According to BGR, Fortescue Future Industries, an Australian company operating in the energy sector, announced the development of what they call "the Infinity Train".
Instead of trains that recharge using renewable energy sources, they propose a charging solution using gravity.
The project was announced after Fortescue Future Industries purchased Williams Advanced Engineering, a UK-based engineering company, and the two companies plan to make this concept a reality in order to make railway transport greener.
Dr. Andrew Forrest AO, founder and chairman of Fortescue said that "the Infinity Train will join Fortescue’s green fleet under development and will contribute to Fortescue becoming a major player in the growing global market for green industrial transport equipment, providing great value for our shareholders.”
Fortescue expects this new train type to help the company reach net-zero emissions by 2030, and also reduce operating and maintenance costs.
The company explains that the train will be able to recharge its batteries using the gravity during downhill sectors, which means it shouldn't need a top up when it reaches the station.
The team plans to use more than 50 million dollars in order to build the first train in the next two years and they hope to deliver more of these trains in the future worldwide for healthier transport.
Fortescue currently uses 54 locomotives for transport, and in 2021 alone 82 million liters of diesel were used for operations, which is why the company plans to phase out the old style locomotives with Infinity Trains in the next few years.
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