Electricity + Control September 2019

ENERGY MANAGEMENT + ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING

Hybrid power solutions gain traction in mining

Arthur Tassell, Editor of Modern Mining

The processing plant at the Otjikoto mine (photo: Arthur Tassell).

Arguably, 2018 was the year in which hybrid power systems finally took off in Africa’s mining sector, with two major installations being commissioned during the year and development of a third announced, all at gold mines. The systems typically supplement existing conventional diesel or heavy fuel oil gensets with solar energy to reduce power costs, which are generally huge for mines in Africa and a major contributor to the total cost of production.

1. Power costs for mines in Africa are generally huge and hybrid power solutions, including HFO gensets and solar PV plant, are presenting significant savings. Take Note! 1

Essakane in Burkina Faso The first of the systems to be opened last year was a 15 MW project at IAMGOLD’s Essakane gold mine in north-eastern Burkina Faso, one of the biggest gold mining operations in the country with a production of just over 400 000 ounces in 2018. Construction of the photovoltaic (PV) plant was started in July 2017 and it was inaugurated in March 2018 at a ceremony attended by Burkina Faso’s President, Roch Marc Christian Kaboré.

The project represents an investment of more than US$20 million and was entirely developed, constructed and financed by the global renewable energy independent power producer Total Eren SA and its partner AEMP. The construction of the plant was managed by technology group Wärtsilä, which employed 75 people from local communities during execution. Wärtsilä has also been contracted to operate and maintain the plant under an Operations & Maintenance agreement. The Essakane plant –

Solar panels in the 15 MW hybrid plant at IAMGOLD’s Essakane gold mine in Burkina Faso. (photo: IAMGOLD Corp).

which incorporates close to 130 000 PV panels – reduces dependence on the existing 57 MW heavy fuel oil (HFO) power plant. Essakane Solar SAS, a local entity created by the developers, operates the facility and sells the energy to the mine. Over the 15-year term of the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), the project is expected to deliver 86 million litres of heavy fuel displacement (representing a total saving

20 Electricity + Control

SEPTEMBER 2019