Rio Tinto, China’s State Power Investment Corporation announces partnership

Rio Tinto (RIO) will partner with China’s State Power Investment Corporation to demonstrate battery swap electric haul truck technology at the Oyu Tolgoi copper mine in Mongolia. Battery swapping technology allows a battery electric vehicle to quickly exchange a discharged battery pack for a fully charged one, instead of recharging the vehicle at a static charging station. The technology is already applied on haul trucks in mining operations across China, and this collaboration will enable Rio Tinto to demonstrate a complete battery electric truck and charging ecosystem at one of its operations. The two-year project will demonstrate eight mining haul trucks, 13 batteries, and a robotic battery swap and charging station in non-production activities in the aboveground operations at Oyu Tolgoi. Rio Tinto operates about 700 haul trucks across its global operations, of which 100 are classified as small or medium class.