Electrification of mining equipment and utilization of renewable energy sources promote sustainable mine development

Because battery-powered equipment in mines requires battery systems that can store a large amount of energy, and batteries face challenges in the areas of size, weight, and extreme operating conditions, BluVein has proposed an innovative "dynamic charging" solution, an electrified rail system that can be used as an industry standard. All equipment manufacturing enterprises can be connected to the system and implemented, while avoiding the exposure of the power catenary system (due to electrical safety and regulatory issues, exposed power catenary system cannot be used in underground mining). The advantage of this solution is that through dynamic charging, electrification of heavy-duty loading and transportation equipment can be achieved with the use of smaller, lighter and lower cost batteries; The track infrastructure does not need to be spread throughout the mine, it can only be installed in heavy load areas (such as downhill or uphill), and the equipment is powered by on-board batteries in low and medium load areas. BluVein plans to test the scheme's performance at a demonstration site in Brisbane, Australia, in late 2021.

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Realizing clean and low carbonization of electricity production is an important condition for sustainable development of mining industry

Because mine operations currently rely on fossil fuels such as coal and natural gas for their electricity supply, the carbon reduction effects of electrification of mining equipment will be greatly reduced if mining companies do not change the way they produce their electricity sources. Therefore, the use of clean and low-carbon energy, including wind and solar energy, will play a positive role in achieving carbon emission reduction in the process of mining development. In its latest industry report, Fitch Solutions, a well-known global market analyst, pointed out that green hydrogen (hydrogen energy obtained through the electrolysis of water from renewable energy sources) will likely play an important role in the decarbonization of the mining industry in the next few years. Currently, green hydrogen production accounts for only 0.1% of the global hydrogen market due to its high cost of production due to the large amount of electricity it consumes. It is estimated that the cost of electricity accounts for about 50% to 75% of the total production cost of green hydrogen, so the downward trend of renewable energy power generation costs is conducive to the future development of green hydrogen industry.

In March 2021, Rio Tinto Group announced that it would use high-temperature solar technology developed by US renewable energy start-up Heliogen at its borate mine in California, which uses artificial intelligence to control a mirror mesh array to concentrate sunlight to capture energy, and then provide heat and electricity through the generated steam. In addition, Rio Tinto has signed a $44 million contract with Resources and Infrastructure Contracting Services to build a 34-megawatt solar photovoltaic plant at Rio Tinto's Gudai-Darri iron ore mine in Australia's Pilbara mining region. The plant, which will consist of about 100,000 solar panels, will meet about 65% of the average electricity demand of the Gudai-Darri mine and even all of the mine's electricity demand during peak solar generation.