The Quebrada Blanca Phase 2 (QB2) copper project, in Chile, will be fully powered by renewable energy, TSX- and NYSE-listed Teck Resources said on Thursday, announcing a 17-year power purchase agreement with AES Andes for 1 069 GWh/y of energy from renewable sources.
The agreement follows on the 2020 agreement with AES Gener, in terms of which it secured 50% of QB2’s total operating power needs from renewable energy sources.
Teck noted that the use of 100% renewable energy for QB2 instead of energy from coal-fired generation would avoid a total of 1.6-million tonnes a year of greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions.
“Securing 100% renewable power for our QB2 copper operation is a significant step forward in Teck’s ongoing efforts to reduce GHG emissions across our business and support global action on climate change,” said CEO Jonathan Price.
“Reaching full renewable power for QB2 will enable us to achieve our goal of net-zero Scope 2 emissions by 2025 as we harness clean power to minimise the GHG footprint of our operations.”
Teck’s ultimate goal is to be a net-zero operator by 2050. The company previously announced switching to 100% renewable power of its Carmen de Andacollo operation, in Chile.