零碳礦山時代：銅礦綠色進化之路——博雷頓董事長陳方明在“國際銅業協會日”中國論壇的演講

2025年11月30日 16:33 博雷頓新能源責編：戚金榮作者：博雷頓新能源

由國際銅業協會主辦的“國際銅業協會日”中國論壇，于 11 月 25 日在上海浦東香格里拉大酒店舉行，論壇以“綠色創新銅繪未來”為主題，聚焦銅產業在能源轉型、智能制造、綠色電力系統及全球供應鏈變革中的新趨勢和新機遇。論壇吸引了來自全球34家會員單位、國內外銅產業鏈核心企業、行業專家及相關機構代表，共同探討綠色銅業的未來路徑。

(點擊可觀看完整演講視頻）

在本次論壇上，博雷頓董事長陳方明受邀發表主題演講《零碳礦山時代：銅礦綠色進化之路》，圍繞新能源在礦山端的應用、電動化裝備的經濟性突破、自動駕駛在金屬礦的潛力與挑戰等內容進行了深入分享，并結合全球多個落地項目，展示了“零碳礦山機器人”在全球礦山的實踐與趨勢。

The “International Copper Association Day” China Forum, hosted by the International Copper Association (ICA), was held on November 25 at the Pudong Shangri-La Hotel in Shanghai. With the theme “Green Innovation · Copper Shapes the Future,” the forum brought together global ICA member companies, leading enterprises across the copper value chain, industry experts, and representatives from research and regulatory institutions to discuss new trends and emerging opportunities in energy transition, intelligent manufacturing, green power systems, and the evolving global supply chain of the copper industry.

At the invitation of the organizers, Mr. Chen Fangming, Chairman of Breton, delivered a keynote speech during the event. His sharing focused on the role of renewable energy in mining operations, the economic breakthrough driven by equipment electrification, and the emerging potential of autonomous driving in metal mines. Drawing upon multiple projects already deployed around the world, he provided a practical perspective on how “zero-carbon mining robots” are shaping the future of global mining.

以下為陳方明董事長演講的整理版，在尊重原始表達的基礎上進行了必要的校正與呈現。

The following is an edited version of Chairman Chen’s speech, refined for clarity while remaining faithful to the original content.

各位領導、各位嘉賓，大家好！

今天我想說，其實電是人類進步的基石。為什么這么講？因為去年全球用電量大概是 30 萬億度，而整個人類能源消耗大約是 100 萬億度。意味著全球電氣化率只有 30%，還有 70% 的巨大空間。支撐這 70% 電氣化增量的關鍵材料，就是銅。所以我今天想分享的是新能源、機器人以及自動駕駛對全球礦業——特別是銅礦——帶來的影響。

博雷頓是一家創業公司，也是一家香港主板上市公司，我們今年成功在香港上市，被譽為“零碳礦山機器人第一股”。之所以這樣說，是因為我們做的三件核心業務，都與礦山的零碳化直接相關。

第一，是在礦山端建設風光水儲等新能源發電系統。目前我們在非洲為四個銅礦、金礦提供綠色電力，項目正在建設中，最快明年 1 月并網，最晚明年 5 月并網。第二是礦山設備的電動化。采銅、采煤需要大量裝備，以前依賴柴油，現在都能用電來驅動。第三，是自動駕駛系統。我們把電動化與自動駕駛結合，在礦區形成了一個完整的閉環。

全球礦業正在加速能源轉型。中國的新能源發展非常快，成本也在迅速下降。我 2008 年進入新能源行業，當時說光伏儲能能應用到礦業，是天方夜譚；但今天它不僅變成現實，而且電價可以比化石能源低 80%。中國在西藏建設的大型光儲項目已經不是傳統的“跟網型”，而是“構網型”技術，這種技術難度更大，卻能很好地解決偏遠礦區的供電問題。

新能源在礦山的應用正在加速，成本也持續下降。電動化正進入一個新的時代，我稱其為“場景時代”。前幾天曾毓群在大會上說電動化進入“全域增量時代”，其實講的就是拓展新場景，比如礦山，一旦把光儲引入，成本會急劇下降。

以剛果（金）為例，它每年的銅產量大約 330 萬噸，未來幾年會持續擴產。全球每年新增的 100 萬噸銅中，剛果可能貢獻 30 萬到 50 萬噸。而銅冶煉非常耗電，一噸銅需要大約 3500 度電，因此剛果長期電力短缺。同時當地柴油價格非常高，我上次去的時候，柴油價格已經漲到 1.8 美元一升，而去年還是 1.3 美元。一升柴油發電只有 3 到 3.5 度，折算成電價是每度50 美分左右。而光伏+儲能在非洲當地的實際成本通常是20—22 美分，能夠節省 50% 以上的電力成本，需求非常迫切。今年華為和多家企業在非洲合作構網型儲能，我們在非洲的四個項目里有兩個也與華為合作。

