Long-term economic sensitivity analysis of light duty underground mining vehicles by power source

• Published in: International journal of mining science and technology 2017-05, Vol.27 (3), p.567-571
• Main Authors: Schatz, Richard S., Nieto, Antonio, Lvov, Serguei N.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Battery mining equipment; Battery power; Economic evaluation; Sensitivity analysis; Underground mining vehicles
• ISSN: 2095-2686
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ijmst.2017.03.016

LHD＇s are expensive vehicles; therefore, it is important to accurately define the financial consequences associated with the investment of purchasing the mining equipment. This study concentrates on longterm incremental and sensitivity analysis to determine whether it is feasible to incorporate current battery technology into these machines. When revenue was taken into account, decreasing the amount of haulage in battery operated equipment by 5% or 200 kg per h amounts to a $4.0 ×10^4 loss of profit per year. On average it was found that using battery operated equipment generated $9.5 × 10^4 more in income annually, reducing the payback period from seven to two years to pay back the additional $1.0 ×10^5 investment of buying battery powered equipment over cheaper diesel equipment. Due to the estimated 5% increase in capital, it was observed that electric vehicles must possess a lifetime that is a minimum of one year longer than that of diesel equipment.