Short answer: they’re Komatsu HD785 rigid dump trucks—90-100-ton haulers used in open-pit mines and big quarries. Ethiopia is entering a new cycle of industrial-scale mining and materials extraction, and fleets like the HD785 are exactly what those projects require.

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1) The clearest driver: Ethiopia’s new open-pit gold mine

Ethiopia’s headline mining project right now is Allied Gold’s Kurmuk Project in Benishangul-Gumuz—an open-pit operation moving toward first gold. The company’s own project page confirms a two-phase build, ~$500m in capital, and production targeted for Q2 2026.

Crucially, the NI 43-101 technical report for Kurmuk spells out the planned mining fleet: 200-tonne excavators (Komatsu PC2000-11R) paired with 90-ton rigid dump trucks—specifically the Komatsu HD785-7. The study plans up to 35 HD785-7 trucks for ore and waste haulage, which is exactly the class of truck you saw on that low-bed trailer.

Add to that the macro picture: gold has become Ethiopia’s export workhorse again. In 2024/25, official data reported 22.5 tons of gold in eight months, anchoring $1.88 billion in mining export earnings—momentum that incentivizes fast build-outs and large fleet deliveries.

Bottom line: Kurmuk alone can justify multiple shipments of HD785s, and it’s the most likely destination for the kind of truck seen in your clip.

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2) Quarries and cement: “follow the rocks”

Even beyond gold, Ethiopia’s construction materials economy is expanding. Addis Ababa’s corridor/streetscape upgrades and rapid urban growth rely on a network of city-adjacent quarry sites, many concentrated in and around —the same axis where your sighting occurred. Those quarries supply aggregates for roads, bridges, concrete and cobblestones, and they often favor rigid dump trucks for high-throughput benches.

On the demand side, cement producers are adding capacity (or planning to). Examples include Derba Midroc’s plan to expand to 15,000 t/day and the Lemi complex scaling high-volume clinker lines—both of which increase upstream limestone and overburden hauling needs from quarry faces to crushers. That’s classic HD785 territory.

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3) Public sector procurement & road programs

Regional road authorities are also actively procuring heavy equipment. Recent tenders (e.g., Sidama Roads Authority) sought dump trucks and loaders for maintenance programs, reflecting steady demand for earthmoving fleets across the regions. While those procurements aren’t for 90-ton rigid haulers, they show the broader wave of truck-led infrastructure work happening alongside mining.

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4) Why you’re seeing them on low-beds, not driving themselves

An HD785 is enormous—~92–101 U.S. tons rated payload depending on the generation—so it’s transported on specialized low-bed trailers to comply with road limits, then assembled and commissioned at the mine or quarry. Specs from Komatsu’s own sites place the HD785 squarely in the 90-ton class used for open-pit mines and large quarries (not routine roadworks).

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5) What this signals for Ethiopia’s economy

• Industrial pivot: The state is pushing to formalize and scale mining from artisanal to commercial operations. The gold-export surge shows why large, mechanized fleets are arriving now.
• Capex cycle underway: Kurmuk’s schedule (civil works, camp, power line, process plant) implies a steady cadence of heavy-equipment shipments—trucks, excavators, drills—through 2025.
• Spillovers: Expanded quarrying for cement and city projects increases demand for high-throughput haulage near Addis Ababa and other growth poles.

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6) Where this particular unit could be headed

• Most likely: Kurmuk (Benishangul-Gumuz) given the explicit plan for Komatsu HD785-7 fleets and the 2026 start date.
• Other plausible uses: Large limestone/aggregate quarries serving cement plants and corridor projects around Addis and Oromia, where rigid dump trucks are practical for deep, high-tonnage pits.

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7) Quick primer: what the HD785 brings to the pit

• Payload class: ~92–101 U.S. tons
• Engine power: ~1,140–1,200 HP
• Use cases: open-pit gold/iron/limestone, overburden and ore hauling, long ramp runs with strong retarder braking
  These figures vary by model (HD785-7 vs HD785-8), but all are squarely in heavy mining/quarry spec.

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The takeaway

Those giant yellow Komatsu trucks are not for ordinary roadbuilding—they’re the backbone haulers for Ethiopia’s mining and big-quarry phase. With Kurmuk moving toward commissioning and construction materials demand staying hot, Ethiopia has a clear, near-term need for 90-ton-class rigid dump trucks—exactly the kind you spotted on the low-bed.

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