The Voisey's Bay Wind project is being developed in partnership with Vale S.A., the world's largest producer of nickel, at their Voisey's Bay Mine located in Northern Labrador. The goal of the project is to provide Vale with cost-effective renewable electricity and also reduce the carbon footprint of the mining operation by displacing diesel fuel use.
Located in a remote location, the mine facilities are currently powered by diesel generators. The Voisey's Bay Wind project will integrate five 4.2 MW wind turbines (total generation capacity of 21 MW) and a 4 MW battery energy storage system (BESS) to add flexibility and stability to the system. The wind farm and BESS will be interconnected to the mine's existing network to create the microgrid which will be controlled using a microcontroller.
The Project will yield a net average renewable wind power penetration of 22%, reducing the mine's diesel consumption by an estimated 10 million liters per year and carbon emissions by an estimated 28,000 tonnes per year.
The project will be owned and operated by Envest (50%) and the two local Indigenous governments (50%), with an in-house operations and maintenance (O&M) team managing the daily activities at the facility. Envest will solve the offtaker's challenge of sourcing reliable and cost-effective renewable electricity through the use of best-in-class technology, engineering expertise and O&M capabiltiies.