Fortesque collects $10 million AUD to develop MW charger
The project itself, which is titled ‘Fast Charger for Heavy Battery Electric Vehicles’ and is planned to cost a total of $35.3 million, involves the construction, testing and validation of several test chargers with the aim of bringing the first 6 MW charger into production by the end of 2025. Furthermore, the charging station is to be “developed with global charging system standardisation in mind, ensuring compatibility with any equipment that meets the connector standard across mining, rail, and other heavy industry applications.”
“ARENA is working to reduce emissions from Australia’s heavy industry, with heavy haulage high on the priority list for the mining sector,” explained ARENA CEO Darren Miller, adding: “Heavy haulage for remote mine sites contributes around a quarter of the mining industry’s emission and is considered a hard to abate sector, so we’re investing in the technologies that will be part of the solution.”
The funding was awarded under the Australian Government’s ‘Industrial Transformation Stream,’ which is part of the ‘Powering the Regions Fund’. The program is worth a total of $400 million and aims to support “emissions reduction at existing industrial facilities in regional Australia.”
“These innovative chargers are designed to be a safe, rugged, high power and scalable fast charging solution for multiple different vehicle applications,” added Fortescue Zero Chief Executive Officer, Ellie Coates. “Leveraging our world-class capability in battery and charging solutions from motorsport, the fast chargers have been developed for the challenging conditions of the Pilbara. Equipped with robotic connection options, they will be able to power Fortescue’s future 240-tonne Liebherr T 264 battery electric trucks in just 30 minutes.”
Last month, the ARENA fund supported the electrification of trucks with $100 million AUD, and at the start of the year, it funnelled 21.8 million Australian dollars into three electric mobility projects involving electric trucks and rental car fleet electrification. The funding pot was initially set up in 2021, with the intention of supporting the installation of fast charging infrastructure.
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