Zero Automotive delivers third minesite electric vehicle

Zero emission transport developer Zero Automotive has delivered its third Australian-built, solar chargeable, underground-ready battery electric light vehicle (bELV, pictured).

The ZED70 Ti traytop utility, using LTO battery technology which does not suffer from thermal runaway, was delivered to IGO Ltd’s Nova nickel-copper-cobalt operation in Western Australia.

This is the second vehicle conversion, and the first dual cab, built for underground mining services company Barminco.

Like the first delivery, this conversion also allows for ultra-fast charging and maintains the highest torque rating for a mining-spec BEV by a factor of 1.5, according to ZERO.

Site integration activities with charging infrastructure and data capture will be the focus for Zero Automotive in the coming months, with the installation of the company’s Geotab GO9 telematic device allowing for vehicle monitoring and tracking.

This is the third vehicle delivered with the mining industry growth centre METS Ignited support previously awarded to Zero Automotive. It was announced this week that fellow industry growth centre, the National Energy Resources Australia (NERA) would wind up shortly.

The new vehicle also forms part of the trials being undertaken by Barminco in their role as lead of the Electric Mine Consortium light and auxiliary vehicle working group, of which Zero Automotive is also a participant.

The next conversion for Barminco will be our upgraded production platform which will provide available torque of 267 pecent greater than our closest competitor, and allows for faster charging.

In August ZERO Automotive commissioned its first single cab zero emissions ZED70 Ti EV Platform.
Further reading:
NERA INDUSTRY GROWTH CENTRE TO FINISH UP IN JULY
More about Mets Ignited industry growth centre projects

Picture: Zero Automotive