Electric trucks haul iron ore 4,000 feet underground

Deep beneath Malmberget, the road is dark, the temperature stays around 12 to 15 degrees Celsius, and two giant electric trucks are carrying iron ore. LKAB has put two 130-ton Scania battery-electric haul trucks to work more than 4,000 feet below the surface at its Swedish mine.

Their scale is closer to mining machinery than to a familiar electric delivery vehicle. The trucks carry a 624 kWh lithium-ion battery and can move more than 3,200 tons of iron ore over a full day’s running. Under ideal conditions, Scania says, each battery supports seven hours of fully loaded operation.

Charging happens at up to 375 kW through a CCS connector, the standard European charging plug. A full shift’s charge takes about 80 minutes, according to Scania. The mine’s steady temperature and good underground roads are part of why LKAB engineer Pär Sundqvist calls the setting well suited to electric vehicles.

The hardware is built for the job rather than adapted from a road truck. Scania’s heavy-duty battery-electric design uses a central electric motor, an automated gearbox and conventional driven axles, while LKAB and Scania customized the vehicles for underground use. Project manager Peter Gustavsson describes the partnership as a way to match the trucks to LKAB’s specific needs.

So what changes in practice? LKAB now has two working electric haul trucks in an environment where a full day’s ore movement and a roughly 80-minute recharge are part of the operating picture. The project gives the mine a route to reduce diesel use while keeping heavy transport moving, but it remains a small deployment: LKAB’s broader goal is to electrify 30% of its mining fleet in 2027.