BHP to receive first CAT 793 battery-electric haul truck

The first Early Learner CAT 793 battery-electric haul truck is on its way to BHP before it hits the road at the Jimblebar mine in WA in October 2024.

Members of BHP’s operational decarbonisation team recently visited Caterpillar’s Tuscon proving ground to witness the CAT 793 haul truck in action.

BHP vice president of operational decarbonisation Dan Heal says this is an exciting time for the company.

“It’s incredibly exciting to be here in Tucson seeing this battery-electric truck in action,” he said.

“Not only do these trials represent an important step on BHP’s operational decarbonisation journey, but the technical outcomes could help to inform how we approach these challenges moving forward.

“As we progress towards potential deployments, we need to consider how we plan our mines, manage power demand, charge equipment, the skills we will need and most importantly, safety.”

In preparation for the haul truck, the Jimblebar mine is undergoing upgrades to site electrical transmission and distribution to enable high power charging infrastructure.

BHP is aiming to reduce its Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions by decarbonising its mining equipment and operations by switching from diesel to renewable electricity or more sustainable, lower emissions fuel sources.

BHP vice president of global mining and services Sebastian Greco commented on the trucks.

“Taking action requires us to challenge the market to approach technology development differently,” he said.

“It requires the industry to innovate and adopt new collaborative methods, to identify solutions through studies and proof-of-concept trials and it requires us to learn together as we go.

“Securing the first CAT early learner battery-electric haul truck is a reflection of the ongoing collaboration between BHP and Caterpillar and we are thrilled to be working together on this trial.”