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Company on the brink of proving solar energy benefits to industry

22nd June 2012

By: Yolandi Booyens

  

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Energy and lifestyle solutions provider Optimum PM is on the brink of proving the viability of solar energy technology in the mining industry by running pilot programmes at mining operations across South Africa. This will silence the doubts regarding the use of this renewable technology in mining operations, states Optimum PM energy executive director and founder John Shiri.

The company states that it is in the process of negotiating with mining companies to install solar-based heating and cooling plants with heat pumps that use heat from the bedrock, to supplement power systems that reduce operational costs including maintenance costs of mines and processing plants.

Pilot programmes will entail the installation of solar-based chillers as pre-coolers to the main electric compressors in mining plants.

“This is a low-risk approach that allows a client to test the solar energy technology and quantify the operational benefits,” says Shiri.

“Successful solar energy technology pilot programmes in the mining industry will enable us to reduce energy consumption in one of the biggest energy consuming industries in the world,” he adds.

He says that solar energy holds many advantages for mining operations and, while the use of this renewable technology has been questioned in the past, it is becoming critical as a result of South Africa’s rising electricity tariffs.

Mining Weekly reported in February, this year, that the mining industry, one of South Africa’s seven largest energy users, was struggling to adjust to State-owned power utility Eskom’s fast-rising tariffs. Margins were being squeezed, while previously sustainable operations were being made unviable.

Shiri stresses that renewable energy sources have, therefore, become a viable option for South Africa’s mining industry.

He says solar energy solutions have been around for a while but have not been taken seriously enough by the mining industry, which has failed to realise the potential this technology holds in respect to maintenance and energy cost reductions.

However, Shiri has noticed that, as a result of Eskom’s tariff increases, the mining industry has been looking at alternative ways of saving power and has decided that solar energy sources are, in fact, a viable option.

He says the company has been trying to prove the benefits of solar energy technologies for the last two years by approaching mining companies and demonstrating the technologies’ capabilities.

“The mining industry can use solar and wind power to substitute power from the national grid by using renewable energy sources to power certain operations as well as buildings on site,” Shiri explains.

Solar-powered flood lights, solar water heating for change rooms, and solar- or heat-based cooling systems for use in ventilation and cooling systems on mines can all lead to reduced power and maintenance costs, he says.

“Medium- to deep-level mines use electro- mechanical compressors for cooling. These systems are high in maintenance and Optimum PM offers an alternative that requires less maintenance,” says Shiri.

Solar-based cooling systems use heat energy to condense high-pressure gas back into a liquid. The use of moving parts is eliminated, therefore, reducing maintenance demands and costs.

“Absorption chillers can use either solar heat inputs or waste energy inputs and require only a small pump to move the liquids around,” Shiri explains.

Solar-based cooling systems have a minimum life span of 20 years and are proven to be 50% more efficient than their electrical equivalents.

Shiri states that the company has been working on solar energy solutions since 2007 and feels it will finally make a breakthrough into the mining industry before the end of 2012.

Solar heat energy sources have traditionally been applied to water heating for geysers and became available for use in commerce and industry towards the end of last year.

Engineering News reported in October 2011, that Optimum PM’s solar products and solutions focus on energy optimisation in the South African market, while also enhancing environmental protection.

“We are able to ensure an environment-friendly product by using the latest available technology for the design, planning, landscaping, solar and wind solutions, power monitoring, and security and surveillance services,” says Shiri.

He adds that mine-wide real-time power monitoring systems integrated into mine controls and the use of alternative power devices and generators, to supplement power from the grid, are lacking with new and existing mines.

“Power use across mining operations has to be monitored to help reduce energy and maintenance costs.”

Electrical equipment and circuits must be classified according to their importance to the mining operation. This information should then be used by a mine’s control system to monitor power use by applying predetermined conditions to reduce overall consumption, such as switching off noncritical equipment when it is not needed.

“This, together with alternative power suppliers, can help supplement power from the grid and reduce maintenance costs,” says Shiri.

Optimum PM can provide real-time electrical monitoring solutions, solar-based technologies, lighting systems, heating systems, cooling systems and solar photovoltaic electricity generation systems to help reduce energy consumption and maintenance costs in the mining industry.

Edited by Creamer Media Reporter

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