South Africa’s power crisis has sparked a new trend in the mining industry, this trend is seeing mines move towards off-grid, renewable energy mining solutions in order to ensure uninterrupted production. One of the main reasons for this shift is the unreliable supply of electricity across the country, as well as the fact that alternative power solutions, such as diesel generators, are costly.

Why Renewable Energy?

There are various reasons why decision makers in the mining industry, or mining consultants, are moving towards alternative power solutions, these include:

• Not having access to a utility’s transmission network
• The desire to improve power stability
• The desire to decrease power costs
• Increasing the focus on green power to reduce carbon footprint

What Options Are Popular for Mines?

Solar and wind energy are popular renewable energy options for mines, when mining consultants are looking at mining optimisation and turnaround strategies for mines, they may use these solutions to achieve this. Wind turbine farms and solar photovoltaic systemsare popular choices due to their recently proven cost-effectiveness, as well as the viability of their use on many mining sites.

Site-Specific Energy Solutions

If you’re looking for site-specific energy solutions that will provide your mining operations with stable, alternative power for minimal downtime, get in touch with professional mining consultants. Mining consultants will advise you on what will work best for your specific project, as well as subsequent mining optimisation techniques that will boost your productivity, all year round.