:: World's Largest Gearless Mill Drive Commissioned

The world's largest gearless mill drive has been commissioned in the northern Chilean Andes, some 4,400 m above sea level, for Cia Minera Dona Ines de Collahuasi at the world's fourth-largest copper mine. ABB has been successfully working with the mine since 1995.The first order was for the installation of an Advant control system, which monitors and controls the mine's total production on-line.

In 2001, ABB received an order for drives and ring motors for one SAG mill and two ball mills. Powerful ABB gearless drives, rated at 15.5 MW each, drive two 8 m diameter ball mills. However, the plant's showpiece is the world's largest gearless mill drive. The 21 MW ABB drives system powers the SAG mill of over 12m in diameter.