More than 80 organisations have submitted expressions of interest for the preliminary phase of the Charge On Innovation Challenge which aims to demonstrate an emerging market for charging solutions in mining.
BHP, Rio Tinto, and Vale launched the Challenge in May of this year with 21 mining companies on board as patrons and more than 350 companies from 19 industries registered as vendors.
The Challenge has attracted innovators from all across the globe, all striving to come up with unique concepts and solutions for the electrification of mine fleets, with a focus on large-scale haul trucks.
Not only aimed at summoning new ideas, the Challenge aims to set a standard in electrification, where charging solutions become commonplace and players from outside the mining industry can join in by pitching and commercialising their own concepts and creations.
BHP’s Charge On Innovation Challenge lead Scott Davis said the initiative is a strong example of how effective industry interplay can be a powerful tool.
“The Charge On Innovation Challenge is a great example of the current collaborative work being done by the mining industry in seeking solutions to decarbonise mining fleets,” Davis said.
“The Challenge received interest from companies based in over 20 countries, showing the truly global reach of the opportunity to help reduce haul truck emissions.”
With applications now submitted, the Challenge patrons, with the support of Austmine, will assess the proposals across the next month before selecting a shortlist of vendors who will then be asked to formally pitch their ideas.
The patrons will then select desirable electrification concepts from there, choosing those that have broad industry appeal and suitability, while also ensuring there’s a framework put in place to allow chargers to service trucks from different manufacturers.
The first concepts from the Charge On Innovation Challenge could be ready for site trials in the next few years.