Innovative Engineering, Not Greenwashing: Liebherr and Fortescue Expand Partnership for Emission-Free Technology

At this year’s MinEXPO, a mining trade fair held every four years in Las Vegas, Liebherr and Fortescue announced a significant expansion of their partnership. Both companies aim to develop and test a range of emission-free mining solutions. In 2020, they had already agreed on the construction and delivery of 120 trucks; the now planned 360 autonomous battery-electric T 264 trucks represent three times that number. In total, the deal extends to 475 mining machines, all of which utilize emission-free technology. The total value of the partnership, which includes the delivery of machinery by Liebherr and Fortescue Zero’s battery power system, amounts to a substantial $2.8 billion. For Liebherr, this is the largest single equipment deal in the 75-year history of the highly successful manufacturing and technology company.

Both companies intend to fully decarbonize as part of their Real Zero 2030 target. Furthermore, the groundbreaking zero-emission technologies developed within the partnership are to go into series production and then be made available to mining companies worldwide. Customers of both companies should be able to access a proven, large-scale ecosystem for emission-free mining in the coming years. “The world needs Real Zero now – it simply cannot afford to wait,” summarizes Dr. Andrew Forrest, Chairman of Fortescue, the joint mission.

The next crucial step towards Real Zero 2030 for Fortescue is the elimination of emissions from its own Australian iron ore operations. To this end, four autonomous trucks are already being tested at Fortescue’s test site. The first official deployment for the autonomous haul trucks is scheduled for the first quarter of 2025. By 2026, all tests of the autonomous functions and battery-electric drives are to be completed, allowing the entire truck fleet to be put into operation from then on.

The new battery-electric dump trucks could revolutionize the entire mining sector. Through Liebherr, this process is also based on classic German engineering, thus building on its good reputation. However, Liebherr also stands for innovation: In the early 1950s, the company developed the first mobile tower crane, which became a symbol of Germany’s post-war reconstruction. Due to the discontinuation of mining many metals over the years, Germany’s supply of critical commodities like indium and neodymium now requires a “reconstruction.” If Liebherr’s battery-electric dump trucks were used for rare earth mining, the commodities would not yet be “made in Germany,” but at least the dump truck would be from a German manufacturer.