30/03/2026
Fortescue has renewed its long-standing partnership with Caterpillar, extending the use of autonomous haulage technology across key iron ore operations in Western Australia.
The agreement ensures continued deployment of the Cat MineStar Command system at multiple sites, including operations within the Chichester and Solomon hubs.
This marks another step in a relationship that dates back to 2012, when Fortescue became the first mining company to implement autonomous haulage at commercial scale.
Today, that early investment has evolved into one of the most mature automation programs in the industry, with autonomous fleets managed centrally from Perth and integrated across multiple mine sites.
The renewed deal is designed to maintain continuity across Fortescue’s haulage operations, while improving safety performance and equipment utilisation.
Automation remains central to the company’s broader strategy, not only for productivity gains but also as part of its decarbonisation roadmap under the Real Zero 2030 target.
Beyond haulage, Fortescue continues to develop its own integrated technology platform, combining fleet management, collision avoidance systems and machine guidance across more than 400 assets in the Pilbara.
The Caterpillar agreement reinforces a clear direction: standardising autonomous systems across operations rather than diversifying suppliers.
In an industry increasingly shaped by automation and data, the extension signals that Fortescue is doubling down on a model it helped pioneer more than a decade ago, and one that continues to define large-scale mining in Western Australia.
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