BHP has signed a deal which will source half its Olympic Dam power from new renewables

BHP’s Olympic Dam mine is well on the way to going green after signing a major renewables supply deal with French company Neoen.

BHP Olympic Dam asset president Jennifer Purdie at the mine’s copper processing operations. Pictures: Supplied.

BHP has struck a deal which will supply enough green energy to meet half of its power needs at the massive Olympic Dam copper, gold and uranium mine from the middle of 2025.

The mining company said on Thursday it would source 70 megawatts (MW) of electricity from French company Neoen’s 203MW Goyder South Stage 1b wind farm in the state’s far north, which it expected would meet half of its forecast electricity demand from that time.

“In addition, Neoen will construct a large-scale battery energy storage system in Blyth, South Australia to support the power purchase agreement, which will also assist in improving the stability of the South Australian electricity grid,’’ BHP said in a statement.

The wind and battery project is expected to create about 250 jobs during construction and 15 permanent jobs once complete.

BHP Olympic Dam asset president Jennifer Purdie said the agreement fit with the company’s carbon emissions ambitions.

“The world needs South Australia’s high-quality copper to build renewable technologies and infrastructure, and BHP is focused on producing that copper more sustainably,” Ms Purdie said.

The new contract will underpin Stage 1B of Neoen’s Goyder South project.

“This agreement will support BHP on its decarbonisation journey, and provide new firmed renewable energy and increased stability to the South Australian grid.”

Neoen said Goyder South was a 412MW project in total, with Stage 1 already under construction.

“It is the first phase of Neoen’s flagship project known as Goyder Renewables Zone, a hybrid wind, solar and storage project, located near Burra in South Australia’s Mid North region,’’ the company said.

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“The exceptional wind resources of the area are making this project world-class in terms of both size and competitiveness.

“Stage 1 consists of two parts: 209MW underpinned by two long term power purchase agreements with the Australian Capital Territory Government and Flow Power, and 203MW underpinned by this new 70MW base load contract with BHP.’’

Neoen chief executive Xavier Barbaro said the PPA - the first base load contract signed by the company in Australia, “is a significant step forward for Neoen and will serve as a template for future contracts, opening up new market opportunities in Australia and in the rest of the world”.