Scania will begin developing new and more agile autonomous hauling trucks at the Rio Tinto-owned Channar Mine in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, advancing the pair’s ongoing research collaboration in a major milestone for the as-yet-untested technology.
The two companies have established a long-term research and development collaboration agreement for the continuous advancement of this autonomous technology, under which Rio Tinto’s Channar mine has become the first active partner site for Scania’s autonomous mining solution.
Rio Tinto and Scania launched new trials on Scania’s 40t payload autonomous mining trucks in April 2022 and quickly reached a key milestone of driverless operation in a simulated load and haul cycle environment.
Rio Tinto Group Technical Managing Director, Santi Pal, said the partnership would play a pivotal role in realising future mining practices.
“Rio Tinto is excited to partner with Scania to develop a mining solution which will create optionality across our diverse portfolio. Collaboration and partnership is key to reimagining mining in the future,” Mr Pal said.
“Our climate action plan includes phasing out the purchase of new diesel haul trucks by 2030, and partnering with industry leaders, such as Scania, across a range of fields, is an important step towards achieving that.
“As well as the potential decarbonisation benefits, this partnership provides a path to potential productivity improvements.”
Scania Vice President & Head of Autonomous Solutions, Peter Hafmar, said the company was excited to support its first customer, Rio Tinto in realising its public commitment to emissions reduction.
“With its dedication to achieving cleaner, more energy-efficient operations, Rio Tinto is the ideal partner and first customer for Scania as we seek to put mining on a pathway to net zero emissions,” Mr Hafmar said.
“This is a major step towards the goals of a sustainable autonomous mining solution, and builds on our already fruitful long-term collaboration.”
Scania’s trucks have potential advantages over traditional heavy haulage trucks, both in terms of emissions and productivity.
In utilising Scania’s autonomous mining trucks, Rio Tinto’s energy requirements, mining footprint and infrastructure requirements can be reduced, meaning that capital and operating expenses may also be reduced at suitable sites.
Feature Image: A Scania autonomous truck is loaded at Rio Tinto’s Channar iron ore mine in Western Australia’s Pilbara region. Photo: Business Wire.
