Australia: The rolling stock was built at the American manufacturer’s plant in Erie under the order of mining company BHP, based in the Pilbara region, back in 2022.
Each six-axle FLXdrive unit is equipped with lithium-ion batteries with a capacity of 7 MWh. They are intended to operate in multiple with diesel locomotives on ore trains weighing up to 38,000 t.
The FLXdrive range of battery locomotives has been under development since 2018. A prototype with 2.4 MWh batteries was tested in the United States. In 2023, the first locomotive fitted with 7 MWh batteries was delivered. It had been intended for Australia’s Roy Hill but ultimately served as Wabtec’s test locomotive. Another four FLXdrive units were ordered by Rio Tinto, also in Pilbara, although no updates have been reported on that project since 2023.
Recently, another American manufacturer, Progress Rail, produced battery-electric locomotives for another Pilbara-based mining company, Fortescue. The battery capacity of these eight-axle machines is twice as high, at 14.5 MWh.
