Mines in the Australian Goldfields and Pilbara regions are set to see a significant increase in renewable energy penetration, after leading independent power producer Zenith Energy signed an agreement with 5B Maverick for the deployment of renewable energy assets in Australia. The 5B Maverick system is a solar array that is prefabricated and modular, allowing for rapid deployment and redeployment across multiple sites – making it a “game changer” for the mining industry.
Zenith Energy managing director Hamish Moffat said the agreement would particularly benefit mines with shorter lifespans.
“We’ve been looking to increase renewable assets across multiple sites for some time, the question has always been around how we can achieve that in such a way that is economically viable,” he said.
“The 5B Maverick system is re-deployable, meaning it can be integrated on mines with shorter tenure, and moved at the end of operations at those sites.
“It offers Zenith greater ability to leverage value from our initial capital expenditure, making it more cost effective to offer expanded renewable energy solutions for our clients.”
5B Mavericks reduce risk of stranded assets
5B co-founder and chief executive officer Chris McGrath, a self-proclaimed renewable energy innovator on a mission to accelerate the global transition to clean energy, has stated that one of the biggest barriers for solar power on global mine sites has been deployment logistics and economics.
“The agreement also shows that our cost reduction efforts over the past two years have worked – we’ve hit the price point where 5B Mavericks can be viably packed up, and redeployed elsewhere, substantially reducing the risk of stranded assets in mining, agricultural and industrial operations,” McGrath said.
The 5B Maverick system is set to be integrated into three new and existing mine sites in Western Australia, including IGO’s Nova nickel mine, Calidus Resources’ Warrawoona gold mine, and Red 5’s King of the Hills gold mine.
5B targets “ultra low-cost solar”
Last month, the Sydney-based solar technology company announced that it had been granted $14 million to accelerate the automation of its solar arrays production and deployment. The funding, from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA), will support 5B’s $33.4 million tech innovation program to design a high-volume, scalable and predominantly automated manufacturing line at its headquarters in Mascot, Sydney.
Nicole Kuepper-Russell, 5B Chief Operating Officer, further explained how the company is supporting the federal government’s target of ‘Solar 30 30 30’ to improve solar efficiency to 30% and reduce the cost of solar to 30 cents a watt installed by 2030.
“The world needs massive scale, ultra low cost solar power fast and this funding will accelerate the delivery of that. It gives us the opportunity to build Australia’s reputation as a clean energy superpower, exporting cutting edge clean technology to the world.”
Along with its plan for an automated manufacturing line, 5B has also allocated a portion of its program budget towards the development of artificial intelligence-enabled solar installation technology. The GPS Guided Deployment (GGD) field robotic system aims to automate the process of deploying its technology, allowing for faster, cheaper, safer and more efficient solar farm construction.
Production automation combined with GDD technology aims to reduce the overall capital cost of a solar farm featuring 5B arrays, with a 35% cost reduction forecast by 2024 and a 70% cost reduction by 2030, to 30 cents per watt.
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