Kuvimba Mining House (KMH)‘s gold unit, Freda Rebecca Gold Mine, is set to begin the installation of a 6MW solar power plant by June this year as part of the company’s broader strategy to incorporate renewable energy across its operations, Mining Zimbabwe can report.
By Rudairo Mapuranga
This initiative is a key component of Kuvimba’s commitment to sustainability and reducing its carbon footprint.
The solar installation is expected to generate approximately 30% of Freda Rebecca’s power requirements, marking a significant shift towards more environmentally responsible energy use. Freda Rebecca Gold Mine currently consumes around 20 MW of power, and the solar project will meet a substantial portion of this demand, contributing to the mine’s sustainability goals.
Patrick Maseva-Shayawabaya, Managing Director of Freda Rebecca Gold Mine, highlighted the significance of the solar project in the mine’s operational framework.
“The solar project—what we’ve done is we’ve entered into an off-take agreement with an independent power producer (IPP). Essentially, what we’ve signed with the IPP is an off-take agreement that whatever power they supply, we will get. We use about 20 megawatts of power, and the solar project will produce about 30% of that, which is about 6 or so megawatts,” Maseva-Shayawabaya said during a visit to the gold mine.
The partnership with the IPP is aimed at securing funding for the solar installation, with the project expected to be fully operational within the next 24 months. While the solar plant won’t meet the mine’s entire energy needs, it marks a substantial leap towards lowering dependence on traditional power sources and enhancing the mine’s energy sustainability.
Kuvimba Mining House has developed a comprehensive power strategy, incorporating short-, medium-, and long-term goals to transition towards renewable energy sources across its entire portfolio. The Freda Rebecca solar installation is the first of several planned renewable energy projects under this strategy.
Group Chief Executive Officer Trevor Barnard explained that the Freda Rebecca solar plant is only the beginning of Kuvimba’s renewable energy initiatives.
“We’re putting a power strategy together for Kuvimba Mining House, divided into short-, medium-, and long-term goals. Part of that strategy will obviously be to install renewable energy sources, and we hope to start with the first solar installation here at Freda Rebecca before June this year. This will be just the start, and we’ll roll out further renewable energy suppliers throughout the group into the future,” Barnard said.
The solar plant’s contribution to Freda Rebecca’s power requirements will be pivotal in lowering electricity costs, ensuring energy reliability, and enhancing sustainability. With the volatility of grid-supplied power and environmental concerns around traditional energy sources, the use of solar power presents a cleaner, more sustainable solution for the mine’s operations.
Freda Rebecca Mine’s sustainability efforts go beyond energy solutions. The company has demonstrated a proactive approach to environmental rehabilitation, with ongoing initiatives aimed at restoring degraded land areas. This includes re-vegetating the Tailings Storage Facility (TSF), which stores waste materials from mining operations.
Maseva-Shayawabaya emphasized the mine’s focus on long-term sustainability and the importance of maintaining a healthy environment even during active mining operations.
“Rehabilitating the environment is something that we do on an ongoing basis. If you go to our tailings storage facility, for instance, there’s a major drive to re-vegetate the land so that forests will grow naturally where mining used to happen. That’s an ongoing effort to ensure we don’t wait until the mine reaches the end of its life before rehabilitating the land,” he said.
This strategy aligns with the goals of the “Restoring Nature, Securing Tomorrow” campaign launched by Kuvimba Mining House earlier this year, which focuses on environmental stewardship, dust suppression, and sustainable community engagement. The campaign, which has already seen the planting of over 10,000 indigenous trees around Freda Rebecca’s TSF, highlights the company’s commitment to restoring ecosystems impacted by mining activities.
