Australian mining giants BHP and Rio Tinto have announced the start of trials for two battery electric haul trucks at an iron ore mine in the Pilbara, despite insisting that the technology is not ready to be deployed at large scale.
The companies say that the two Cat 793 XE “Early Learner” battery-electric haul trucks arrived – made by US giant Caterpillar – have already completed more than 100 hours of operations and 200 test laps at BHP’s Jimblebar iron ore mine, generating critical data and insights to validate the technology.
The next stage of the Jimblebar trial will evaluate dynamic charging via a new energy transfer system that will charge the 240 tonne trucks while they are in motion. The truck batteries are the size of 15 to 20 passenger EVs.
The trials are particularly newsworthy, given the conflicting statements made by BHP and its rival Fortescue over the state of the technology.
Fortescue plans to have nearly 400 giant electric haul trucks on site in the Pilbara by 2030 – from XCMG and Liebherr – to deliver its target of “real zero” emissions, but BHP has baulked and has insisted the tech is not ready, as well as cancelling some key renewable projects.
In its 2025 annual report, BHP blamed “low technology readiness” for the delay in replacing diesel trucking, and doubled down on this excuse last month after leaked documents obtained by the ABC’s Four Corners and Guardian Australia revealed that, even as the company was positioning itself as a climate leader, it was internally finding reasons to delay action.
In a statement to Four Corners, BHP said that much of the zero-emission technology needed by the mining industry was “not yet ready to be deployed” and that large battery electric haul truck technology was “not advanced enough to scale to an operational fleet.”
The president of BHP Australia Geraldine Slattery said this week that “investing in battery-electric haul truck fleet technology and operations in the Pilbara is key to our decarbonisation,” but insisted it was “still early days” and that it was “premature to put a timeline” on its transition.
“This is exactly why industry collaboration matters. By working together, we can accelerate progress in the technologies enabling electrification, on what is needed in the mining operation, and in the supply chain.”
Slattery was quoted by the ABC as saying that “diesel contributes the lion’s share to the decarbonisation challenge,” adding that “what we’re trying to solve here today is what does it take to scale” battery electric haul trucks.
“It’s early days, it’s premature to put on a timeline on that.”
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