Australia’s Clean Energy Finance Corporation is investing $99M to boost a South Australia wind farm to provide clean energy to BHP’s Olympic Dam copper mine.
Olympic Dam, located 550 km north-northwest of Adelaide, has one of the largest copper deposits in the world. The Neoen Goyder South Stage 1 Wind Farm will generate 203 MW of electricity and an adjoining battery storage facility will store 477 MWh—enough to help meet half of Olympic Dam mine’s electricity needs with clean cheap power.
Goyder South Stage 1 forms part of the Neoen flagship Goyder Renewables Zone, 150 kms north of Adelaide. Once complete, the site will be the largest wind asset, and one of the most competitive in Neoen’s global portfolio, boasting 76 wind turbines.
Under the innovative Olympic Dam contract, Neoen will integrate output from the second tranche of Goyder South Stage 1, firming the intermittent wind energy with the storage capacity of the Blyth Battery and its energy management expertise.
The project will create more than 400 jobs during the construction of the wind farm and 40 at the Blyth Battery, the fifth big battery project financed by the Clean Energy Finance Corporation.
Australian mining and resource companies are increasingly investing in firmed renewables to help power their operations with more affordable and clean power. Copper mines are critical for clean energy manufacturing, with copper being essential for making wind turbines, batteries, and solar panels.