G
lobal energy markets are changing, and no industry or sector has been left untouched by the call to action to tackle climate change. At this year’s COP26 Summit, the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GAEPP) was launched to accelerate investment in green energy transitions and renewable power, demonstrating the crucial role renewable energies, such as solar, have in reducing emissions. However, switching fossil fuels off to turn cleaner energy on presents challenges that are being felt acutely by industries around the world, especially those operating off grid. In the absence of a grid connection, which is often the case for sectors such as mining and oil and gas, power generation is a fundamental decision for operators. Moving away from diesel generation to gas is an initial step, but the imperative to integrate renewable energy systems in response to a global call for action on climate change has become a priority, especially for those operating in energy intensive industries. Given that solar power by its very nature produces energy on a highly variable basis, it has not previously been a viable solution for many of these hard-to-abate sectors. This combined with the short-to-medium-term nature of these projects has minimised its adoption in the industry, where solar simply has not been considered. Recent cost reductions in solar photovoltaic (PV) equipment driven by global competition and economies of scale, along with a robust global appetite for investment in renewable energy projects, have inspired break-through innovations in solar power, batteries, and hybrid system controls technology. This has opened up the possibility for traditionally carbon intensive industries to incorporate renewables into their energy mix. Looking at the mining industry as an example. It is estimated that the industry uses 6.2% of total global energy consumption. Integrating solar power into the energy mix throughout the lifecycle of the mining project from the construction phase all the way through to day-to-day
24
