Saracen Mineral Holdings, Norton Gold Fields and Evolution Mining are set to reduce their carbon emissions and create hundreds of jobs from new renewable energy projects in the Goldfields, receiving grants worth more than $2.6 million from the McGowan Government’s $19 million Clean Energy Future Fund.
Nomadic Energy will install 5MW of modular, re-deployable solar panels at Saracen Mineral Holdings’ Carosue Dam gold mine.
ResourcesWA will install 30MW of solar power at Norton Gold Fields’ Homestead gold mine, which will supply power to Norton’s Paddington Mill and Evolution Mining’s Mungari Mill sites. Batteries at each of the mills will reduce the impact of outages and support Western Power's local substation.
The projects will create up to 400 jobs and generate 77,000-megawatt house (MWh) of electricity each year, which is enough to power 15,000 houses and save 53,000 tonnes of carbon emissions; the equivalent to taking 17,000 cars off the road. Significant facilities in regional areas were prioritised in the first round, with the Western Australian State Government funding up to 25% of eligible project costs.
Environment Minister Hon Stephen Dawson MLC said the Fund is an important part of the McGowan Government’s commitment to achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and supporting the State’s COVID-19 economic recovery plan.
“Nomadic Energy and ResourcesWA were chosen for the high value they provide, their capacity to reduce emissions, potential for wider adoption, innovation and financial viability,” Minister Dawson said.
“These benefits will only increase further as these technologies are more widely adopted, and will also grow exponentially as the fund continues to support new, innovative clean energy projects,” he concluded.
Mines and Energy Minister Hon Bill Johnston MLA, further explained the importance of the Fund as it shows the Government’s commitment to supporting innovative, new technologies and opportunities for Western Australia.
“Not only does the fund assist in developing clean energy projects, it has helped create jobs, which is increasingly important for our State’s economic recovery during the COVID-19 pandemic,” Minister Johnston said.
“With over 385 construction and operational jobs expected to be created during the life of the two projects, it’s clear that clean energy industries are an important source of future employment opportunities, particularly in regional WA,” he explained.
ResourcesWA Director Andre Garnaut told the Kalgoorlie Miner there was “enormous potential” in large scale renewable energy use at edge-of-the-grid sites.
“What we are seeing now is a lot of energy in trying to get these type of projects into the mining sector, and the Goldfields is a very unique region for WA because you have quite a large network and a large distance to generate and transmit electrons,” Mr Garnaut explained.
Nomadic Energy Commercial Director Alex Blott shared his excitement for the project, as it will expand on Nomadic’s existing 1MW solar array, which since installation in January 2020, had exceeded expectations.
“This next project will hopefully deliver not only environmental results but also commercial results for Saracen and return on tax-payer money,” Mr Blott told the Kalgoorlie Miner.