Fortescue, one of the world's leading technology, energy and metals companies, and MacLean, a global leader in battery electric mining vehicles (BEVs), have announced a new partnership to help rapidly electrify and decarbonize the surface mining industry.
During MINExpo 2024 in Las Vegas, Fortescue Metals CEO Dino Otranto met with MacLean CEO Kevin MacLean and MacLean President Stella Holloway to announce that MacLean will deliver a fleet of 30 GR8 electric motor graders to Fortescue's mining operations in Western Australia.
The electric motor graders will be powered by a Fortescue Zero battery power system, making them one of the first battery-electric motor graders for surface mining. The first electric motor grader is expected to be delivered in 2026, and the full battery-electric fleet is expected to be operational in 2029.
At the launch event, Kevin MacLean also announced the company's commitment to Fortescue's RealZero2040 initiative. MacLean pledged that the company will now work to achieve real zero emissions by 2040.
"We have been in the subway mining vehicle business for more than 50 years and, as a manufacturer, we have nearly a decade under our belt with our full fleet electrification program. "To date, we have 25 battery-electrified vehicle models, 100 electric vehicle units sold, from bolters to crane trucks, shotcrete sprayers and motor graders, and half a million operating hours logged. Now we're setting our sights on surface mining operations," comments MacLean CEO Kevin MacLean. "In our 'first 50' years, we shaped the subway mining industry in the name of greater safety and productivity. Now, our next 50 years will be shaped by our deep commitment to supporting the decarbonization of the mining industry around the world, where the majority of operations are above ground. I am truly honored that Fortescue, such a successful and forward-thinking company, has chosen MacLean as its partner for this essential work in the 21st century."
"The electrification of surface mining vehicles represents the beginning of a new era at MacLean, but it is an era with a deep foundation in our past as a manufacturer of solutions suited for the mining industry," adds David Jacques, MacLean's vice president of surface mining vehicles. "We are taking everything we learned in the commercialization of our GR5 subway grader and our years of experience in designing, manufacturing and supporting subway electric vehicle sites, and putting it to work in the context of surface mining electrification. With MacLean and Fortescue, we have two ambitious companies that share the same vision and the same deep commitment to innovation that delivers results when it comes to transforming the industry through decarbonization. This will be a powerful collaboration for positive change."
Fortescue Metals CEO Dino Otranto said, "Fortescue is firmly committed to being the world's leading green technology, metals and energy company with a laser focus on achieving True Zero across our Australian iron ore operations by 2030. By 2030, we believe Fortescue will be the benchmark company for green metals, technology, power and energy storage globally. When the world needs an answer to the "how," it will turn to Fortescue. To fulfill our mission by 2030, we must partner with like-minded companies like MacLean, which has a proud reputation for designing and manufacturing innovative, high-quality products for subway mining. Importantly, they also share our vision of a mining industry (and a world) that no longer relies on fossil fuels."
