PRACTICAL TEST: Electrification isn’t only a feature of today’s automotive sector. Battery-powered machines are starting to emerge in the agri market, and, within that market, yard loaders are leading the way. To see whether a diesel-powered Giant G2200HD can be ousted by its G2200E electric stablemate, we compare the two.
Our continental cousins are big fans of the compact or yard loader, not just for farm work, but also in the construction sector. You’ll regularly find them feeding livestock, moving pallets or shifting aggregate on building sites. And it’s probably the latter market that has seen the most interest in this new battery power
source with reduced operating noise and no on-site emissions. The demand prompted Tobrocco Giant to introduce its first battery-powered loader in 2019. While the driveline was new, the rest of the machine used the expertise that had been gleaned from manufacturing diesel powered equipment since 1996.
Wanting to see how the two powerplants compare, we tried out two Giant models: the diesel-fuelled G2200HD, which uses a Kubota motor producing 22hp; and the other is the G2200E, whose battery is from Jungheinrich, a company that has plenty of experience with electric drives for its forklifts. Our ‘E’ model sported the largest 520Ah battery. This is a 48 volt system and has a capacity of almost 25kWh.
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