Fortescue, Liebherr ink US$ 2.8b green equipment deal

Australian mining company Fortescue has signed a green equipment deal with Liebherr for zero-emission mining solutions.

The total value of the partnership, comprising the supply of machines by Liebherr and the battery power system from Fortescue Zero, is up to US$ 2.8b. This represents the single largest equipment deal in Liebherr’s 75-year history and is Fortescue’s single largest-ever contract.

The partnership includes jointly developed technology that paves the way for carbon-free mining and features a total of 475 zero-emission Liebherr machines – approximately 360 autonomous battery-electric T 264 trucks, 55 R 9400 E electric excavators and 60 battery-powered dozers.

The R 9400 E fleet will be a mix of backhoe and face shovel configurations. Three R 9400 E excavators are already operational across Fortescue’s sites.

All 475 machines will become part of Fortescue’s iron ore hub in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, representing about two-thirds of the current mining fleet at Fortescue’s operations.

As part of the deal, Liebherr and Fortescue will deploy a complete autonomous battery-electric haulage solution for large-scale mining operations, with a zero-emission battery power system used in the battery-electric trucks being developed by Fortescue Zero, Fortescue’s technology arm.

Fortescue Zero’s battery power system will also be integrated into an electric version of Liebherr’s flagship mining dozer, the PR 776.

According to Fortescue, “This deal is expected to create one of the world’s largest zero-emission mining fleets and represents a breakthrough in the pursuit of a mining industry no longer reliant on fossil fuels.”

The large-scale zero-emission mining ecosystem developed by Liebherr and Fortescue will be available to the rest of the mining industry soon.