BRISBANE (CU)_The North West Minerals Province in the Australian state of Queensland is home to several mines and internationally renowned for its abundance of cobalt, nickel, vanadium, zinc and copper, metals for which demand is increasing alongside global renewable energy efforts. British mining giant Anglo American, which carries out significant operations in the province, is now looking to build greener freight solutions to service its undertakings in the resource-rich region.
The global mining organisation has therefore decided to partner with Australian rail company Aurizon to replace its diesel trains with hydrogen in Queensland. Rail freight produces 16 times less carbon emissions in comparison with road freight, according to reports published by peak rail body the Australasian Railway Association. It estimates that a shift of freight of 1 per cent from road to rail in the Pacific nation would reduce emissions, accidents, as well as health costs by $71.9 million per year.
Meanwhile, the managing director and CEO of Aurizon, Andrew Harding, noted that Hydrogen is known to offer a major opportunity in decarbonising and improving the competitiveness of Australia’s export supply chains. Accordingly, his company has launched a feasibility study with Anglo American to look at implementing the technology on Aurizon’s Mount Isa rail corridor and the Moura rail corridor. The former operates between the North West Minerals Province and Townsville, while the latter operates between Anglo American’s Dawson mine and Gladstone.
“Hydrogen is a gas and it can be used as a fuel source. The neat thing about hydrogen is that you can make it from renewable energy, from renewable electricity,” Harding noted. “That’s why it’s got so much attraction for use in projects that are designed to lower carbon emissions… The date Australia has chosen for net zero is 2050 and Aurizon commits to that.”
