Africas Mines Turn To Solar In Sustainability Push

In 2018, at the Otjikoto mine in Namibia, B2Gold unveiled what was then an unusual sight at an African mining operation an installation of solar panels.

The 6MW solar facility, which also included a battery storage BESS component, now provides around 13 of the mines power according to the company. Ken Jones, B2Golds director for sustainability, says the company was mainly motivated by the need to reduce its carbon footprint.

Climate risk management is really what its about, he says. You cant decarbonise the rest of your operation until you clean up your electricity generation

B2Gold, like many mining companies operating in remote parts of the continent, has historically relied on purpose-built heavy fuel oil HFO plants to provide power. It has now been able to put its HFO plant at Otjikoto under care and maintenance after deploying solar power and connecting to the Namibian electricity grid in 2023. The company has also invested in solar at its other African operation, at Fekola in Mali, where solar and storage will soon deliver around 30 of the mines electricity.

Jones tells us that solar has proven reliable at the mines in Namibia and Mali. These facilities have more than performed. Theyve met and actually exceeded projections and modelling.