European Railroad Discussion > Sweden/Norway: Malmbana, Worlds Biggest Roller Coaster?

Third part on the Northland Resources ore transportation is about the world's largest roller coaster ;)

First part: http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?17,3436911

Second part: http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?17,3440333


Crossed the mountains the bathtubs negotiate their way through the city of Narvik to the new transloading facility in Fagernes harbor. The route across the mountains and all the way to harbor is pulled by Green Cargo double class Rm or Rc4 locomotives. You recognize these locos from the bunch of others from their SA3 couplers instead of the old European hook and screw couplers. In the harbor a pair of GC T44 locomotives take over, each at one end of the train. I think the train is also split in two because the Fagernes trackage is quite confined and can't accommodate (for now) longer trains. For the future I expect more sea to be filled for more straightforward and effective run through operations like of the other side of the bay at LKAB facility.

Let's zoom in first to Fagernes.

1) This is what the area looked like in May 2012.

2-3) Almost the same view in 2014, with a shiploader dwarfed by the mountains.

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4) When we zoom into the facility a little more you first see Grieg owned loaders, which take care of some of the huge ore loading operation. Norwegian company Grieg is responsible for this part of the operation working according to Northland Resources high quality standards and using material handling systems and metering of theirs.

5-6) Finally, one of the Green Cargo T44 appears when driving into the restricted harbor area. They are parked while the conveyors handle the previous rail load of enriched iron ore to the enormous storage building.

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7-9) After 15 minutes idle time the operation starts on the largest roller coaster ever built! Now yous ee what the huge roll on the side of the cars is made for.

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Next the enriched iron ore goes to storage to be loaded to ship after one of the megabulkers arrives to Fagernes harbor. From any of these pictures you can't really see how impressively big everything is in reality.

Hope you enjoyed this post of how worlds largest roller coaster works!

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Impressive stuff.

Isn't it, and to my observations everything is working like a Swiss clock. On boom they were working and fixing something between the time of two megabulker ships, but otherwise everything worked extremely well.

The mega roller coaster is said to be from Germany. Would anyone here have idea of the manufacturer there?

I suppose that because of the Northland Resources financial challenges a couple of years ago the "normal" tipping machine manufacturer Metso did not wish to supply this. I see Metso machines being used all over in Finland, Estonia, U.S.A.,...


86235 Wrote:
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> Impressive stuff.

Ahh, I wish the car dumpers at the Power plant where
I worked as a seasonal laborer were as simple.

I would venture to say the the car builder built the
dumping station at the port.

The Ore Jennys have a pair of rollers that catch the
flipping frame and the arc lifts the car body up as
the ore train crawls through the ore dumper.

The car body lifting frame is supported and tensioned with a
very large herd of springs that allow the steel tipping
frame to flex and lift the bathtubs up and over and then the rollers
lift the bathtub up and allow a controlled descent at the same time.


Wonderful pictures Mckey.

Thank you for the feedback Leonz! Always helps to know if the subject is interesting. As you see it took a lot of time and effort to do this on Malmbana, and its numerous operations / companies.

Thank you also for describing interestingly how jennies were emptied. Do you remember who made that machine? Not Metso there either? To me it sounds extraordinary that it had so many springs.

leonz Wrote:
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> Ahh, I wish the car dumpers at the Power plant
> where
> I worked as a seasonal laborer were as simple.
>
> I would venture to say the the car builder built
> the
> dumping station at the port.
>
> The Ore Jennys have a pair of rollers that catch
> the
> flipping frame and the arc lifts the car body up
> as
> the ore train crawls through the ore dumper.
>
> The car body lifting frame is supported and
> tensioned with a
> very large herd of springs that allow the steel
> tipping
> frame to flex and lift the bathtubs up and over
> and then the rollers
> lift the bathtub up and allow a controlled descent
> at the same time.
>
>
> Wonderful pictures Mckey.

Glad to see they use Pandrol fastclips to secure the rail to the sleeper.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/09/14 07:45 by 86235.

Very interesting story and images. Thanks, John. Gerry

A proof that these really can handle 30 tons (33 U.S. short tons) axle weights! Each wagon weights around 120 tons (132 U.S. short tons). I know this would not be much if it was in U.S., but up here the 30 ton axle weight tracks is super heavy. The whole Malmbana was upgraded to 30 ton weight running in 2009.

86235 Wrote:
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> Glad to see they use Pandrol fastclips to secure
> the rail to the sleeper.

You're welcome! The cars are there just waiting for your next trip to Malmbana. Northland Resources + Green cargo operations should be interesting and bring some welcome variation to IORE ruled landscape.

I read today from Tåg (Swedish "Trains" magazine of SJK), that on the northern section (Kiruna to Narvik) there will be 13 train pairs / day instead of current 10. Well, if I remember correct there were 12 just two years ago, albeit with around 64 ore jennies instead of the current 68. And some of the trains still were hauled by the legendary Dm3 units. For those not familiar with the Dm3 I included a picture below. A lot more can be found in 4rail.net:

http://www.4rail.net/reference_sweden_locos_el_dm3.php

http://www.4rail.net/reference_sweden_gallery2_ellocos.php#mtab_dm3

http://www.4rail.net/reference_sweden_gallery2_ellocos.php#vint_dm3

If I'm right, at least 5 triple units have for now survived scrappers torch, along with 2 of their two unit El12 Norwegian cousins.

Upper picture from Abisko, Sweden by Nick. Second one is from Luleå in 2013, where even today three units can most likely be found parked well visible.


GPutz Wrote:
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> Very interesting story and images. Thanks, John.
> Gerry

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The Ore Jenny's builders name plate is partially obscurred
by the car dumping frame, Rats!!! I would bet they are
German though.

Hi Leonz, please see here: http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?17,3440333

leonz Wrote:
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> The Ore Jenny's builders name plate is partially
> obscurred
> by the car dumping frame, Rats!!! I would bet they
> are
> German though.

It is one of the more unusual Kiruna Wagon products, unusual here means that the wheel and its supporting structure adds weight that is away from the effectivity of transporting ore (everyone multiply this by 10'000 trips and see how much weight carrying capacity is lost). Metso and Kiruna Wagon tipping machines don't need these massive added weight sections, so they are more effective for bathtub operations. However, since Northland Resources is just starting its operations, I suppose the main priority was to add something which was readily available, not something to be delivered months from order.

Expect to see something totally else for the next tipping line NR will build in Narvik (in three years).

Great pictures of a very interesting and technologically advanced rail/ore handling operation... Thanks for taking the time to do the pictures and the most excellent narrative...

leroy

Absolutely fascinating and most impressive. Once more your images of the Malmbana's operations present marvelous view of some outstanding technology and railroading. Thanks again for sharing them with us.

MC
Columbia, Missouri USA