Compañía Minera del Pacífico, Enel X and Verschae present first fleet of 100% electric buses for mining and inaugurate the first electroterminal in the Atacama Region

The project includes the incorporation of 45 new electric buses supplied by renewable energy and the construction of four modern electroterminals, which group 17 charging points for simultaneous supply in the valleys of Huasco, Elqui and Copiapó.

Vallenar, September 7, 2023 - With the objective of advancing in the reduction of emissions in its operations, Compañía Minera del Pacífico (CMP), together with Verschae and Enel X as strategic partners, became the first private mining company in the country to convert its fleet of conventional buses to 100% electric, which will be supplied by energy from renewable sources.

The total project considers 45 new electric buses with an average range of 280 kilometers, which will travel from the cities of Caldera, Tierra Amarilla, Copiapó, Huasco, Freirina, Vallenar, La Serena and Coquimbo to CMP's mining sites, located in the valleys of Copiapó, Huasco and Elqui. In the first stage, 19 Zhongtong brand electric vehicles, represented by Grupo Cabal, will be put into circulation, with Enel X providing financing for the acquisition of the equipment. The rest of the fleet, which will be operated by Flex, will be incorporated in the coming months.

For its part, the company Verschae, with more than 70 years providing personnel transportation services in Chile, made the decision to incorporate these new electric buses to its fleet, with the aim of seeking continuous improvement in the quality of its service and working in accordance with the policies of sustainability and climate change mitigation, as well as to promote and strengthen the incorporation of women in a sector that has been mostly male, incorporating female drivers to cover the different routes.

In turn, Enel X built the necessary electrical infrastructure for the implementation in Vallenar of the first charging terminal in the Atacama Region, which will allow the operation of the first 19 buses of the fleet. The installation will cover the demand of the new electric buses, incorporating a system of recharging points that provides flexibility in the delivery of energy by regulating the power and schedules in which the electric supply is made. In addition, the electroterminal will have fast chargers for charging in about 2 hours. For a second stage, the electroterminals in the Copiapó and Elqui valleys are already under construction.

For CMP, this launch reinforces its commitment to operate sustainably and also contribute to the territories. In addition, it is 12 years ahead of the goal presented in the national electromobility strategy for 2035 for public transportation and 22 years ahead of the goal related to intercity buses, the category in which these vehicles qualify for personnel transportation.

"Our purpose inspires us to promote sustainable mining that has a positive impact on our people, the territories and the environment, which is why advancing in electromobility helps us to reduce our emissions and carbon footprint. By making decisions like this, we are moving towards an iron ore mining that takes the best of our processes and encourages us to innovate and incorporate new technology on an ongoing basis," said Francisco Carvajal, general manager of CMP.

"Collaborating with CMP in achieving the total electrification of its bus fleet and operating them with our male and female drivers makes us proud, as it is a milestone that marks a step forward and reinforces our commitment to promote sustainability and gender equity within the mining industry," said Matias Verschae, general manager of Verschae.

"The incorporation of these new electric and electroterminal buses for mining represents a new milestone in the development of electromobility in Chile, which we are proud to lead together with our partners CMP and Verschae. This step is a fundamental piece in advancing towards an increasingly cleaner energy matrix, and also contributes to decarbonize and electrify the country's main productive sector such as mining", said Claudio Candia, Enel X's Business and Industry Manager.

Impact reduction

The new electromobility standard will allow CMP to reduce its emissions and carbon footprint, reducing the CO2 emitted to the environment by more than 3,000 tons per year.

In addition, the fleet that Verschae will operate does not generate noise pollution in the cities and will be able to generate operational savings of around 50% compared to diesel combustion buses.

As an integral part of the project, Grupo Cabal, the representative of the Zhongtong brand, developed a series of training sessions for Verschae operators, where detailed information was provided on the operation and functioning of the new electric buses. Enel X also provided the necessary training for the management and use of the charging infrastructure operation system of the different electroterminals.