- BGL has signed an Early Works Agreement with EDL to set up an off-grid hybrid power station for its gold mine in Western Australia
- It plans to have the mine operate with 100% renewable energy using wind, solar and battery storage with thermal power working on engines off mode
- The company plans to sell gold produced thus for a premium with the project expected to meet up to 80% of its annual electricity needs
Australian gold miner Bellevue Gold Limited (BGL) says it will power the company’s Bellevue Gold Mine in Western Australia from renewable energy generated by an off-grid hybrid power station of Energy Developments Pty Ltd (EDL) and sell this ‘green gold’ for a premium.
The project will make it the country’s 1st Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) listed gold miner with net zero emissions. The plant is to be commissioned by mid-2023.
The company has signed an Early Works Agreement with EDL for the project that will use both wind and solar power along with a battery and thermal generation to meet the site’s power requirement of around 13 MW. With this arrangement, the mine will be able to operate on 100% renewable energy and ‘engines off’ mode.
“The power station will enable the mine to have the lowest Scope-1 emissions of any major gold mine in Australia, providing the cleanest power on a greenhouse-gas-per-kilowatt hour basis; and forecast emissions intensity of 0.15t CO2e/oz to 0.2t CO2e/oz will be the lowest of any major Australian gold mine,” stated Bellevue.
The agreement with EDL will be followed by a power purchase agreement (PPA) for the project. EDL already operates a similar turnkey power solution at its Agnew Gold Mine (see Hybrid RE Project For Australia Off-Grid Mining).
According to Bellevue, at a steady-state production rate of 1Mtpa, renewable energy is expected to meet up to 80% of the project’s annual electricity needs, taking advantage of the region’s strong solar and wind resources.
“Bellevue is forecasted to be a 200,000oz* a year gold miner with low all-in sustaining costs of A$1,000- A$1,100/oz powered by ~80% renewable energy, with a pathway to net zero emissions as a world-leading company in the race to decarbonize the mining sector,” said Bellevue Managing Director Steve Parsons. “Our pre-production carbon mitigation strategy has been strategic and is world leading. It achieves the ‘holy grail’ of lower emissions and a direct cost reduction in power generation.”
The tilt towards renewable energies to power its operations will also appeal to global investors, added Parsons.
Recently Zenith Energy said it will build 95 MW hybrid renewables project with thermal component working in engine off mode for Kathleen Valley Lithium Project of Liontown Resources Limited (see Australia’s ‘Largest’ Off-Grid Renewable Energy Hybrid Plant).
