The full story
What is a mining haul truck?
A haul truck is a rigid-frame, off-highway dump truck built to carry blasted rock from the loading face of an open pit to a crusher, stockpile or waste dump. The largest, called ultra class, carry roughly 290 to 450 tonnes a load. They are too wide and heavy for public roads, so they arrive at a mine in pieces and are assembled on site.
The biggest trucks
The BelAZ 75710, unveiled in 2013 in Belarus, is the largest by payload, rated at a nominal 450 tonnes. It is about 20.6 m long, weighs about 360 tonnes empty, and runs on eight tyres, driven by two 2,300 hp MTU diesel engines feeding electric wheel motors. Caterpillar's 797F, first launched as the 797 in 1998, carries 363 tonnes (400 US tons) and weighs about 624 tonnes loaded; its 4,000 hp C175-20 engine drives the rear wheels through a mechanical transmission. Komatsu's 930E carries about 290 tonnes, and Liebherr, Hitachi and a growing group of Chinese makers build trucks in the same class.
How a truck fleet works
A pit runs as a loop: drill, blast, load, haul, dump, return. Each truck is matched to a loading machine, a rope shovel or hydraulic excavator, that fills it in a few passes. Dispatch software tracks every truck by GPS and sends it to whichever shovel or dump will keep the fleet moving, because a truck queuing at a shovel, or a shovel waiting for a truck, wastes money. Graders and water carts keep the roads smooth and the dust down, which saves tyres and fuel.
Tyres
The largest haul truck tyre, size 59/80R63, is just over 4 m tall and weighs about 5.3 to 5.8 tonnes depending on the maker (Michelin, Bridgestone, Goodyear and others). An ultra-class truck runs six. Heat build-up, measured by a rating called TKPH (tonne-kilometres per hour), limits how hard a tyre can be worked, so mines plan speeds and haul distances around it. Prices are not published; trade reports suggest tens of thousands of US dollars for each new tyre.
Autonomy and electrification
Driverless trucks run from a control room, following mapped roads with GPS, radar and lidar and stopping for obstacles. Komatsu commissioned its 1,000th autonomous ultra-class truck on 21 April 2026; Caterpillar and Chinese makers run large autonomous fleets too. Mines are also cutting diesel: trolley-assist lines power trucks up ramps from the grid, and Fortescue's order with Liebherr, the largest in Liebherr's history, covers 475 machines including battery-electric trucks by 2030.
Why trucks still rule the pit
- Flexibility: a pit changes shape every week, and trucks go wherever the shovel is.
- Cost per tonne rises with depth, because every tonne climbs out. That is why deep pits add in-pit crushers and conveyors.
- The next change is the powertrain: autonomy is already common, and electric drive from batteries or overhead lines is on the way.
More machines: all mining equipment. The pits these trucks work in: the biggest copper pits, the largest mines in the world and copper.
Questions people ask
What is the largest dump truck in the world?
The BelAZ 75710, built in Belarus and unveiled in 2013. It is rated for a nominal 450 tonnes of payload, weighs about 360 tonnes empty, is about 20.6 m long, and is driven by two 2,300 hp MTU diesel engines powering electric motors.
How much can a Cat 797 carry?
The Caterpillar 797F carries a nominal 363 tonnes (400 US tons). Fully loaded it weighs about 624 tonnes. Its 4,000 hp Cat C175-20 engine drives the wheels through a mechanical transmission.
How big are haul truck tyres?
The largest, size 59/80R63, are just over 4 m tall and weigh about 5.3 to 5.8 tonnes each, depending on the maker. An ultra-class truck runs on six. Prices are not published; trade reports put a new one at tens of thousands of US dollars.
Why do mines use trucks instead of conveyors?
Trucks are flexible. A pit changes shape every week as benches are blasted and dug, and trucks can go wherever the shovel is. Conveyors are cheaper per tonne over a fixed route, so many mines crush rock in or near the pit and belt it out, and use trucks for the moving part of the job.
Who makes mining haul trucks?
The main makers of ultra-class trucks are Caterpillar, Komatsu, Liebherr, Hitachi and BelAZ, with Chinese makers such as XCMG, Sany and Tonly growing fast. This page lists makers as facts, not as a ranking or advice.
