Rio Tinto, Scania are reimagining mining with more agile and efficient self-driving truck.

Will the automation and electrification of mining trucks shrink the size of equipment used to dig up and haul ore and waste rock at mines around the globe? Rio Tinto believes it could and has teamed up with Scania to develop more energy-efficient and agile autonomous haul trucks at the Channar iron ore mine in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

"Rio Tinto is excited to partner with Scania to develop a mining solution which will create optionality across our diverse portfolio," said Rio Tinto Group Technical Managing Director Santi Pal.

A Swedish manufacturer of trucks and busses that are primarily used in urban environments and for cross-country highway haulage, Scania is working with global technology suppliers to offer autonomous and electrified versions of its heavy haulers. Developing autonomous trucks for mines, however, offers the potential to expand its markets.

While mines are controlled and closed environments without public traffic, which makes them ideal for autonomous transport, the industrial rigors of mining and the safety considerations associated with that rugged use has its own set of challenges.

To advance autonomous truck solutions for mining, Scania and Rio Tinto have entered into a long-term research and collaboration agreement that includes Channar Mine being a test site for Scania's autonomous trucks.

"With its dedication to achieving cleaner, more energy-efficient operations, Rio Tinto is the ideal partner and first customer for Scania as we seek to put mining on a pathway to net zero emissions," said Scania Vice President and Head of Autonomous Solutions Peter Hafmar.

Trials of Scania's 40-metric-ton autonomous mining trucks began in April and quickly achieved a key milestone of driverless operation in a simulated load and haul cycle environment.

"This is a major step towards the goals of a sustainable autonomous mining solution, and builds on our already fruitful long-term collaboration," Hafmar added.

Shrinking the mine

While the autonomous Scania trucks being trialed at Channar are much smaller than the behemoths typically used to haul iron ore, Rio Tinto says they offer potential advantages in terms of emissions and productivity.

When it comes to mining at the scale needed to supply the world with enormous quantities of iron, copper, zinc, and other metals, the philosophy has been to implement ever-larger trucks that can haul more ore per load in order to get the most productivity per energy expended and man-hours worked.

The rise of autonomous haulage at mines, however, has Rio Tinto rethinking this strategy.

The global mining company says that the use of Scania's smaller autonomous mining trucks has the potential to shrink the energy requirements, mining footprint, and infrastructure needed.

Getting the same metals productivity out of a nimbler mine with smaller autonomous equipment also has the potential to shrink the capital and operating expenses at suitable future mines.

"Collaboration and partnership is key to reimagining mining in the future," said Pal.

Rio Tinto's partnership with Scania also includes developing electric versions of smaller and more agile autonomous mining trucks, which would offer Rio Tinto added optionality as it transforms its mining fleet to meet net-zero carbon dioxide emissions targets.

"Our climate action plan includes phasing out the purchase of new diesel haul trucks by 2030, and partnering with industry leaders, such as Scania, across a range of fields, is an important step towards achieving that," said Pal.

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Shane Lasley, Metal Tech News

With more than 16 years of covering mining, Shane is renowned for his insights and and in-depth analysis of mining, mineral exploration and technology metals.

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