Rio Tinto, a large Australian mining company, announced on Monday (May 27) that it will collaborate with BHP Group to test large electric transport truck technology in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
Rio Tinto stated in a statement that the two companies will collaborate with construction machinery manufacturers Caterpillar and Komatsu to conduct independent tests on their battery electric transport trucks, including testing batteries and static and dynamic charging systems, to evaluate the performance and productivity of electric trucks in the Pilbara mining environment.
This experiment represents the first phase of battery electric transport truck testing by BHP and Rio Tinto in the Pilbara region. The goal of these two companies is to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions from operations by 2050.
As part of the cooperation, two CAT 793 trucks will be put on trial starting from the second half of 2024, and two Komatsu 930 trucks will be put on trial starting from 2026.
Rio Tinto Iron Ore CEO Simon Trott said, "As we strive to re power our business in the Pilbara region with renewable energy, such collaborations bring us closer to addressing our common challenges of decarbonization and achieving our net zero commitment."
Geraldine Slattery, President of BHP Australia, said, "Replacing diesel as a fuel source requires us to develop a new operational ecosystem around the fleet. We need to address the way we plan mines, operate transportation networks, and consider the additional safety and operational considerations that these changes will bring. This is the importance of experimentation."
Slattery said, "We hope to reduce diesel usage in our operations by developing battery electric technology."