World’s biggest gold miner signs up to buy green power from WA’s biggest wind farm

The world’s largest producer of gold, global mining giant Newmont Corporation, will source renewable electricity from Western Australia’s biggest wind farm (to date), as part of a major new deal to help power a gold and copper mine in the state’s south-west.

Newmont subsidiary Newmont AP Power said on Tuesday it has signed up to a 15-year PPA with Collgar Wind Farm Pty Ltd, committing to purchase 100% of the electricity and generation certificates generated by the 222 megawatt project, effective from 2027 to 2042. 

The renewable energy offtake deal will support the decarbonisation of Newmont’s Boddington project – a large gold and copper mine located 16 km from the rural farming town of the same name and 130 km from Perth.   

The Collgar wind farm is a pioneering large-scale renewable energy project in WA, where it began operations near Merredin in the state’s wheatbelt region in late 2011.

The project’s developer, Collgar Renewables, is wholly owned by Rest – one of Australia’s largest profit-to-member super funds with two million members and around $93 billion in funds under management. 

The Collgar wind farm remains the biggest in the state, with the closest competitor being the Yandin wind farm to the north. Although a planned expansion of the Warradarge wind farm, taking it to a total capacity of 283 MW, will soon take the top spot.

Up until the PPA with Newmont, the wind farm has sold its 630-750 gigawatt hours (GWh) per year to Synergy, WA’s state-owned electricity utility. It was also a part of a joint PPA – alongside the Emu Downs and Albany wind farms – to supply renewable energy to 51 councils, in a deal negotiated by the WA Local Government Association (WALGA) in 2021.

Collgar Renewables CEO Sam Pearce says it shares Newmont’s goal of ensuring its projects benefit local communities.

“Both companies have a long history of operating in Western Australia and Collgar is committed to working with Newmont to help drive a sustainable future with clean energy.” 

Newmont Boddington general manager Chris Dark says the miner is committed to sourcing renewable energy for its operations around the globe. 

“The purchase of renewable energy from Collgar will enable Newmont to continue supporting local jobs, investing in community programs and funding vital services for  the long term while adopting industry leading sustainability practices,” Dark says.