Life Cycle Assessment of Open-cast Mining Equipment for Sustainable Mining Operations

Opencast mining is highly dependent on Heavy Earth Moving Machinery (HEMM), including hydraulic excavators, dump trucks, wheel loaders, dozers and drilling equipment. These machines consume substantial quantities of fuel and materials throughout their operating lives, making them an important contributor to the environmental footprint of mining. This study evaluates the environmental performance of opencast mining equipment using a cradle-to-grave Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) framework based on ISO 14040 and ISO 14044. A functional unit of one tonne of overburden/ore moved over the equipment's effective operating life was adopted. The assessment considered raw-material acquisition, equipment manufacturing, transportation, operational use, maintenance and end-of-life management. Global Warming Potential (GWP), Acidification Potential (AP), Eutrophication Potential (EP), water depletion and mineral resource depletion were considered. For a representative 240-tonne hydraulic excavator with a 15-year and 60,000-hour service life, the total cradle-to-grave GWP was estimated at 10,751 t CO₂-eq, with the operational phase contributing approximately 91.5% of gross GWP. Comparative assessment showed GWP reductions of 34.6%, 61.1% and 50.3% for trolley-assist, battery-electric and grey-hydrogen fuel-cell configurations, respectively, relative to the diesel-hydraulic baseline. However, electrification also introduced higher water and mineral-resource impacts. A representative Indian opencast coal-mine case study indicated that LCA-informed fleet management and progressive electrification could reduce fleet GHG emissions by approximately 44%. The study demonstrates that LCA can support sustainable equipment selection, fleet replacement, energy optimization and environmental decision-making in opencast mining.