Fortescue to lease electric haul trucks as part of land deal with traditional owners

Iron ore mining giant Fortescue says it has struck a deal with local traditional owners on the ownership and leasing of electric haul trucks as it negotiates a new land access agreement and plots its path to real zero emissions by the end of the decade.

Fortescue and the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura Aboriginal Corporation (PKKP Aboriginal Corporation) have signed a land access agreement that includes an innovative mining fleet hire arrangement.

It will enable PKKP to own new mining equipment including haul trucks and electric excavators, which will in turn be leased to Fortescue, creating a new long-term revenue stream and supporting the growth of PKKP’s commercial activities.

“We have updated our original Land Access Agreement that we signed with Fortescue in 2010, and we’ve replaced it with a new Native Title Agreement and Co-Management Agreement,” said Sandra Hayes, a Puutu Kunti Kurrama Elder and Chairperson of the PKKP Aboriginal Corporation.

“The Co-Management Agreement we’ve signed with Fortescue builds on the agreement we made with Rio Tinto last year and has a number of protections for our Country and our heritage.  

“The negotiation with Fortescue took three years to make sure the agreements reflected a shared understanding, so we know what they need, and they know what we can and cannot accept.”

The PKKP Aboriginal Corporation represents both the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura people, two separate but related language groups speaking for their own Country as well as a shared area, but who nevertheless observe common laws and customs that facilitate the protection and sharing of resources.

The new agreement between the PKKP and Fortescue includes extensive protections to Country as well as an agreement about tenure related to Fortescue’s decarbonisation activities and a modernised mining benefits framework.

Other components of the new agreement include the establishment of an engagement framework including co-management committees for specific mines and developments; early and open communication about heritage and mine plans; and active measures to ensure that important sites are not impacted by mining.

“For more than two decades, we have worked alongside Traditional Custodians across the Pilbara to create opportunities through jobs, skills, local businesses and long-term economic participation,” said Dr Andrew Forrest, Fortescue chairman and founder.

“As Fortescue continues to grow and pursue our Real Zero decarbonisation ambitions, we want to do it together as partners, working together to protect heritage, create opportunity and support the next chapter of development in the Pilbara.

“I believe agreements like this show what is possible when people come together with trust, respect and a determination to leave something better for the generations that follow.”

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