WesTrac is pleased to be partnering with Rio Tinto and Caterpillar in the commissioning and ongoing support of advanced automation equipment for Rio Tinto’s Koodaideri Mine of the Future.
WesTrac is pleased to be partnering with Rio Tinto and Caterpillar in the commissioning and ongoing support of advanced automation equipment for Rio Tinto’s Koodaideri Mine of the Future™.
Rio Tinto Iron Ore chief executive Chris Salisbury said “We’re excited to be partnering with Caterpillar and WesTrac to help make Koodaideri the most technology-enabled and innovative mine in our Pilbara iron ore network.”
WesTrac will support Caterpillar with the supply and servicing of a fleet of 20 autonomous 793F trucks as well as hydraulic excavators, dozers, water carts, blast drills, motor graders and diggers making Koodaideri the first Rio Tinto Pilbara mine to solely operate Cat machinery. Rio Tinto and Caterpillar have also agreed to study the potential for increased levels of automation of heavy mining equipment at the mine in the future.
“The Caterpillar team is looking forward to working with Rio Tinto at Koodaideri to apply our proven mining equipment and autonomous technology and to implement additional MineStar™ autonomy solutions,” said Denise Johnson, group president of Caterpillar Inc. with responsibility for Resource Industries.
WesTrac’s technology credentials will be on show as the local team responsible for executing all technology installation, commissioning and maintenance work for the Koodaideri fleet.
“We are excited to be part of the Koodaideri project and to partner with Caterpillar to deliver ground breaking equipment solutions to support Rio Tinto’s Mine of the Future™ vision,” said Jarvas Croome, WesTrac Chief Executive Officer.
“In addition to the 800 skilled technicians spread across our WA operations, WesTrac also has a dedicated team of 82 Machine Control and Guidance Technicians on hand to support the growing demand for autonomous technology across our region.
“We also continue our long-standing commitment to supporting upskilling in our industry through the continued operation of the WesTrac Institute which helps to ensure our technicians remain among the highest skilled across WA and well equipped to meet future customer demand.”
Koodaideri will deliver a new production hub for Rio Tinto’s iron ore business in the region and is located approximately 110km from the town of Newman. The $2.6 billion mine was approved in November last year and once complete, the mine will have an annual capacity of 43 million tonnes.
Source: WesTrac Caterpillar
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