The world's first 120-ton AC electrical drive dump truck for mining entered service at the Nanlutian mine in Huuliin Gol, Inner Mongolia autonomous region, on Thursday.

The truck was produced by Xiangtan Electric Manufacturing Group in Hunan province to replace diesel engines with batteries, which can work for eight continuous hours after one-hour of charging.

Compared with diesel trucks, electrical power cuts energy consumption in half, and reduces the costs of operation and maintenance by 20 percent. Each truck can also reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 1,500 tons per year, according to the Inner Mongolia branch of State Power Investment Corp, which is leading the program.

"The truck is a significant milestone in the upgrading of mining equipment. It is intelligent and zero-carbon, and will set an example for others in the industry," said Liu Jianping, Party secretary and chairman of the branch.

The Nanlutian mine will gradually replace all its diesel-powered dump trucks with electric ones, to promote green, low-carbon, environmentally friendly production in the coal mining industry, the company said.