Reducing Fuel Consumption Through Diagnostics and Management Controls for a Leading Coal Mining Group

The Group is a leading coal mining business, operating large-scale mining operations with a substantial heavy equipment fleet for extraction, hauling, and processing. Fuel is one of the largest controllable operating costs across the Group's mining operations.

• Fuel consumption levels above what equipment specifications and mining conditions would suggest is achievable
• Limited diagnostic visibility into the specific drivers of excess fuel consumption across equipment and operators
• Inconsistent operator behaviour affecting fuel efficiency, such as idling time and operating patterns
• Absence of structured management controls such as short-interval control and regular operational review meetings focused on fuel performance
• Limited use of dashboards to make fuel performance visible to site leadership and operators in near real time

• Fuel is typically one of the top two or three largest controllable operating costs in open-pit coal mining, making fuel efficiency a high-leverage margin lever
• Behavioural and management-control-driven fuel savings are among the fastest-payback improvement levers available in mining operations, requiring limited capital investment
• Excess idling and inefficient operating patterns are well-documented, widespread challenges in heavy equipment fleets absent active management controls
• Absent diagnostics and management controls, fuel inefficiency stays buried as a hidden cost inside day-to-day operations

• Fuel Consumption Diagnostic & Root-Cause Analysis
• Fuel Performance Dashboards
• Short-Interval Control Routine
• Structured Operational Review Meeting Cadence
• Operator Behavioural Change & Coaching Programme
• Fuel Efficiency Standards by Equipment Class
• Phased Rollout Roadmap

8–12%

Reduction in fuel consumption across the equipment fleet (approx.)

20–30%

Reduction in excess equipment idling time (approx.)

90%+

Equipment fleet covered by fuel performance dashboards (approx.)

100%

Mining areas operating under the short-interval control routine

15%

Improvement in operator adherence to fuel-efficient practices (approx.)

1

Structured fuel performance management routine established (approx.)

Dashboards, short-interval control, and structured operational meetings now keep fuel performance visible and actionable on an ongoing basis, well beyond a one-time saving. Reinforced operator behaviours and sustained monitoring maintain fuel efficiency gains across the Group's mining operations.