Construction and mechanical assembly – including the installation of solar trackers – of midtier gold producer Pan African Resources’ (PAR’s) Fairview mine’s 8.75 MW solar PV plant were completed at the end of June, enabling the start of required testwork to ensure that the facility complies with operating standards and regulatory requirements.

The Fairview mine is based in Barberton, Mpumalanga, and is considered one of the oldest gold mines in the region, with more than 130 years of gold mining heritage, and forms part of the Barberton Mines complex.

Scheduled first power generation of the R220-million project has been achieved, with the solar plant expected to provide 15% of Barberton Mines’ energy requirements, with yearly electricity cost savings of about R40-million ($2.4-million) at current electricity tariffs.

The project forms part of PAR’s commitment to reducing its carbon footprint generated through mining activities, while the company is also increasingly investing in renewable-energy plants to generate a higher percentage of clean energy to conduct its operations.

In addition, independent feasibility studies are also currently underway to expand PAR’s Evander Mines’ existing 9.97 MW solar facility and to establish a new solar plant at the Mogale Tailings Retreatment (MTR) operation, in Gauteng. These studies are expected to be completed in the third quarter of this year.

Further, the company has also signed a power purchase agreement with integrated renewable energy company Sturdee Energy for a renewable-energy solution that includes 40 MW wheeled electricity from Sturdee’s Bela-Bela solar PV facility, in Limpopo, meaning any of its operations could use the power generated.

The initial agreement with Sturdee is for ten years, with the option of extending it for an additional five years.

The Bela-Bela solar PV facility is anticipated to generate about 112 399 MWh of renewable energy yearly for PAR, leading to projected savings of R646-million over a decade and R884-million over 15 years, at future anticipated electricity costs.

PAR is also in the process of evaluating options to expand Evander Mines’ existing 10 MW solar PV renewable energy facility by an additional 12 MW, while the company is also evaluating the construction of another solar PV project of between 20 MW and 25 MW at the MTR plant.

In the long run, PAR plans to install 30 MW of solar panels by the end of this year, generating about 75 000 MWh yearly, which will lead to savings of about R100-million on electricity costs and a reduction in CO₂ emissions of up to 80 000 t/y.

In addition to solar, the company is exploring battery storage technology, other renewable-energy initiatives such as wind farms (which could be located off site) and exporting power to the national grid through private producer partnerships that will accrue carbon credits for PAR.