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Released December 06, 2023 | SUGAR LAND
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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Global mining giant Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO) (London, England) said yesterday it will replace the entire fossil fuel-based diesel consumption with renewable diesel at its Kennecott copper operation in Utah beginning in first-quarter 2024. Industrial Info is tracking several projects at the site, which includes the addition of a solar array.
The consumption at the copper operation involves diesel used in the site's fleet of 90 haul trucks and all heavy machinery as well as the concentrator, smelter and refinery, the company said in a related press release. Rio Tinto said the transition will reduce Scope 1 carbon emissions by approximately 495,000 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent per year, which equates to eliminating the annual emissions of more than 107,000 passenger cars.
The renewable diesel will be "made from renewable biogenic materials sourced in the United States," to be supplied through the existing diesel supply chain, as part of a "continuing partnership" with HF Sinclair Corporation (NYSE:DINO) (Dallas, Texas).
The recent decision to convert to renewable diesel comes after a seven-month trial at Kennecott's Bingham Canyon mine and last year's full transition of the heavy machinery at its borax operation in Boron, California.
In another effort to reduce carbon emissions at the Kennecott site, Rio Tinto is developing a 25-megawatt (MW) solar array addition adjacent to the Bingham Canyon concentrator, which comes after the recent commissioning of an initial 5-MW array. The project involves installing photovoltaic (PV) solar panels to supplement a portion of the Kennecott site's mining, milling or refining operations' power consumption. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Metals & Minerals Project Database can click here to read the project report.
Rio Tinto also is underway with a project aimed at reducing the Bingham Canyon mine operation's annual carbon footprint as much as 65% (1 million tons per year of CO2): the closure/remediation of the nearby Magna North power plant. The project entails shutting down four units at the 75-year-old, 175-MW power plant and replacing the energy by utilizing renewable energy certificates, primarily sourced from the growing portfolio of wind and solar resources from Rocky Mountain Power, a subsidiary of PacifiCorp (Portland, Oregon). The project is expected to wrap up in March 2024. Click here for the project report.
In terms of mining projects at the Bingham Canyon site, work is underway on a US$1.5 billion Phase II extension and upgrade project, which aims to extend the 400,000-ton-per-day mine's life from 2027 to 2032 by pushing back and deepening its southern wall into a new ore area, along with a series of upgrades and revamps. The project, which is expected to wrap up in late 2025, is designed to deliver an additional 1 million tons of refined copper by 2032.
Another effort under construction to extend the mine's life is an approximately US$500 million mine addition and upgrade project. The project entails developing the North Rim Skarn deposit as a 250,000-ton-per-day block-cave/longhole underground stoping mine that will operate concurrently with a 150,000-ton-per-day open pit operation. The new mine will utilize electric-battery mining equipment such as haul trucks and jumbo drills, among other equipment. The project is expected to wrap up in late 2026. Subscribers can learn more from Industrial Info's reports on the Bingham Canyon Phase II and mine addition and upgrade projects.
According to Rio Tinto's 2023 interim results released in late July, the company expects about US$1.5 billion over the next three years in global capital investment for decarbonization projects. The guidance also includes total capital investment of up to US$10 billion per year in 2024 and 2025.
However, the company offered a caveat for investment in emissions abatement projects: "Physical delivery of renewables, diesel replacement and process heat abatement will lag our financial commitments. These delays are the result of a range of factors including engineering and construction timelines, the need to carefully integrate our ambitions with the needs of our local communities and stakeholder groups and a requirement for additional abatement to address underlying emissions growth as our production plans evolve."
Rio Tinto's push for decarbonization represents a growing trend of environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives in the Metals & Minerals Industry. For more information, see July 20, 2023, article - IIR Webinar: Geopolitics, Resource Nationalism, ESG Initiatives Affect Mining Spending.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Project Database can click here for a full list of detailed reports for projects mentioned in this article, and click here for a full list of related plant profiles.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) platform helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking more than 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
The consumption at the copper operation involves diesel used in the site's fleet of 90 haul trucks and all heavy machinery as well as the concentrator, smelter and refinery, the company said in a related press release. Rio Tinto said the transition will reduce Scope 1 carbon emissions by approximately 495,000 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent per year, which equates to eliminating the annual emissions of more than 107,000 passenger cars.
The renewable diesel will be "made from renewable biogenic materials sourced in the United States," to be supplied through the existing diesel supply chain, as part of a "continuing partnership" with HF Sinclair Corporation (NYSE:DINO) (Dallas, Texas).
The recent decision to convert to renewable diesel comes after a seven-month trial at Kennecott's Bingham Canyon mine and last year's full transition of the heavy machinery at its borax operation in Boron, California.
In another effort to reduce carbon emissions at the Kennecott site, Rio Tinto is developing a 25-megawatt (MW) solar array addition adjacent to the Bingham Canyon concentrator, which comes after the recent commissioning of an initial 5-MW array. The project involves installing photovoltaic (PV) solar panels to supplement a portion of the Kennecott site's mining, milling or refining operations' power consumption. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Metals & Minerals Project Database can click here to read the project report.
Rio Tinto also is underway with a project aimed at reducing the Bingham Canyon mine operation's annual carbon footprint as much as 65% (1 million tons per year of CO2): the closure/remediation of the nearby Magna North power plant. The project entails shutting down four units at the 75-year-old, 175-MW power plant and replacing the energy by utilizing renewable energy certificates, primarily sourced from the growing portfolio of wind and solar resources from Rocky Mountain Power, a subsidiary of PacifiCorp (Portland, Oregon). The project is expected to wrap up in March 2024. Click here for the project report.
In terms of mining projects at the Bingham Canyon site, work is underway on a US$1.5 billion Phase II extension and upgrade project, which aims to extend the 400,000-ton-per-day mine's life from 2027 to 2032 by pushing back and deepening its southern wall into a new ore area, along with a series of upgrades and revamps. The project, which is expected to wrap up in late 2025, is designed to deliver an additional 1 million tons of refined copper by 2032.
Another effort under construction to extend the mine's life is an approximately US$500 million mine addition and upgrade project. The project entails developing the North Rim Skarn deposit as a 250,000-ton-per-day block-cave/longhole underground stoping mine that will operate concurrently with a 150,000-ton-per-day open pit operation. The new mine will utilize electric-battery mining equipment such as haul trucks and jumbo drills, among other equipment. The project is expected to wrap up in late 2026. Subscribers can learn more from Industrial Info's reports on the Bingham Canyon Phase II and mine addition and upgrade projects.
According to Rio Tinto's 2023 interim results released in late July, the company expects about US$1.5 billion over the next three years in global capital investment for decarbonization projects. The guidance also includes total capital investment of up to US$10 billion per year in 2024 and 2025.
However, the company offered a caveat for investment in emissions abatement projects: "Physical delivery of renewables, diesel replacement and process heat abatement will lag our financial commitments. These delays are the result of a range of factors including engineering and construction timelines, the need to carefully integrate our ambitions with the needs of our local communities and stakeholder groups and a requirement for additional abatement to address underlying emissions growth as our production plans evolve."
Rio Tinto's push for decarbonization represents a growing trend of environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives in the Metals & Minerals Industry. For more information, see July 20, 2023, article - IIR Webinar: Geopolitics, Resource Nationalism, ESG Initiatives Affect Mining Spending.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Project Database can click here for a full list of detailed reports for projects mentioned in this article, and click here for a full list of related plant profiles.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) platform helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking more than 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
