 – 406 mm) – available in either diesel powered or electric-cable options. He also homed in on a trial of the DR412iE at a large open-pit mine in Mongolia where the rig had completed 42,000 m of drilling.
He also said the company had completed tests on a retrofit kit for converting diesel-powered rigs to electric-cable operation at its own facility, estimating that the changeout time could be a “few weeks”.
He added: “You may ask: Why are we doing this? Why are we trying to focus on moving towards electric drills? That is because of the total cost of ownership [benefits].”
He said the expected capex increase of just over 2% when compared with acquiring diesel rigs was more than offset by the lower energy cost (-12%) and lower maintenance cost (-5%), making for an overall 15% total cost of ownership advantage. That is on top of a circa-17,300 t per rig emission reduction benefit associated with making a switch.
The post Sandvik battery-electric surface concept drill to be tested at Lloyds Metals ops appeared first on International Mining.