Rio Tinto has approved construction of a new 25-megawatt solar plant at its Kennecott copper operation in Utah, bringing the mine’s total solar capacity to 30 MW. It will be located next to an existing 5-MW solar plant.
“Expanding our solar farm is the latest step in our journey to reduce our carbon footprint. Together with other measures we’ve taken, such as closing a coal-fired power plant, deploying battery electric vehicles underground, and our recent transition to renewable diesel, we have reduced our emissions by millions of tons over the past few years,” said Rio Tinto Kennecott Managing Director Nate Foster. “We’re demonstrating every day that sustainable practices and resource production can go hand-in-hand to benefit our company as well as our community.”
Together, the two solar plants will reduce Kennecott’s Scope 2 emissions by approximately 6%, or 21,000 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent per year. Construction of the new plant, which is being designed by Bechtel Corporation, is expected to be completed next year.
The 210-acre solar array will include more than 71,000 panels, which contain tellurium produced by Kennecott, a byproduct of mining and refining copper.
Source: Rio Tinto