1. Home
  2. Asia - Pacific
  3. Rio Tinto Hires NRW to Build 34-MW Solar Park in Western Australia
Rio Tinto Hires NRW to Build 34-MW Solar Park in Western Australia

Rio Tinto Hires NRW to Build 34-MW Solar Park in Western Australia

0
0

Anglo-Australian mining group Rio Tinto Plc (LON:RIO) has contracted NRW Holdings Ltd (ASX:NWH) to deliver a 34-MW solar photovoltaic (PV) project at its Gudai-Darri mine in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

The Australian diversified contract services provider announced the news today, saying that the awarded job is worth AUD 60 million (USD 44m/EUR 37.5m).

NRW will be in charge of the design, procurement, construction, testing and commissioning of all equipment, including a 33-KV substation to be integrated into the overall Rio Tinto Iron Ore infrastructure, a bourse filing says.

Construction work is seen to start next month and commissioning is planned for early 2022.

The project is part of Rio Tinto’s pledge to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. A day earlier, the mining major said it will source both solar and wind energy for its ilmenite mine in Southern Madagascar under a newly-signed power purchase agreement (PPA) with CrossBoundary Energy (CBE).

According to information on Rio Tinto’s website, the new solar farm in Pilbara will cover all of the Gudai-Darri mine’s electricity demand during peak generation times and about 65% of its average electricity demand. The plan is to couple the facility with a new lithium-ion battery energy storage system.

(AUD 1.0 = USD 0.736/EUR 0.623)

Source: renewablesnow

Anand Gupta Editor - EQ Int'l Media Network