A Chinese state-backed energy giant has launched what it called the world’s biggest fleet of unmanned electric mining trucks at a coal mine in Inner Mongolia.

The fleet of 100 trucks are designed to autonomously load and unload mining material while operating in harsh weather in the Yimin coal mine in Hulunbuir, a large city in northeastern Inner Mongolia, said state-backed energy conglomerate Huaneng Group.

Li Shuxue, chairman of Huaneng Group subsidiary Huaneng Mengdong, told local news media that the vehicles could improve overall transport efficiency by 20 percent.

Autonomous vehicles

The vehicles use autonomous driving technology from US-sanctioned Huawei Technologies, the company said.

The deployment comes amidst a bitter trade battle between the US and China in which the US is seeking to limit China’s development of advanced AI systems.

In its latest salvo, the White House said last week it would consider the use of Huawei’s Ascend AI chips, which are developed, manufactured and sold domestically in China, to be a violation of US export regulations.

Huawei has been under US sanctions since 2019, but has riled successive US administrations by adapting to the situation and developing ever more advanced technologies, including 5G and main processor chips for its flagship smartphones, its own HarmonyOS operating system to run on smartphones and more recently laptops, and AI accelerator chips that compete with those from Nvidia.

Zhang Pingan, chief executive of Huawei Cloud, said the mining trucks use a cutting-edge version of 5G known as 5G-Advanced of 5.5G – another key technology that has been in Washington’s crosshairs over the years.

Zhang said the use of 5GA offers better connectivity than standard 5G and improved download and upload speeds of up to 10 gigabits per second and 1 Gbps.

Traditional industries

Other technologies used in the trucks include cloud platforms, smart battery swapping and high-accuracy mapping, said Huaneng’s Li.

He said the trucks, called Huaneng Ruichi, showcase China’s advancements in “transforming and digitising traditional industries”.

Other technology providers include Huaneng Group, Xuzhou Construction Machinery Group and the Beijing University of Science and Technology.

The Chinese government has been pushing adoption of AI and advanced communications tech in traditional industries from ports to coal mining.

The moves are part of a broader campaign for the development of key technologies including electric vehicles, AI, 5G and advanced semiconductors.