Vancouver miner B2Gold (TSX:BTO) has officially opened a solar farm at its Otjikoto mine in Namibia, which the country’s ministry of mines and energy, Tom Alweendo, said it was a “significant contribution” to the nation’s attempts to find sustainable energy solutions.
The opening follows the mid-tier miner’s breaking ground on the construction of the $8.5 million, 7 megawatt photovoltaic solar power plant last year at the mine.
The facility at Otjikoto is one of the first fully-autonomous hybrid plants in the world, B2Gold said in a statement, adding it will allow it to reduce fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions from the site's current 24-megawatt heavy fuel oil power plant.
“This solar plant will deliver positive economic, environmental and social impacts that are likely to outlive the life of mine,” minister Alweendo said.
The facility is also expected to improve B2Gold’s economic returns, reduce impacts on the environment and become a potential funding source for community development.
The company, which will reduce energy cost by 14% this year thanks to the solar plant, said it could use it as an income-generating asset after the mine runs out of ore.
Funds generated by this asset could be used to support ongoing corporate social responsibility activities in the region long after the mine’s shut down.
B2Gold gained access to the Otjikoto mine in Namibia, through its acquisition of Auryx Gold in 2011. It currently owns other four gold-producing mines and has two projects in its pipeline: Kiaka in Burkina Faso, and Gramalote, a joint venture with AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) in Colombia.
