United Kingdom-registered Nordgold announced on 20 April that it had signed an engineering, procurement and construction contract with China’s Sumec to build a 33MW HFO plant. Sumec is part of the China National Machinery Industry Corporation, a state-owned industrial equipment company. Once operational, the project will power Nordgold’s Lefa mine in the Kankan region of Guinea.
The $23m plant will replace an existing facility and is expected to reduce fuel consumption by 15% and engine oil by 30%. It is expected online by the end of 2021 and will generate power for the 15-year lifespan of the mine. Generation equipment will be supplied by South Korea’s Hyundai Heavy Industries.
Lefa began commercial production in 2008 and Nordgold acquired the mine in July 2010. In 2018, about 5.3t of gold was produced, making it one of the largest gold mines in Guinea. The company currently has ten mines in Burkina Faso, Guinea, Russia and Kazakhstan and development and exploration projects in West Africa, Eurasia and the Americas.
“Even during these challenging times, we remain committed to investing in Guinea”, Nordgold chief executive Nikolai Zelenski said. “The new power plant is an important investment as it enables us to both decrease greenhouse gas emissions and provide sustainable power generation for our Lefa mine. We are looking forward to working with Sumec and Hyundai to achieve this project.”
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