從經濟模型上看，如果在非洲建設 50 兆瓦光伏，加儲能系統，當地有效發電小時大概是 1300 到 1500 小時，一年可發6500 萬到 7500 萬度電，電價能做到 20 美分左右。與柴油的 50 美分相比差距巨大。即使未來電力狀況改善，光儲依然具有長期經濟性。采用 PPA 或自投模式，前五年成本略高，但仍然比柴油低很多；后五年、后十年電價還會下降。

我們在非洲與中國有色合作的項目就是一個典型案例。當地礦山完全依賴柴油發電，年發電量1.5 億度，成本高達 7500 萬美元。我們為其提供 76 兆瓦光伏和 100 兆瓦時儲能，可提供 1.2 億度綠電，把電價從 50 美分直接降到約 20 美分。每年節省電費 3600 萬美元。從接觸到并網只用了八個月，完全符合 ESG 要求。

類似項目我們也在與金川集團推進。新能源解決了電力缺口后，自然就需要電動裝備的配套。電動化裝備能為礦山節省 60%-70% 的能源成本。在中國，我們的電動礦卡一年行駛 5 萬公里，每公里節省約 15 元，一年可節省 75 萬元。在非洲，由于油價更高、電價也比中國貴，每公里可節省超過 20 元。挖掘機改電效果更明顯，柴油一年成本 300 萬到 400 萬，而電力成本不到 100 萬。純從經濟性看，未來五年全球礦山沒有理由不實現電動化。

自動駕駛方面，目前中國已有接近 2000 臺自動駕駛礦卡投入運營，但 95% 在煤礦。金屬礦的難度更大，路窄、坡大、垂直高差大、場景復雜，因此尚未大規模推廣。但隨著大模型技術發展，自動駕駛在金屬礦的應用會加速。我們正在推動端到端模型在金屬礦場景落地，而不僅僅局限在煤礦。

我們最近發布了一款無駕駛室的純電動礦卡，100 噸載重，整車總重可達 160 噸，完全正向開發。我們采用集成式傳感器，而不是目前市面上一些方案上的二十多個外掛傳感器，因為礦山工況惡劣，雨霧、粉塵、顛簸都會導致外掛傳感器故障率更高。集成式傳感器加上端到端大模型，才是礦山自動駕駛的發展方向。

目前我們的電動設備也已經進入非洲，今年在贊比亞交付了近 40 臺，明年將在剛果大量落地。我相信未來兩三年，在中亞、非洲、南美、澳大利亞都會出現大規模的電動化與無人化應用。未來五年，全球礦山將進入一個“沒有理由不選擇電動化與自動駕駛的階段。

新能源在礦山有非常廣闊的應用空間。博雷頓是一家創業公司，也是一家科技公司，我個人的背景也更多來自新能源和自動駕駛領域。希望今天的分享能給行業帶來一些啟發，歡迎大家會后交流，也可以加我的微信，線下溝通。謝謝大家！

Ladies and gentlemen, distinguished guests, good afternoon. Today, I would like to begin with a simple idea: electricity is the cornerstone of human progress. Why do I say this? Because last year, global electricity consumption was about 30 trillion kilowatt-hours, while total global energy consumption reached 100 trillion kilowatt-hours. This means the world’s electrification rate is only 30%, leaving 70% of energy still unelectrified. And the key material supporting this massive 70% electrification potential is copper.So today, I want to share how new energy, robotics, and autonomous driving are reshaping global mining—especially copper mining.

Breton is both a startup and a company listed on the Hong Kong Main Board. We successfully went public this year, and have been called the “world’s first zero-carbon mining robot stock.” The reason is that our three core businesses directly contribute to the construction of zero-carbon mines.

The first is renewable power for mines, including photovoltaic, wind, hydro and energy-storage systems. We are currently building green-power projects for four copper and gold mines in Africa. All are under construction, the earliest of which will be connected to the grid in January next year, and the latest in May.

The second is electrification of mining equipment. Mining—whether copper or coal—relies heavily on machinery that was traditionally powered by diesel. Today, all of these machines can be powered by electricity.

The third is autonomous driving. By combining electrification with autonomous driving, we are building a complete and closed-loop smart-energy system for mines.

