Fortescue to fast-track diesel elimination plans at Pilbara

Australia’s Fortescue said on Friday it was expediting the rollout of an off-grid green energy system to eliminate fossil fuels, particularly diesel, from Pilbara mining operations.

Diesel dominates mining energy use globally but is volatile, carbon-intensive and costly, making efforts to replace it with firm renewable power increasingly relevant for large miners.

The world’s fourth-largest iron ore miner is expected to complete its Pilbara green grid by the end of 2028, which includes 1.2 gigawatt of solar capacity, more than 600 megawatt of wind generation and 4-5 GW-hours of battery energy storage.

Fortescue by early next year expects to complete 290MW of installed renewable capacity to meet the fixed energy requirements of its ore processing facilities, enabling daytime ‘green processing’ across its Pilbara operations.

The company also plans to use the system to power all of its operations for 24-hour periods without fossil fuels later next year, well ahead of its decarbonization plans.

The initiative is a part of Fortescue’s decarbonization efforts to achieve “Real Zero” by 2030, aiming to position itself as a global green energy company.

(By Sherin Sunny; Editing by Shreya Biswas)