PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Gold miner Bellevue Gold will partner with independent power producer Zenith Energy to establish a hybrid power station at its namesake gold mine in Western Australia.

The miner has inked a power purchase agreement (PPA) with Zenith, under which Zenith will finance, build, own and operate an 88 MW hybrid power station over an initial 15-year term.

The off-grid facility will use a combination of wind and solar generation, thermal generation, and battery storage to meet up to 80% of the project's power needs with renewable energy. Furthermore, the hybrid power solution will allow the project to operate on 100% renewable energy and seamlessly switch to an 'engine-off' mode during periods of high renewable energy generation, Zenith said in a statement.

“This PPA is another key milestone on the path to the start of gold production later this year,” said Bellevue MD and CEO Darren Stralow.

“The high utilization of renewable energy in the power station and the flexibility to time milling activities with renewable energy availability is central to our aspirational goal to be Australia's first carbon-neutral gold producer.

“As well as being environmentally responsible, this approach could see Bellevue receive a premium price for its gold,” he said.

Zenith MD and CEO Hamish Moffat said the signing of the PPA with Bellevue marked a partnership that would continue industry-leading decarbonisation, while also further developing the recently announced Tjiwarl Katu Power joint venture between Zenith Energy and Tjiwarl Contracting Services, the wholly owned entity of Tjiwarl Aboriginal Corporation who are the traditional owners and native title holders of the land on which Bellevue is located.

First gold production from Bellevue is scheduled for the second half of this year, and during the first 12 months of commercial production, the project is forecast to produce between 180 000 oz and 200 000 at an all-in sustaining cost of A$1 000/oz to A$1 100/oz.

Meanwhile, Bellevue has also signed a refining agreement with ABC Refinery, the refining division of Australia’s largest independent precious metals services group of companies Papillion Group, providing a pathway to have the Bellevue gold refined separately.

This would enable Bellevue’s gold to be marketed as a ‘green’ product, reflecting its net-zero status, which, in turn, would allow for a premium price, the company said on Thursday.