Global gold miner Gold Fields has reinforced its commitment to lower carbon operations with the completion of one of the world’s largest renewable energy microgrids for the Granny Smith gold mine in Western Australia.
The new hybrid power system, which has been integrated with an existing gas fired power station, is powered by more than 20,000 solar panels and supported by a 2 MW/1 MWh battery system. Once fully operational, it will reduce the mine’s fuel consumption by 10-13% – the equivalent of removing 2,000 cars from the road.
In total, the solar, thermal and battery storage assets will produce around 18 GWh of energy every year, with carbon emissions at the mine expected to be reduced by approximately 9,500 tCO2-e.
Gold Fields Executive Vice-President Australasia, Stuart Mathews, said the microgrid was a self-contained solution to providing energy in a remote location rather than running a power line hundreds of kilometres.
“Here in Australia and globally our company is committed to addressing climate change impacts by transitioning towards an energy mix that increasingly embraces renewables and lower carbon fuel sources.”
“The Granny Smith microgrid and the renewable energy solution at our Agnew mine are a clear demonstration of the innovative steps we are taking to ensure the ongoing sustainability of our operations,” Mr Matthews said.
The Agnew mine now operates with a 56MW renewable microgrid and was the first in Australia to power a mine with wind-generated electricity. The project comprises five wind turbines, a solar farm, battery system and off-grid gas/diesel engine power plant.
Mr Matthews said the scale of the Granny Smith solar panels will reduce the need to run thermal generators at the mine.
The Granny Smith energy solution has been installed by Aggreko, a world leading provider of energy services.
