[Photo provided by Doosan Bobcat Inc.]

South Korea’s compact construction equipment maker Doosan Bobcat Inc. is ready to deliver the world’s first battery-powered excavator, dubbed E10e, to its customer in the Netherlands soon.

The company said on Tuesday that it has successfully mass produced the industry’s first full-electric zero tail swing (ZTS) mini excavators at its factory in Dobris, the Czech Republic.

The one-ton E10e is the world’s first full electric excavator that produces no emissions and a low noise but as powerful as the diesel engine-powered model E10z. Featured with a lithium-ion battery, the E10e can operate up to four hours on one charge. It also can operate throughout a full eight hours of working day because it can be recharged up to 80 percent of its capacity with Bobcat’s 400V supercharger during normal work breaks. It is also fully recharged with a conventional charger during the night time.

The ZTS mini excavator with a width of only 71 centimeters can pass through standard doorways and in and out of lifts, making it suitable for indoor demolition, according to Doosan Bobcat. The company accelerated the commercial production of the E10e to meet strong demand from its European customers that frequently take on indoor demolition and basement projects. The one-ton excavators have been the best-selling model in the European market.

Doosan Bobcat said its E10e production for 2019 has already sold out, and it will soon deliver the first batch of the products to not only to the Netherlands but also to Sweden, Germany, Australia and Norway. It plans to expand its production capacity starting next year because demand for electric mini excavators is higher than its expectations, according to the company. To meet the demand, the company will also expand environmentally-friendly lineups.

The compact construction equipment maker has been showing sound performance while other business units under Doosan Group are struggling. It announced last week that its operating profit for the second quarter ended June this year rose 5 percent from the same period a year ago to $135 million with sales up 6.1 percent to $1.02 billion. Net profit jumped 15.3 percent on year to $82 million.

By Kang Gye-man and Choi Mira

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