Glencore to harness heat energy from residual flare gas to generate electricity at Lydenburg smelter

21st February 2020 By: Marleny Arnoldi - Deputy Editor Online

Glencore to harness heat energy from residual flare gas to generate electricity at Lydenburg smelter

Glencore's ferrochrome smelter, in Lydenburg

JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Glencore Operations South Africa (GOSA) on Tuesday signed an energy conversion service agreement with clean-tech company Swedish Stirling.

Swedish Stirling will install, operate and maintain an estimated 9.9 MW facility at GOSA’s Lydenburg ferrochrome smelter.

The total installation will entail up to 25 PWR BLOK 400-F units in a phased approach. GOSA ferroalloys CEO Japie Fullard tells Engineering News & Mining Weekly that Swedish Stirling will first install three units to determine the final quantity of units to be installed.

PWR BLOK 400-F is a modular container-based solution with Stirling engines which convert heat energy from residual flared gas into electricity.

At full capacity the 25 units will generate approximately 6% of the Lydenburg smelter’s electricity requirement.

Fullard says the installation will help curb some of its grid dependency, save on electricity costs and reduce carbon emissions by some 80 000 t annually.

Fullard envisions that the agreement’s necessary regulatory approvals and other required conditions will be finalised by year-end, after which construction of the units will start.

GOSA anticipates that the first unit of the energy conversion facility will be commissioned by May, 2021.