A large African opencast mining contractor has significantly increased its fleet of mobile crushers and screens.

Currently operating in South Africa, Namibia and Botswana, opencast mining contractor Trollope Mining operates across commodities including coal, platinum, copper, andalusite, gold, phosphate, lithium, iron-ore, manganese, diamonds and limestone.

Company MD Guy Hopkins says that its crushing and screening division has seen exceptional growth on the back of some major projects, necessitating an expansion of its crushing and screening fleet. 

Trollope Mining Services’ total fleet is made up entirely of Metso machines. “Our buying decision is also influenced by the technological evolution of the Metso offering, which allows us to run ‘hands off’ operations. Apart from improved efficiencies, technology paves the way for improved safety on mining sites,” says Hopkins.

Of its 15 Metso machines, six are dual-powered units, making the company the biggest operator of Metso hybrid crushers and screens in Southern Africa, confirms Pilot Crushtec sales manager Charl Marais. The dual-power fleet comprises two Lokotrack LT120E jaw crushers, a Lokotrack LT330D cone crusher and three Lokotrack ST2.8E scalping screens. These were expressly purchased for a project in the Northern Cape province of South Africa.

With their ability to have both electricity and diesel as power sources, Marais says dual-power solutions provide fuel savings and a reduction in carbon emissions.