Globally, mining is undergoing accelerated energy transition. China’s renewable-energy industry has grown extremely fast, and costs are falling rapidly. When I entered the renewable-energy sector in 2008, applying solar-plus-storage in mining was considered unimaginable. But today, not only has it become reality, its cost can be 80% lower than fossil-fuel power generation.

In regions like Tibet, China has already deployed large-scale PV+storage systems using grid-forming technology rather than traditional grid-following systems. Grid-forming systems are technically more demanding but solve the stability challenges of power-deficient, remote mining areas. Renewable energy in mining is accelerating, and the cost is continuing to fall. Electrification is entering a new phase—I call it the “scenario era.” As Dr. Robin Zeng recently said, electrification is entering an “all-domain expansion era,” which essentially means finding new application scenarios such as mining, where costs drop sharply once solar-plus-storage is implemented.

Take the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) as an example. The country produces around 3.3 million tons of copper annually and will continue expanding production. Of the roughly 1 million tons of global copper production increment expected each year, the DRC may contribute 300,000–500,000 tons. Copper smelting is highly energy-intensive—each ton of copper requires about 3,500 kWh of electricity—which leads to persistent power shortages.

At the same time, local diesel prices are extremely high. During my last visit, diesel had already risen to $1.8 per liter—up from $1.3 last year. One liter of diesel only generates 3 to 3.5 kWh, which means diesel-based power costs around $0.50 per kWh. However, actual PV+storage power costs in Africa are $0.20–0.22 per kWh, saving more than 50%. Demand is both large and urgent.

This year, Huawei and several companies have jointly deployed grid-forming storage systems in Africa. Among Breton’s four African projects, two are in cooperation with Huawei.

From an economic perspective, a 50 MW PV + storage project in Africa typically generates 65–75 million kWh per year, at a cost of roughly $0.20/kWh, compared with $0.50/kWh for diesel. Even if the local power situation improves in the future, PV+storage will remain cost-competitive. Under PPA or self-investment models, electricity prices may be slightly higher in the first five years, but still far below diesel—and will be even lower in the following years.

One representative project is our cooperation with China Nonferrous Mining. The mine relied entirely on diesel power, with annual consumption of 150 million kWh and an annual electricity bill of $75 million. We provided 76 MW of photovoltaic and 100 MWh of storage, supplying 120 million kWh of clean electricity each year. This reduced the electricity price from $0.50 to about $0.20, saving $36 million annually.

The entire process—from first contact to commissioning—took only eight months, fully meeting ESG requirements. A similar project with Jinchuan Group is also progressing in the DRC. With renewable power in place, the next natural step is electrified equipment.

Electrification reduces energy costs by 60%–70%. In China, our electric mining trucks can save about 15 yuan per kilometer, totaling 750,000 yuan per year for a truck running 50,000 kilometers annually. In Africa, savings exceed 20 yuan per kilometer because local oil prices are much higher. Electrifying excavators is even more economical: diesel costs 3–4 million yuan per year, while electricity costs less than 1 million. From a pure economic standpoint, mines worldwide have no reason not to electrify in the next five years.

On autonomous driving, China currently has nearly 2,000 autonomous mining trucks in operation, but 95% are in coal mines. Metal mines are more challenging—narrower roads, steeper slopes, larger elevation changes, and more complex working conditions—so large-scale deployment has not yet happened. But with rapid advances in large-model AI, autonomous driving in metal mines will accelerate. We are promoting end-to-end AI models specifically for metal-mining scenarios, not only coal mines.

Recently, we released a cab-less pure-electric mining truck with a payload of 100 tons and a gross vehicle weight of 160 tons, developed entirely from a clean-sheet design. We use fully integrated sensor modules rather than the 20-plus externally mounted sensors common in some current solutions. Because mining environments are harsh—rain, fog, dust, vibration—external sensors have much higher failure rates. Integrated sensors combined with end-to-end AI models represent the future of autonomous mining.

Our electric vehicles have already been deployed overseas. This year, nearly 40 units were delivered to Zambia, and many more will be delivered to the DRC next year. I believe that within the next two to three years, large-scale electrification and autonomous-driving deployments will appear across Central Asia, Africa, South America, and Australia. Over the next five years, mining companies worldwide will have no economic reason not to adopt electrification and autonomous systems.

Renewable energy has enormous potential in mining. Breton is a startup, but also a technology company, and my own background is deeply rooted in renewable energy and autonomous driving. I hope today’s sharing provides some inspiration for the industry. I welcome further discussions—please feel free to connect with me on WeChat.

Thank you all.