Oz Minerals has issued a Pre Feasibility Study Update (PFSU) on its greenfield West Musgrave copper and nickel mine in central Western Australia.
The project will now cost an estimated A$1.1 billion and assumes a fully off-grid 50MW power solution implemented on a Build-Own-Operate-Maintain (BOOM) basis.
The study remarks: “Off-grid renewable power solution confirmed; focus on developing a roadmap to 100% renewable generation.” (RENEW ECONOMY)
OZ Minerals will spend another $67 million on the next stage of study of the project before taking an investment decision in 2022. However, it assures that “renewable energy for the project continues to be a key focus in the next phase of study, with an ongoing commitment to an off-grid renewable power solution.”
The PFSU reveals that using an optimized mix of wind, solar, and diesel supported by a battery installation, the site could achieve a 70-80% renewables component in its energy needs.
“There remains considerable upside in power cost through matching plant power demand with the availability of renewable supply (load scheduling), haulage electrification to maximize the proportion of renewable energy utilized and the continued improvement in the efficiency of renewable energy solutions,” says the PFSU.
The open-pit mine will reduce its dependency on fossil fuels progressively and in due course, aims to become “one of the largest fully off-grid, renewable-powered mines in the world.”
Compared to a fully diesel-powered solution, the mine would avoid in excess of 220,000 tpa of carbon dioxide emission through this innovative power supply solution.
Read the RENEW ECONOMY article HERE.
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