Engineering and Mining Journal - Whether the market is copper, gold, nickel, iron ore, lead/zinc, PGM, diamonds or other commodities, E&MJ takes the lead in projecting trends, following development and reporting on the most efficient operating pr
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RENEWABLE ENERGY APRIL 2016 • E&MJ; 59 www.e-mj.com Unreserved public equipment auction 4 of 8 – 2008 Caterpillar 777F 2010 Caterpillar 16M Plus 2008 Caterpillar 993K 2011 Atlas Copco DML XL1200 * OAC. Terms & conditions apply. | Auctioneer: Kevin L. Perry #RP 2607 Equipment incl. Crawler tractors, rock trucks, wheel loaders, drills, motor graders, water wagons, skid steer loaders, excavators and much more. Bid in person or online ▸ No minimums or reserves ▸ Test & inspect on-site ▸ Open to the public ▸ Free registration Financing & leasing available Up to 100% financing, with no money down. Hazard, KY – May 5 (Thursday) | 8 am 260 Coal Fields Industrial Drive Chavies, KY 41727 New items added daily Call about selling: 606.910.4337 See complete listings at rbauction.com Special limited-time fnancing ofer* Williams agreed. "The next big revolution with be in batter- ies," he predicted, but went on to warn: "Mining companies need to understand what business they are in. They produce materials, and use energy. If they need to produce their own en- ergy to stay in business, that is a different situation from being connected to a grid. "Renewables have to be price-competitive, and subsidies will have to end eventually," he said. Integrating Renewables The frst three formal presentations focused on integrating re- newable energy sources into a mine's grid-based or stand-alone power supply. From consultant frm Knight Piésold, Keith Ains- ley described how the company has been working with Banro Corp. since 2005 at its gold mining operations in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). He explained that, faced with diesel costs that remain high because of delivery charges to remote sites, Banro has been evaluating ways of incorporating hydrogeneration systems, with the aim of achieving $5 million in annual cost savings. The 6.5-megawatt Ulindi 1 hydroelectric plant, carrying a $40 million price tag, will supply Banro's Twangiza mine, while the $24 million Magembe plant, which involves rehabilitating an existing historical facility, will feed power to the Namoya op- eration, 180 km to the southwest. Banro elected to have two smaller plants rather than one big one for both lower capex re- quirements and better risk control. Payback periods are 2 and 3.3 years, respectively, Ainsley said. An important feature of the project is that the plants will also provide power to local communities while the mines are working, and will then be handed over to the national power utility. Banro is now looking for strategic partners to help build and operate the two stations. Moving continents, Romain Desrousseaux from the French IPP, Neoen, described how it has developed a hybrid so- lar-with-storage power-supply system for Sandfre Resources' The next big revolution will be in battery technology, said Tim Williams, CEO of Andiamo Exploration, a U.K. company active in Eritrea.