Australian chain Fortescue Metals Group has unveiled a $50 million plan to develop a train capable of recharging its electric batteries, reports Renew Economy. Called Infinity, this new generation train will be intended for the transport of iron ore.
Decarbonization for 2030, then commercialization
The principle: to use the gravitational force generated by the trains when they are on a descent to produce electricity and recharge the batteries of the machine. The technology, once operational, could remove the need for recharging for the return trip. The project is to be completed within the next two years.
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The reduction in emissions would be all the greater as these new generation locomotives would replace older diesel models. Currently, the Fortescue Group’s rail operations rely on 54 locomotives, with each train capable of carrying over 34,000 tonnes of ore in 244 wagons. Substantial operations, consuming millions of liters of diesel every year. In 2021, they represented 82 million liters for Fortescue and accounted for 11% of the group’s emissions.
By 2030, Fortescue hopes to expand and systematize the use of its Infinity Train, becoming a diesel-free company. She then hopes to market the machine globally. For Elizabeth Gaines, the group’s CEO, ” the Infinity train has the potential to become the most efficient battery-electric locomotive in the world. »
Lower costs thanks to batteries
The Infinity train project is carried out in partnership with the British Williams Advanced Engineering, a company that Fortescue acquired last January for 300 million Australian dollars (about 204 million euros). For the leaders of the two companies, the technology must have economic and financial advantages. According to Andrew Forrest, the founder of Fortescue, in addition to reducing the environmental impact of rail freight, zero-emission trains will reduce operating costs for businesses and create new opportunities for productivity.
For him, this type of train must ” make business leaders and politicians realize that fossil fuels are just one source of energy and that there are others rapidly emerging that are more efficient, cheaper and greener. “Elizabeth Gaines adds:” Electric regeneration on sloping sections will eliminate the need to install renewable energy generation and charging infrastructure, making it a capital-efficient solution to eliminating diesel and reducing emissions from our rail operations. . »
While this battery technology is only emerging in the rail sector, other players in the mining industry are interested in the issue of electric trains. BHP Group, the world’s largest mining company, announced in January that it was testing four battery-electric locomotives. The brand is aiming for zero-emission operation by 2050. In Europe and particularly in France, the hydrogen track is favored to decarbonize rail, this time in the field of passenger transport.