PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Gold miner Resolute Mining will develop a new hybrid modular power station for its Syama gold mine, in Mali, combining solar, battery and thermal generation technologies.

The ASX- and LSE-listed miner on Monday said that it had partnered with power generation provider Aggreko to develop the power station, with work to start during the current quarter.

Once fully operational, the power plant will reduce power costs by some 40%.

“Identifying and adopting world-class technologies to improve our operations is fundamental to achieve Resolute’s ambitions. We are delighted to be partnering with Aggreko in delivering a lower cost and more environmentally friendly power solution for our Syama gold mine,” said Resolute MD and CEO John Welborn.

“The new Syama hybrid power solution will lower our power costs at Syama by approximately 40% while significantly reducing our carbon emissions. Having worked together for several years, we know Aggreko is the right partner to support us as we integrate renewable energy into our Syama operation.”

The new plant will be delivered in two stages, with Stage 1 to be completed in 2020. The Stage 1 plant will comprise the installation of three new thermal energy modular block generators and a battery storage system.

The generators will be fuelled using a refined heavy fuel oil and will be installed along the existing thermal power plant, allowing a seamless transition.

Resolute said that replacing the existing diesel thermal generation at Syama with intermediate fuel oil thermal generation would increase efficiency by around 30%.

Stage 2 of the plant will consist of the installation of an additional 10 MW modular block in 2022, and the construction of a 20 MW solar power system. Once the solar power system is installed, the 10 MW battery storage system will also manage the solar contribution to power the system and smooth out fluctuations in solar power output to facilitate integration into the hybrid system.

The timeline of Stage 2 will depend on the decommissioning of the existing tailings storage facility and will likely be completed at the latest, by 2023.