October 20, 2026 - Earlier this month, mining industry power, automation, and electrification solutions major FLANDERS announced a “world’s first” installation of FLANDERS’ hybrid-electric control cabinet on a diesel-electric drive Komatsu 930E haul truck owned by coal mining company Eagle Summit Resources LLC.

The company said that the cabinet beats haul truck obsolescence challenges with modernised electric-drive controls, enables hybrid-electric operation, and helps extend the life of an asset already in their fleet. It has a sealed liquid cooled drive cabinet that also reduces the maintenance team’s exposure to harmful airborne contaminates during service.

Given the potential importance of large mining truck hybrid conversions in the medium term as mines and contractors struggle with high diesel prices and emissions targets – IM Editorial Director Paul Moore reached out to FLANDERS to find out more. The conversion was carried out on a truck in the fleet of Belle Ayr mine in Wyoming.

The initial question was why is this a world first? Other companies have also converted diesel-electric trucks to hybrid, including the Komatsu 930E. FLANDERS stated: “The important distinction is that FLANDERS isn’t simply preparing an existing haul truck for hybrid operation. We’re also modernising the electric-drive controls that the truck relies on every day. Many ageing haul trucks still have years of productive life remaining, but their electrical systems are becoming increasingly difficult to maintain as components become obsolete and replacement parts harder to source.”

It adds: “At Eagle Summit Resources’ Belle Ayr mine, we’ve installed a newly developed, hybrid-ready electric-drive control cabinet on a Komatsu 930E. It replaces ageing control technology with a modern system designed to support continued operation and future hybrid-electric integration. Unlike FLANDERS‘ approach, other hybrid retrofits retain the existing electric-drive cabinet and grid blower. That’s an important distinction for mining operations looking to address ageing electrical infrastructure alongside their longer-term electrification goals.”

It says the new FLANDERS cabinet also features a sealed, liquid-cooled design that helps protect internal components from the dust and airborne contaminants common in mining environments, while reducing potential maintenance exposure. “We’re modernising the electrical infrastructure needed to keep existing trucks operating while making them ready for future hybrid technology. The achievement at Belle Ayr is the installation of our new hybrid-ready electric-drive control cabinet, creating a foundation for future electrification while addressing an immediate modernisation need.”

In terms of where things go from here, FLANDERS said this initial installation on a Komatsu 930E is an important first step toward Eagle Summit Resources’ longer-term vision of transitioning its existing haul truck fleet toward hybrid-electric operation. The immediate priority is modernising the truck’s aging electric-drive controls, particularly as original components become obsolete and replacement parts increasingly difficult to source. The new cabinet addresses those challenges while also being designed to support future hybrid integration.

The next step will be evaluating the system’s performance in real-world mining conditions. FLANDERS: “While it’s too early to speak to specific fleet conversion plans, the broader vision is clear: extend the productive life of existing haul trucks while creating a practical pathway toward improved fuel efficiency, reduced emissions, and hybrid-electric operation. Rather than replacing otherwise productive equipment, the goal is to help mines get more value from the assets they already own.”

Next, where does this project sit in terms of FLANDERS’ wider mining truck hybrid conversion program, across both mechanical and diesel-electric drive trucks, including its well publicised work with global contractor Thiess?

The company told IM: “FLANDERS is advancing hybrid retrofit solutions for both mechanical-drive and diesel-electric haul trucks, recognising that mining operations around the world have different fleets, operating conditions, and equipment needs. Our collaboration with Thiess on the CAT 793D in Australia focuses on bringing hybrid technology to mechanical-drive haul trucks, while the new electric-drive control cabinet installed at Eagle Summit Resources’ Belle Ayr mine modernises aging electrical systems and provides the foundation for future hybrid integration on diesel-electric trucks. Both projects share the same objective: helping mines get more life and value out of their existing equipment while creating a practical pathway toward improved fuel efficiency, reduced emissions, and electrification.”

It adds that retrofitting and modernising existing equipment have long been core capabilities at FLANDERS. It says that experience allows it to develop solutions around the equipment customers already have rather than expecting them to replace it. The control cabinets are currently being produced at its headquarters in Evansville, Indiana, with the engineering expertise, manufacturing capabilities, and global field support to serve mining operations worldwide. “Ultimately, we’re focused on practical solutions that can extend equipment life today while creating opportunities to reduce fuel consumption and emissions as hybrid technology is integrated and proven in the field.”

FLANDERS does offer a convincing argument for the conversions – a significant portion of the industry’s haul truck fleet still has productive life remaining worldwide. In many cases, the challenge isn’t that the entire truck needs to be replaced. It’s that certain systems need to be modernised, supported, or adapted to accommodate new technologies. FLANDERS’ experience in electric-drive systems, motors, and equipment modernisation gives it the ability to approach those challenges from an engineering and lifecycle perspective.

Kim Weninger, Executive Chairman told IM: “For FLANDERS, this is about more than hybrid technology. It’s about giving mines more options for the equipment they already own. Operators are balancing equipment reliability, capital investment, productivity, and increasingly fuel consumption and emissions. We believe modernising existing assets can play an important role in addressing those priorities. That’s what makes the progress at Eagle Summit Resources – Belle Ayr especially meaningful. We’re solving an existing equipment challenge while laying the groundwork for what comes next.”

Joy Mazumdar, Global VP of Technology Engineering added: “This is a significant milestone in our mining electrification journey. The achievement demonstrates the power of engineering innovation combined with our customer’s vision and willingness to embrace advanced technologies that enable reliable, efficient, and sustainable mining operations.”

Finally, in addition to the global picture, a note on the importance of the mine and this project to the local community. The project truck image shared showed FLANDERS and Eagle Summit engineers and workers on the project proudly wearing ‘307’ branded clothing. FLANDER said the 307 is actually a nod to Wyoming’s statewide area code: “It’s a big source of local pride, and you’ll see it celebrated on everything from shirts to signs and local businesses. Wyoming even celebrates ‘307 Day’ every March 7. Wyoming has a proud mining heritage, and that connection to the state and its people was something we wanted to recognise.”

FLANDERS says the 307 theme for it was more than celebrating a technology milestone. “It was also about recognising the hardworking people and families behind the mining industry and the role that innovation can play in supporting its future. We wanted the Eagle Summit team to feel that this milestone was as much theirs as it was ours.”