China has debuted a massive driverless mining truck that can “crab-walk” across difficult terrain, highlighting the country’s push to modernise its mining industry through technology.

Despite a kerb weight of nearly 100 tonnes, this advanced model boasts exceptional manoeuvrability – it can move sideways and pivot on the spot, allowing it to operate in narrow pits and across complex, sloped roadways.

At the same time, it offers the hauling capacity and power required for continuous, round-the-clock operation, according to an April 19 report by state-owned newspaper Science and Technology Daily.

The vehicle, measuring over five metres (16.4 feet) tall and wide and 13.79 metres long, was unveiled in Shanghai on April 18. Named the “Shuanglin K7”, it was developed through a collaboration between the Shuanglin Group – a Shanghai-based automotive components manufacturer – and Tsinghua University.

Traditional mining trucks take a long time to turn around in tight loading areas, a manoeuvre that often creates blind-spot risks. In contrast, the K7 can perform demanding moves such as lateral translation and on-the-spot turns.

This is made possible by a technology known as a distributed electric drive-by-wire corner module. The K7 is the world’s first driverless mining truck to use this technology.