We're a tad late to the news on this one, but we're no less excited to bring it to you heavy machinery nerds. Australia's Fortescue is teaming up with Liebherr Mining to develop an autonomous mining truck that will, in addition to driving itself, be the first of its kind worldwide to operate with zero emissions.
They're calling it a fully integrated Autonomous Haulage Solution (AHS). It's based on Liebherr's proven T 264 truck, which has been moving payloads of 265 tons at a time for over a decade now.
Announced in late July, the project involves combining an onboard autonomy kit for the truck, a High Precision Machine Guidance system for loading equipment, and a fleet management system so it plays nice with other vehicles.
While the T 264 is traditionally fitted with a Cummins QSK60 diesel engine that delivers a whopping 2,700 hp, Fortescue hasn't yet clarified exactly how it'll manage zero emissions with this AHS vehicle. However, Liebherr and Fortescue jointly announced earlier this month that they've been testing a hydrogen-powered powered T 264 in Australia for a bit.
It could, of course, go the electric route. Fortescue has made progress with an electric haul truck that's capable of handling a 240-ton payload. The company said in March that the battery powered prototype exceeded its performance expectations. It's also been operating an electric excavator that's proven its capabilities by moving a million tons of material.
Fortescue aims to have an entire fleet of zero-emission haul trucks ready to work on its sites from 2026.
"Once we decarbonize our entire fleet, around 95 million liters (25 million gallons) of diesel will be removed from our operations every year, or more than a quarter of a million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent," noted CEO Dino Otranto.
If you've been waiting to drive massive trucks for a living, you'll want to hurry up – this one might already know how to do your job.
Source: Fortescue
