Real Zero at Fortescue – CleanTechnica

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Fortescue has been within the information rather a lot just lately. Just some weeks in the past, at a United Nations roundtable, Fortescue Government Chairman Dr Andrew Forrest AO unveiled a plan to maneuver mining operations from “net zero” to “real zero.”

“The detailed timeline shows how Fortescue will eliminate Scope 1 and 2 emissions without voluntary carbon offsets and without carbon capture and storage — what is now known as ‘real zero.’”

“Fortescue’s climate transition plan embodies the spirit of openness and transparency that is essential for meaningful progress,” Dr Benjamin Caldecott, the Director of the College of Oxford Sustainable Finance Group and a world skilled in transition planning, writes within the foreword. “The plan is marked by high ambition and well-defined actions, underpinned by accountability mechanisms to ensure systematic delivery across the organisation.”

Main worldwide scientists have been advocating for the world to maneuver from net-zero targets to real-zero ones. In Australia, we’ve got seen successive conservative governments use artistic accounting to have the ability to declare progress in direction of “net zero” with none actual discount in carbon emissions.

Fortescue particulars the way it will get rid of fossil fuels from its Australian operations, together with heavy mining gear and rail. It reiterates its name to governments to repurpose fossil gasoline subsidies “to level the playing field for first movers in decarbonisation and to incentivise others in the industry to transition more rapidly.”

In a name to arms, Dr Forrest mentioned: “Internet Zero 2050 is a con. The world wants Actual Zero now. Fortescue can let you know after we’ll get rid of fossil fuels and present you precisely how. Each industrialist ought to match us. Our local weather transition plan is a gold-standard instance of the extent of company ambition required to speed up the transition away from fossil fuels. The place different corporations develop local weather plans merely to satisfy regulatory necessities, Fortescue’s plan is solely centered on how we are going to get rid of fossil fuels by 2030 from our operations with out voluntary carbon offsets.

“Companies that set emissions reductions targets must demonstrate how they will deliver them. Only when we hold ourselves accountable for our commitments do we earn our seat at the table. There is only one question that companies should be asking themselves — when will they stop burning fossil fuels?”

A concrete instance of how Fortescue is shifting ahead is the contract signed with Liebherr to offer a complete of 475 zero-emission machines — roughly 360 autonomous battery-electric vehicles, 55 electrical excavators, and 60 battery-powered dozers. Two thirds of Fortescue’s present mining fleet will change into zero emissions, changing present diesel fashions. This can create the world’s largest zero-emission mining fleets and is a step in direction of a mining business not reliant on fossil fuels. “Liebherr and Fortescue are committed to having a comprehensive and large scale zero emission mining ecosystem operational by 2030.”

Fortescue Zero has developed a zero-emission battery energy system. Improvement of this technique grew from Fortescue’s acquisition of Williams Superior Engineering in 2022. CleanTechnica lined that here. Fortescue has acknowledged that “the large scale zero emission mining ecosystem developed by Liebherr and Fortescue will be available to the rest of the mining industry in the near future.”

“We are proud to have facilitated the single largest equipment deal in the entire 75-year history of the Liebherr Group. Especially as the expansion of our collaboration with Fortescue is an important step forward in our shared goal to decarbonise mining activities worldwide,” says Dr Jörg Lukowski, government vice chairman, gross sales and advertising and marketing, Liebherr-Mining Tools SAS.

“Partnerships with companies and people like Liebherr and Willi Liebherr — where ambition is backed by action — are critical,” Dr Forrest says. “This is an important next step in our 2030 Real Zero target — to eliminate emissions from our Australian iron ore operations by the end of the decade. The world needs Real Zero now — it simply cannot afford to wait. The green solutions we need are here today, and Fortescue Zero is supplying them and rolling them out across our massive mining operations. Fortescue Zero developed this battery technology and jointly developed the Automated Haulage Solution, leading the way to provide green innovative solutions to eliminate emissions from heavy industry. We invite all companies in the mining, heavy industry and haulage sectors to join us. The solutions are there, and the missing ingredient is leadership. The time of others persuading you that greenwashing is a better return to shareholders and your community is over. Fortescue invites you to join us. We can together be the trailblazers who forge the world’s move away from fossil fuels.”

Fortescue’s robotic stationary quick charger can present as much as 6 MW of energy and cost the battery-electric T 264 haulage truck in half-hour. You can check out the video of this bad boy here. I’d like to drive this down the Bruce Freeway and scare the Ford Rangers and Toyota Landcruisers. What I wrote about 2 years ago is coming to fruition. The massive boys have their toys.

The T 264 mining vehicles have already begun to reach in Western Australia. Initially equipped to run on fossil fuels, they are going to be transformed to battery electrical by 2030. Nevertheless, many of the fleet might be equipped in battery-electric configuration from first arrival.

“Four autonomous trucks are currently in validation at Fortescue’s testing site, with the first deployment of operational autonomous trucks expected in Q1 2025. All T 264 trucks are arriving autonomy-ready and will be progressively deployed to autonomous operations across Fortescue’s sites. Validation of the full autonomous battery-electric solution is expected to be complete in early 2026.”

Subsequent step — battery dozers. Liebherr and Fortescue now plan to collectively develop a zero-emission dozer. Liebherr’s flagship mining dozer, nonetheless in growth, the PR 776, might be fitted with Fortescue’s battery energy system. Fortescue has ordered 60 items to additional transfer in direction of actual zero.

Fortescue already has three R 9400 E electrical excavators in operation. They’ve ordered 55 extra in a mixture of backhoe and face shovel configurations. Right here’s a great video of that machine in motion.

Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest is placing his cash the place his mouth is and making actual steps towards a greater future for the mining business and the earth. He appears to have pivoted from inexperienced hydrogen in direction of battery electrical, and recovered from his Solar Cable enterprise. It seems to be like Australia is cementing its place because the world chief in mining expertise. The long run seems to be shiny, it seems to be electrical, and the air smells cleaner within the Pilbara.