On May 18, Norton Gold Fields, a Zijin subsidiary, officially commenced autonomous haulage operations with six 140-tonne trucks. Launched in partnership with self-driving technology provider EACON and mining contractor Thiess, the deployment makes the company the second gold miner in Australia to deploy an autonomous truck fleet.

The haul trucks, retrofitted for autonomous driving, are deployed at Havana, a producing pit. From initiation to operation, the team completed the project in just five months, overcoming challenges in retrofitting trucks, system integration and verification, on-site operational coordination, and collaboration with partners.

In recent years, Australian mining companies have faced widespread difficulties in recruiting haul truck operators, while labor costs have continued to rise. Under the conventional driver-operated model, these constraints have limited haul truck utilization. The rollout of autonomous haulage is expected to improve overall fleet utilization and enhance the stability of open-pit haulage operations.

Norton Gold Fields aims for its autonomous fleet to match the productivity levels of a fully staffed conventional fleet by the third quarter of 2026. The company is also planning to scale up autonomous haulage and extend its application to major open pits such as Binduli South, as it strives to set a good example in intelligent operations for the global mining industry.