At the Real MINING conference, Anton Nikolaev, Development Director of Sany’s official representative office in Russia, dedicated his presentation to mining excavators, focusing on supply market analytics and practical recommendations for selecting equipment tailored to the needs of a specific open-pit mine.
Structure of Mining Excavator Supplies: A Brief Market Overview
According to the statistics presented by the speaker, the Russian market for heavy excavators showed steady growth between 2020 and 2023, followed by a slight decline in 2024. In recent years, demand for excavators in the 50-ton class has amounted to approximately 400–600 units per year, while the segment of 120-ton machines has accounted for around 80–100 units annually.
“When we first entered the Russian market with mining excavators, it was incredibly difficult to convince Russian customers of the reliability and quality of our equipment,” Anton Nikolaev noted: “Many factors prevented us from launching large-scale operations. Nevertheless, we managed to sell several machines to Chinese gold mining companies that trusted our brand.”
Following the outbreak of the pandemic and the onset of global changes, the share of Chinese brands, including Sany, began to grow steadily. By 2024, Sany had supplied more than 199 excavators in the 50-ton class to the Russian market. Shantui delivered 85 units, LiuGong 22 units, and LGCE 20 units. The upward trend in the market share of Chinese manufacturers in this segment continues.
In the 120-ton class, demand for equipment from Chinese manufacturers has also increased. While Sany supplied just one machine in this category in 2022, deliveries reached 29 units by 2024. Zoomlion delivered 13 machines, and XCMG supplied two units. Meanwhile, the market share of well-established brands such as Komatsu and Hitachi has begun to decline, indicating an ongoing redistribution of the market.
Choosing an Excavator for Mining Operations
Anton Nikolaev also outlined key factors to consider while selecting a mining excavator.
These include:
The importance of selecting the right equipment for a specific site is illustrated by a real-life case from the company’s practice: after six months of operation of the Sany SY1250H excavator, Stroyservice achieved record productivity figures—shipping 515,000 cubic meters against a planned target of 214,000 cubic meters.