WEST Australian mining giant, Andrew ‘Twiggy’ Forrest’s Fortescue is continuing its fight against climate change with a move to buy 300 to 400 zero-emission, 240-tonne haul trucks.
Around half the battery electric trucks will be supplied by XCMG and the other by Liebherr in phased deliveries planned from 2028 to 2030.
The truck purchase was among a string of green technology deals announced by Dr Forrest while he was in New York for the United Nations General Assembly’s Global Renewables Summit.
The partnership with China’s XCMG is a new one, but it builds on an existing arrangement with German-Swiss multinational Liebherr to deliver the world’s first large-scale deployment of battery electric haul trucks.
The deal will strengthen and diversify Fortescue’s supply chain for battery electric trucks. It expands on the contract signed in November 2024 for battery electric ancillary mining equipment – then XCMG’s largest green mining equipment order outside China.
A media release from Fortescue said that while XCMG and Liebherr will make Fortescue’s battery electric trucks and other heavy mining equipment, Fortescue Zero will continue to focus on developing and integrating advanced power systems for the miner’s fleet – including optimisation of battery electric truck performance in Pilbara conditions.
“Fortescue is building global alliances – linking the Pilbara’s world-leading operational expertise, America’s and Australia’s research and development strength, the UK’s and Europe’s innovation and engineering excellence and anchoring it all with scale and cost-efficient manufacturing capability in China and the US. Together, this creates a powerful multilateral network of commercial cooperation to accelerate decarbonisation and defeat mankind's greatest threat – global warming,” the release said.
As part of this partnership-led plan, Fortescue has signed agreements with some of the world’s most advanced green energy innovators: global leader in electric vehicles and in battery manufacturing and development, BYD; solar technology and manufacturing giant, LONGi; construction and mining equipment manufacturer, XCMG; and wind and energy storage leader, Envision Energy.
Fortescue has also finalised the acquisition of Spanish renewable technology company Nabrawind.
“These agreements build on Fortescue’s global innovation ecosystem – where European powerhouse Liebherr already plays a pivotal role in decarbonising Fortescue’s mining fleet with the production of T 264 trucks in Virginia in the United States.
“They are underpinned by world-leading research and development through Fortescue Zero, which utilises the Colorado Technology Hub in the United States, advanced technology collaborations with CSIRO in Australia, and its R&D centre at Oxford in the United Kingdom, to drive the innovations behind Fortescue’s decarbonisation and future green technologies.”
Dr Forrest said new research in Nature quantified increases in the intensity and probability of hundreds of heatwaves across the world between 2000 and 2023.
“China is scaling and manufacturing green technologies at unprecedented speed and our partnerships give Fortescue access to that capability,” Dr Forrest said.
“Meanwhile, through Nabrawind in Spain, Liebherr in Germany and the United States, Fortescue Zero in the United Kingdom, and Fortescue operations in the Pilbara in Western Australia, we are building a global R&D and production network.
“This is a truly multilateral collaboration that draws on the best ideas and manufacturing capacity to deliver the lowest cost energy and tackle climate change.
“By joining forces across continents, we are seizing the full extent of the decarbonisation opportunity and rebuilding the cooperation the world needs to address the climate crisis.”
Fortescue is partnering with global leaders to deliver what it says are the world’s most efficient and cost-effective solutions for decarbonising energy grids. Individual Heads of Agreements have been signed with three global renewable energy leaders:
BYD – the world’s largest manufacturer of electric vehicles, batteries and energy storage systems, with almost one million employees and having sold more than 4 million new energy vehicles in 2024 – will supply its leading energy storage solutions.
LONGi – one of the world’s largest solar technology companies and a global leader in high-efficiency photovoltaic products – will supply its photovoltaic modules and solar technology, itself the lowest cost form of green energy generation.
Envision – a global leader in wind power and smart energy solutions – will supply its advanced wind turbine and integrated energy solution technologies that combine diverse renewable sources and optimise power availability.
Fortescue is accelerating the deployment of renewable energy across its operations by combining full ownership of Spanish wind technology company Nabrawind with the purchase of wind turbines from Envision Energy.
“Together, these advances will underpin the first stage of Fortescue’s inaugural wind project, unlocking greater generation capacity and efficiency to help deliver Real Zero by 2030.”
The acquisition positions Fortescue to deliver large-scale wind projects in the Pilbara, leveraging Nabrawind’s innovative self-lifting tower design that allows turbines to be installed at greater heights, capturing stronger winds and generating more power.
Envision Energy will supply its state-of-the-art EN182-7.8MW turbines for the first stage of Fortescue’s Pilbara wind project.
These turbines are engineered to perform in low-wind conditions and withstand extreme weather, including cyclones. They will be integrated with Nabrawind’s 188- metre tower technology and provide improved generation and cost efficiency.