The Zhitong Finance App learned that Zijin Mining joined hands with Easy Control Smart Driving (07687) to normalize the operation of more than 60 pure electric unmanned mining cards at an altitude of 5,400 meters above sea level. The project became the world's first high-altitude pure electric driverless project to achieve large-scale implementation. The entire mine transportation process achieved unmanned coverage, and formed the largest driverless vehicle fleet in a single metal mine in China.
From an investment perspective, the value of this progress lies in the fact that easy control and intelligent driving further embeds driverless driving capabilities into the actual production system of plateau metal mines, consolidates core technical barriers with stable operation under extreme operating conditions, and lays a pioneering foundation for developing a high-value metal ore market with complex processes and harsh terrain.
Transportation of all minerals on the plateau went smoothly, and physical AI handed over production answers
The commercialization of AI in mine physics requires completing a closed loop from perception and decision-making to execution, and also requires solving safety, labor, and efficiency issues in continuous production. Copper mines have concentrated on amplifying these requirements: high temperatures and lack of oxygen increase the workload of personnel, strong ice and snow light interferes with environmental perception, mountain blocking affects positioning, and heavy loads on descents and narrow bends test vehicle control.
In September 2025, the first batch of pure electric unmanned mining cards operated without safety personnel in less than two weeks of use in the mine. Today, more than 60 vehicles have entered normal operation, which means that project verification has progressed from the technical adaptation of the first batch of vehicles to continuous collaboration throughout the mine's transportation process.
Underpinning this change is system capability. The “Zhushan” driverless driving system reduces reliance on a single sensor and positioning signal through multi-source sensing and positioning integration; combined with adaptive vehicle control and multi-threaded decision planning, it is compatible with freeze-thawed roads, Panshan bends, and some single-track roads that are only 5.5 meters wide. According to project data, the heavy-duty braking distance was reduced by 9.5% to 15.1% compared to manual driving, increasing safety and security for transportation operations with limited space and complicated road conditions.
More commercially meaningful metrics come from the production side. According to Zijin Mining's field operation data, the number of transport drivers in the mining area was reduced by 80%, the effective daily operating time increased by 16%, and the efficiency reached 90% of manual driving. This set of data suggests that the economy of unmanned transportation requires a comprehensive assessment of personnel allocation, operating time, and transportation efficiency. For plateau mines where the supply of personnel is limited, reducing exposure to high-risk jobs and maintaining continuous production is an important value in itself.
Pure electrification further expanded the value of the project. Pure electric drives are less affected by high altitudes and low air pressure. Combined with dynamic energy replenishment scheduling, the impact of centralized charging queues on transportation continuity can be reduced. According to project estimates, 60 pure electric unmanned mining cards can reduce carbon by about 12,000 tons per year. As a result, unmanned operation and electrification collaborate within the same production system, providing a path for plateau mines to balance safety, stable operation and low carbon transformation.
From plateau benchmarking to cross-mine replication, opening up room for growth
The strategic significance of the Knowledge and Development Project is also to help easy control and smart driving broaden the boundaries of capabilities in the metal ore market.
Compared to some scenarios where operating conditions are more standardized, the mining process, road conditions, and operation organization of metal ores are more complicated. This requires the solution to go through more thorough engineering verification, and also makes the technology that has been tested in real production more convincing to customers. The benchmark formed by cooperation with Zijin Mining is expected to become an important example for the company to expand similar mining areas.
This kind of replication already has a base of scale. According to Fujian Daily, as of October this year, the company was operating more than 3,900 unmanned mining cards, with solutions covering 40 mines and 5 domestic metal mining projects. The value of ignorance should be understood in this existing layout: it further validates the fleet's operational maturity in high-altitude, complex metal mining conditions.
The ability to replicate is also platform-dependent. According to the company's interim report, by the end of June 2026, the company's “Imperial Stone” platform had been adapted to more than 100 models from 16 OEMs. The unified wire control and algorithm architecture helps migrate existing engineering experience and scene data to new models, reducing repeated adaptations. This provides a foundation for translating difficult project experience into reusable capabilities.
The business model determines the capital efficiency of capacity expansion. According to the interim report, the customer fleet model increased to 65.6% from 62.7% in the same period last year to 65.6%, and the gross margin of this model reached 32.3%. Under this model, vehicle assets are owned by customers, and the company concentrates on providing driverless software and hardware, management and technical support, forming an expansion path to cover more fleets with technology and services.
Whether the value of the project can be further transformed into financial growth also requires observation of subsequent order replication, delivery efficiency, and service revenue. As far as this progress is concerned, more than 60 pure electric unmanned mining cards continue to operate on the roof of the world, providing a clear commercial proof for easy control and intelligent driving: its technology can enter difficult production scenarios and create value around the actual needs of customers. Expanding metal ore and overseas markets in this direction will become an important path for the company to consolidate its leading position in the commercialization of AI in mine physics.