In a significant move to accelerate industrial decarbonisation, Envision Energy and Fortescue have formed a strategic alliance, kicking off with a 132MW wind turbine supply contract in Western Australia’s Pilbara region. This partnership is set to bolster Fortescue’s ambitious goal of eliminating terrestrial fossil fuel emissions across its iron ore operations by 2030, a target known as Real Zero.
The Pilbara project will feature Envision’s EN182-7.8MW turbines mounted on 188-metre Nabralift steel towers, touted as the tallest of their kind globally. These units are engineered for low-wind conditions and built to endure extreme weather, including cyclones. Envision asserts that this project marks one of Australia’s first large-scale installations of such technology, aiming to set a new benchmark for renewable energy infrastructure by optimising generation capacity and efficiency.
The alliance was unveiled at the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where Fortescue officially named Envision as its strategic partner for wind and energy storage. The collaboration will extend across the supply chain, encompassing generation, storage, and grid optimisation. Fortescue outlined its pathway to decarbonisation, involving the deployment of 2–3GW of wind and solar generation supported by large-scale batteries, all connected to its operations through dedicated transmission links.
This project represents Fortescue’s first major wind development and is part of a broader strategy to demonstrate the viability of low-cost, round-the-clock renewable systems for industries that have traditionally been challenging to decarbonise. The partnership between Envision and Fortescue could serve as a model for other heavy industries looking to transition to renewable energy, potentially reshaping the energy landscape in Australia and beyond.