Mining giant Fortescue has been trialling the first prototypes of the massive electric equipment that will replace its existing diesel machines as it seeks to phase out the burning of fossil fuels at its Pilbara mines by the end of the decade.
Fortescue is currently building more than a gigawatt or solar and the first of its wind farms to establish a green grid by 2028, but the biggest diesel savings will come from the electrification of its mining fleet, including giant haul trucks, excavators and other machines.
It is the most ambitious decarbonisation program of any company in Australia, and likely the world, and contrasts with the go-slow attitude adopted by rival miners, protected by the billions of dollars in rebates they receive from using diesel.
CEO Dino Otranto was in China recently to try the first prototypes that are being made by XCMG, including a 150-tonne electric water truck.
“Not your average test drive … I (took) the battery-electric wheel loader and 150-tonne water cart for a spin, and checked out the battery-electric dozer and grader,” Otranto said in a LinkedIn post.
“They do exist …. and they are very smooth.”
Other machines being built by XCMG for Fortescue include electric graders, electric wheel-loaders and electric dozers. In a new post published this week, Fortescue says the first machines will arrive in the Pilbara later this year, with a complete rollout over 2027.
The elimination of diesel will likely be completed by the delivery of more than 300 giant 240-tonne electric haul trucks, from both XCMG and Liebherr, which will be charged with the 6 MW charging stations that Fortescue has developed internally, before the end of the decade.
Fortescue is already operating 16 electric excavators – which are each saving one million litres of diesel a year – and an electric drill already operating across its iron ore operations. Around half of the company’s 70-strong excavator fleet will be electric by the end of 2026.
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