Electric power underground
A gentle whirr has replaced the roar of a diesel engine: Volvo’s fully electric wheel loader is being used for the first time in Europe on the construction site for the new Marienhof underground station, part of the Second Core S-Bahn Route in Munich. This innovative piece of machinery is moving earth and building materials completely emissions-free and almost noiselessly, and it is perfectly suited to working underground.
ARGE Marienhof is testing out the wheel loader as the joint venture between Implenia and HOCHTIEF seeks to exploit the strengths of electric-powered construction machinery in its day-to-day work. The fully electric wheel loader L120 Electric is just as powerful as its diesel-powered brother, but generates no exhaust fumes at all. This site has to be emission-free because the tunnel operates under pressurised conditions to prevent groundwater from penetrating. The pressure in the tunnel is the same as that experienced by a diver four metres under water. Diesel-powered vehicles can’t be used in these conditions because of the increased fire risk.
Weighing 20 tonnes and with up to eight hours of battery power, the L120 Electric is perfectly suited to use in the tight spaces and tricky conditions typical of tunnelling projects. The loader’s core task in Munich is to take excavated material from the face of the tunnel to a waiting dumper truck.
A step towards net zero
The electric wheel loader is making an important contribution to the decarbonisation of construction processes. Implenia aims to become climate neutral by 2050. Direct emissions (Scope 1), largely caused by diesel engines, are a central lever for this. “Every electrically powered piece of machinery is an important step toward decarbonisation. Using electric power also protects our colleagues on site from harmful exhaust emissions when the vehicle is working. For various reasons, a lot of the equipment and vehicles used in underground construction projects are still powered by combustion engines. But I firmly believe that this will change over the next few years and that more and more electric machinery will be used in future. Experiences gained at the Marienhof joint venture will help us find similar solutions for future projects and thus make an innovative contribution to the decarbonisation of the industry,” explains Hugo Müller, Sustainability Manager at Implenia. As well as producing zero emissions, the L120 Electric is much quieter than the conventional equivalent. This is a great relief to the crew on site.
The L120 Electric is providing valuable lessons on the journey towards emission-free construction sites.
