The Norwegian Polar Institute has selected Prinoth’s Panther XL tracked vehicles to support transport and logistics at the Troll Research Station in Antarctica.
A contract has been awarded for 10 units with a spare parts and service package included for the amount of 175 million Norwegian kroner (U.S. $17 million). Built at Prinoth’s Granby, Québec, Canada facility, the Panther XL combines expertise from across Prinoth’s divisions to create a machine designed for the world’s harshest environment. The Panther XL draws from both Prinoth’s Snow Grooming (Sterzing) and Crawler Carrier (Granby) business units, with additional innovations developed specifically for this model. The Panther XL features a large, intuitive and customizable touchscreen display adapted from snow groomers to meet the specific demands of Panther XL operations, heated windows and wipers designed to endure the most severe weather and a high-comfort air suspension seat, intuitive steering wheel, and cruise control system, providing operators with exceptional comfort and control for long-haul missions. The Panther XL benefits from Prinoth’s patented rubber track undercarriage, incorporating large wheels and automatic track tensioning for reliable performance in difficult terrain and an advanced powertrain integration, drawing on Prinoth’s experience with Caterpillar power pack systems.
Additionally, the Panther XL introduces innovations developed specifically for polar operations, including a full suspension cab design for superior ride quality and operator comfort, Prinoth’s patented 4-track drive dynamics for optimized traction and stability, and a patent-pending operator assist drive functions, designed to support operators during long-distance hauls in extreme conditions.
“Antarctica demands the very best technology,” said Klaus Tonhäuser, president of Prinoth. “By bringing together the strengths of our Snow Grooming and Crawler Carrier teams, and adding targeted innovations, we’ve built a vehicle that’s made to perform well in the toughest conditions and underlines our groupwide leading engineering capabilities and our focus on customer needs.” Prinoth is part of the HTI Group (High Technology Industries), which specializes in the fields of winter sports, urban mobility, material transport, construction, vegetation management and clean energy. HTI has 20 production facilities, 84 branches and 4,300 employees worldwide.
