Modern Mining September 2021

DECARBONISATION

Development of zero-emission mining Although large capital investments are required for mines to fully decarbonise, certain measures such as adopting renewables and electrification of equipment are economical today. Shifting to electric equipment is increasingly feasible and is gathering pace, with mining houses and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) partnering to accelerate the development of ‘zero-emissions’ min- ing trucks, writes Munesu Shoko .

A s mines seek to decarbonise their operations, one of the most economically viable options is to electrify mining equipment, such as die- sel trucks. Right now, industry figures show that only 0,5% of mining equipment is fully electric. However, recent industry developments show that there are concerted efforts from both mining compa- nies and OEMs to accelerate the development and deployment of zero-emissions mining trucks at mines. In a recent interview with Modern Mining , Lucas Chaumontet, MD and Partner at Boston Consulting Group’s Johannesburg office, noted that mining com- panies basically have two main sources of emissions: power usage and their equipment such as trucks and excavators. These by their very nature burn a lot of fuel. Chaumontet believes mining companies need to investigate ‘greener’ options, whether it’s work- ing closely with OEMs to develop electric equipment solutions or substituting current fuels with lower or zero-carbon sources, such as biomass and biofuels. Partnerships BHP and Rio Tinto are some of the mining giants leading from the front on the journey towards zero-emissions mining trucks. The two companies recently announced their respective partnerships with Caterpillar to develop and deploy fully electric haul trucks at their mines. BHP has announced a partnership with Caterpillar to develop and deploy zero-emissions mining trucks at BHP sites to reduce operational greenhouse gas

Rio Tinto’s chief commercial officer Alf Barrios (left) and

Caterpillar group president Denise Johnson, during the signing of an agreement to co-develop zero- emission mining trucks.

(GHG) emissions. The milestone is the result of over 12 months of close collaboration between BHP and Caterpillar in analysing energy demands and the options to apply this new technology on BHP sites. To support progress towards BHP’s long-term goal of achieving net zero operational GHG emis- sions (Scope 1 and 2 from our operated assets) by 2050, BHP will have early access to zero-emissions equipment developed by Caterpillar and hands-on learning opportunities to ensure successful deploy- ment at BHP sites. The collaboration will help shape the processes, technology and infrastructure that will be required to support zero-emission machines and the mine sites of the future. Another critical element of the collaboration will be to extend the parties’ efforts to support a more inclusive mining industry. Over the coming year, BHP intends to provide frontline operator and maintainer input into the Caterpillar design process, to support the development of machines that can be operated and serviced by a broader range of the workforce. BHP’s chief commercial officer, Vandita Pant, says: “We are pleased to announce our partnership with Caterpillar Inc. to develop and deploy zero- emissions mining trucks at BHP. Climate change is a critical global challenge and we know that partnering with others will help accelerate the transition to a low carbon future. The opportunity for our teams to input into the design process also gives us confidence that

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30  MODERN MINING  September 2021