China officially operates the world's largest fleet of self-driving trucks

Huaneng Group, one of China's leading state-owned enterprises, has officially deployed the world's largest fleet of unmanned electric mining trucks in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

The fleet of 100 vehicles, equipped with an autonomous driving system developed by Huawei Technologies, reflects China's great strides in applying autonomous technology to heavy industries.

According to Mr. Li Shuxue, Chairman of Huaneng Mengdong - a subsidiary of Huaneng Group, the trucks named "Huaneng Ruichi" represent the largest scale of deployment globally in the field of operating autonomous electric mining trucks.

He stressed that this is an important milestone in China's journey of "digital transformation and modernization of traditional industries".

The control system of this fleet integrates a series of advanced technologies such as 5.5G technology (5G-Advanced), AI, cloud computing, high-precision maps, and smart battery swapping technology, allowing the vehicle to quickly change batteries without waiting for charging.

The project is a joint venture between Huaneng Group, Xuzhou Construction Machinery Group (XCMG) and the University of Science and Technology Beijing.

These self-driving trucks are designed to operate fully autonomously at the Yimin coal mine in Hulunbuir city (Northeast Inner Mongolia), including loading and unloading mining materials and moving in extreme weather conditions.

According to Mr. Li Shuxue, the vehicles can improve overall transportation efficiency by up to 20% compared to manned vehicles.

Zhang Pingan, CEO of Huawei Cloud, said that 5.5G technology plays a key role in enhancing the real-time response and accuracy of autonomous vehicles. With download speeds that can reach 10Gbps and upload speeds of 1Gbps, 5.5G pushes the limits of wireless connectivity in harsh industrial environments.

According to Mr. Jack Chen, Vice President of Marketing and Solutions for the Oil and Gas and Mining Industry at Huawei, the Huaneng Ruichi fleet embodies the vision of “smart mining” that Huawei is aiming for.

This technology is not only for the domestic market but also has the potential to be deployed in resource-rich markets such as Africa and Latin America, he said.

The current fleet is just the first phase of a plan to deploy a total of 300 autonomous trucks at the Yimin mine over the next three years. By the end of 2025, the country is expected to have more than 5,000 autonomous mining trucks in operation, and that number could double to 10,000 by 2026, according to the China National Coal Association.

China is currently the world’s largest coal producer, operating around 4,300 mines. Rapid adoption of advanced technologies such as AI, autonomous driving and 5.5G is playing a major role in reducing operating costs by an estimated 8% compared to traditional models while improving efficiency and safety in hazardous mining environments.