First Quantum patents trolley-assist tech that cuts mine-truck diesel use by up to 90% uphill
Why it matters: This is a working, patented system already cutting real diesel volumes at scale (nearly 500,000km of trolley-assisted haulage in 2025) rather than a lab concept, and it's a template other miners chasing lower fuel bills and emissions targets can license or copy.
First Quantum Minerals has secured a UK patent and trademark for Quantum Electra-Haul, its trolley-assist system for mine haul trucks. Trucks fitted with pantographs connect to overhead electrical lines while climbing loaded out of open pits, with electric wheel motors taking over from the diesel engine at the point of highest fuel burn. The Canadian miner has spent 14 years developing the system, has over 15km of trolley infrastructure across its three biggest operations, and says it saved roughly 45,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions at its Zambian mines in 2025. Trucks also gain about two minutes per trolley-assisted stretch from faster climbing. First Quantum has worked with Liebherr, Hitachi and Komatsu on the hardware since 2011, and in April commissioned what it calls the world's first ultra-large battery-electric mining truck, a Hitachi EH4000, at its Kansanshi mine.
Source: Mining.com · 16 September 2026 (UK patent granted "this summer" 2026)