As part of its decarbonisation by 2030 strategy, the bauxite mining company Hydro Paragominas, in Pará, is becoming increasingly aligned with the trend of electric transport. The most recent addition, in partnership with Irmen Máquinas, was the acquisition of two 100% electric SANY SKT90E trucks, each with a capacity of 60 tons.
“Compared to the 8×4 model used, with a capacity of 36 tons, each electric truck represents a reduction of about 190 tons of CO2 per year and has about 12 hours of autonomy per charge. Its performance within the mine’s routine in different scenarios and climatic conditions will be evaluated in the coming months,” explains Edil Pimentel, Mine Operation Manager at Hydro Paragominas.
The arrival of the battery electric trucks is another action on the list of initiatives of the mining company to contribute to its decarbonisation by 2030 strategy. Another measure has been a change in the structure of the mine’s light vehicle leasing contract, replacing 50% of the diesel combustion fleet with ethanol combustion vehicles. Hydro Paragominas also acquired this year 10 electric light vehicles, replacing conventional models fuelled with diesel.
“The acquisition of electric cars means a reduction of 120 tons of CO2 per year, representing 332 trees planted in the same period. By changing the fuel, we also reduce 575 tons of CO2 in the environment. And we continue researching new alternatives in the market to reduce the use of diesel in operations,” comments Eduardo Pedras, Infrastructure Manager at Hydro Paragominas.
Another step that has been taken at Hydro Paragominas inolves the buses used to transport employees to and from the city and within the mine. Eight vehicles have been equipped with an innovative 100% electric air conditioning system. The tech was incorporated by the transportation provider Caliman with the aim of supporting Hydro’s goal of reducing CO2 emissions. The system will operate on a trial basis with the expectation of expanding to 100% of the fleet serving the mine, generating an estimated reduction of 220 tons of CO2 per year, according to the contractor. “Our expectation is to reduce the cost of maintenance of the devices, reduce the vehicle downtime for maintenance, achieve lower fuel consumption and contribute to mitigating CO2 emissions,” comments Thiago Caliman, Director of the transport company.
Hydro is the first mining company in the country that will use technology developed by the Santa Catarina company Innovaklim. The new cooling system works with an electric compressor and battery power, which reduces fuel consumption in vehicles. One of the buses has a combined system with photovoltaic panels for the use of solar light as electric energy for the vehicle. The current fleet serving Hydro is 35 buses. After the test period with the new air conditioning devices, the change for the rest will be evaluated.
“Users will notice less noise and more thermal comfort. For companies, optimisation of time and maintenance costs, in addition to greater vehicle availability. Hydro Paragominas is always looking for technologies that improve safety, well-being, and productivity within the mine and fortunately, our suppliers and partners have bought into the idea of sustainability and are investing to be more competitive in the market, we are happy to encourage these practices,” concludes Pedras.