The 36 MW solar farm and a 7.5 MW battery-energy storage system will tangibly reduce CO2 emissions of existing diesel power station.
The Cape Town based subsidiary of German renewable energy specialist, juwi AG, signed an agreement with Sukari Gold Mines to design, supply, build and integrate a solar battery hybrid power plant for Egypt’s largest gold mine. Centamin plc owns and operates the mine in partnership with the Egyptian Government. The hybrid power plant is expected to be operational in the second quarter of next year, after which juwi will undertake the plant operation and maintenance.
Dave Manning, Director Global Hybrid at juwi ,said “We look forward to assisting Centamin to reduce carbon emissions and cost of power to the Sukari Gold Mine. This global flagship project highlights significant benefits that African mines can unlock with solar battery hybrid solutions powered with juwi Hybrid IQ.”
The solar system designed by juwi has maximised generation with bifacial solar PV modules and a single axis tracking system, taking advantage of the high irradiance at site. Juwi Hybrid IQ micro-grid technology will enable the integration of the solar and battery system into the existing off-grid network and support the operation of the existing power station.
The benefits of the hybrid power solution at Sukari include:
⦁ Reducing diesel consumption by an estimated 22 million litres-e per year;
⦁ Lowering carbon emissions by an estimated 60,000 tCO2-e per every year;
⦁ Reduction of all in sustaining costs;
⦁ Reduced exposure to fuel price volatility;
⦁ Increased reliability of the power system.
Amiram Roth-Deblon, Director Global Business Initiatives at juwi, comments: “Our proven track record with hybrid designs and project delivery in locations with some of the world’s best solar resources enables our clients to drive down cash operating costs with maximized throughput and reliability. The collaboration with Centamin and its forward-looking expert advisors has been crucial for the closure of the project.
We are glad also to work with our Egyptian construction partner Giza Systems to deliver this groundbreaking project. I would like to thank the entire team for their contribution.”
Stephan Hansen, COO and board member of juwi AG, adds: “The mining industry accounts for 10 percent of the global energy consumption and many minerals play a vital role for the energy transition. We are glad to support the resource industry on their de-carbonisation pathway with our dependable solar, wind and battery solutions”.
juwi has already achieved remarkable success for mining clients globally with the world’s first utility scale solar battery hybrid project at the DeGrussa Copper mine. This was followed by Agnew Gold in 2019 and another five utility scale hybrid projects currently under construction: Esperance, Pan African Resources, Jacinth Ambrosia, Jabiru and Gruyere. With Sukari, juwi will provide a new benchmark of power systems for mines in Africa and internationally.
Since the founding of the company in 1996, juwi has, in sum, built over 5,400 MW of wind and solar projects in more than 25 countries.
