HOUSTON, TEXAS (By Editors at Energy Analytics Institute, 5.Dec.2025, Words: 241) — Australia’s first battery electric haul trucks are supplied by Caterpillar. These Cat® 793 XE early learner battery-electric trucks are being trialled in a collaboration between BHP and Rio Tinto at BHP’s Jimblebar iron ore site in Western Australia.
Caterpillar’s first successful demonstration of its first battery electric 793 prototype took place in Nov. 2022, according to Caterpillar.
Caterpillar launched its early learner program in 2021 to accelerate its development and validation of Cat battery electric large mining trucks with support from key mining customers and Cat dealers.
The company expanded the early learner program to include off-highway trucks to support increasing demand from the quarry and aggregates industries.
One of the primary objectives of the program is for Caterpillar to collaborate more closely with its customers to better understand the impacts of the energy transition on a mine site’s people, processes, infrastructure and technology, the company announced on 5 Dec. 2025 in an official statement.
The early learner phase of the program will be key to witnessing those impacts in real world environments. It will also be critical to validate the enhanced design elements of the 793 XE.
Caterpillar’s next phase of the early learner program will be to integrate multiple electrified trucks at sites, validating the integration of a battery electric fleet with Caterpillar’s autonomous and fleet management systems.
____________________
By Editors at Energy Analytics Institute. © 2025 Energy Analytics Institute (EAI). All Rights Reserved.
