Appian Capital Advisory on Wednesday announced the acquisition of a majority shareholding in the Rosh Pinah Solar Park to decarbonise its portfolio further and decrease energy costs.
It will acquire the majority shareholding in Rosh Pinah Solar Park from Emesco Energy to exclusively supply clean energy to the portfolio company, Rosh Pinah Zinc Corporation, for its mine, Rosh Pinah Zinc, in Namibia.
"Appian's investment in the project and its clean energy supply will also support Namibia's energy independence. The country currently relies on almost 3 000 GWh of imports per year, which accounts for approximately 75% of its annual energy usage," the company in a press statement said on Wednesday.
Country director Nico Knight noted that the expansion will meet 30% of the mine's electricity needs, reducing dependence on Namibia's Power Corporation.
The mine has always been dependent on the power station to be operational.
"This will ease the load on the power company and decrease Namibia's reliance on imports," he said.
Appian is exploring increasing the Rosh Pinah Zinc's share of energy supplied from the solar project to unlock further cost savings and carbon emissions reductions.
"Namibia has favourable conditions for solar energy production, with a high number of annual sunshine hours and one of the largest solar energy yields in the world," the statement reads. As part of the agreement, Appian plans to increase the solar plant's output from 5.4 MWp to 16.3 MWp, providing 30% of the energy supply required for Rosh Pinah Zinc's expansion project (RP2.0).
The solar project will supply clean energy to the mine through a fixed nominal rate 15-year offtake agreement, reducing its cost of energy by 8%.
The RP2.0 is said to increase Rosh Pinah Zinc's ore production from 0.7 million tonnes to 1.3 million tonnes of ore per annum and is now more than 60% completed.
Increasing the capacity of the solar plant to 16.3 MWp is expected to help optimise the value of the asset.
However, Emesco Energy, the solar plant developer, will continue to operate it and develop the expansion.
"The project will benefit from cost synergies by leveraging Appian's management and expertise from existing solar plant operations in Brazil, where 20 solar plants are being developed to support the company's portfolio in the Minas Gerais region," the statement adds. Founder and CEO of Appian Michael Scherb said the investment is important, as it will support Appian's decarbonisation ambitions and provide tangible cost benefits to Rosh Pinah Zinc while offering attractive risk-adjusted returns to our investors.
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"The project is another important step for Appian's clean energy strategy following the development of our solar plant operations in Brazil. I look forward to working with our team to deliver on the opportunity this investment offers the business," he noted.
Managing director of Emesco Energy Rinus Strydom stressed that the investment by Appian is a pivotal step in not only expanding the RPSP renewable energy plant but also in expanding Namibia's energy generation sector in general.
"Emesco looks forward to collaborating with Appian, and commends their clear commitment to decarbonise, drive down the cost of energy and increase energy supply diversity within their portfolio," he stated.
