Globally, the outputs of the mining and mineral processing industry are, and will continue to be, critical for the progression of society. Demand for some metals and minerals such as copper, nickel, lithium, rare earths, silicon, potash and many others will increase markedly in coming years to support societal progress. However, drivers such as the global transition to a net-zero emissions circular economy combined with increasing energy costs and risks associated with global climate change action are causing miners to rethink the way in which mines and mineral processing operations receive, generate and use energy across their entire operation. The Paris Agreement, set in 2015 and signed/ratified in 2016, sets a goal of a global temperature increase of well below 2C above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels. In practice, this will require global emissions to be net zero (ie sinks that remove CO2 from the atmosphere are equal to sources that emit CO2 into the atmosphere) in the latter half of the century between 2050 and 2070. Long term, the mining and mineral processing industry will also need to be net zero emissions in this timeframe. To explore alternative energy supply options that support these long-term goals, the mining value chain has been split into different areas and the potential alternative energies available. Mining processes are considered, both underground and open pit, including mobile and fixed equipment. Mineral processing is then also discussed, both hydro- and pyro-metallurgical.
CITATION: Allen, M, 2019. Alternative energy roadmap for the mining and mineral processing industry, in Proceedings Future Mining 2019, pp 152156 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).