Electric Mini-Excavator TCO Considerations

Mini-excavators are leading the electrification of construction equipment, primarily because these machines are usually deployed in urban environments and cities are increasingly looking to target exhaust emissions and noise. Their compact size and use in small projects means that their daily duty cycle can be met with a practically sized Li-ion battery and electric motor. However, electric excavators come at a greater upfront cost. This article looks at how the total cost of ownership (TCO) for electric mini-excavators compares to equivalent diesel machines and investigates whether fuel and maintenance savings are enough to make electric mini-excavators cost competitive.