The project will hybridise the energy supply of Fekola to reduce the facility’s dependence on imported heavy fuel oil, saving operational and transportation costs, as well as lower greenhouse gas emissions.
The application of the project is to maintain microgrid stability, in addition to the curtailment of ramp events, the elimination of engine and solar power fluctuations and the provision of spinning reserves. GEMS will use automated and forecasted data, including load demand and weather, to enable energy production optimisation, ensuring the lowest Levelised Cost Of Electricity (LCOE) for the mine.
The renewables plus storage solution is both cost competitive as well as environmentally beneficial. Payback on the project is expected in only a few years and carbon emissions are projected to reduce by approximately 86 million pounds per year.