Sol do Cerrado Archives - International Mining

Vale says it has reached maximum capacity at the Sol do Cerrado solar energy complex in Brazil, one of the largest solar parks in Latin America.

The project is set to supply 16% of all the energy consumed by Vale in its operations in Brazil, in line with the company’s strategy of achieving zero CO2 emissions by 205o.

Vale reached the full installed capacity of the Sol do Cerrado project, in Jaíba, in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, on Tuesday (July 18). On this date, the company received authorisation from the National Electric Energy Agency (ANEEL) for the commercial operation of the last photovoltaic plant of the project, of a total of 17. The project has an installed capacity of 766 MW (peak), equivalent to the consumption of a city of 800,000 inhabitants, Vale says. Operating at full capacity, the solar complex will supply 16% of all the energy consumed by Vale in Brazil.

Sol do Cerrado, whose investments totalled around R$3 billion ($590m), is an important step in helping Vale achieve its climate goals of reducing net carbon emissions (Scope 1 and 2) by 33% by 2030 and zeroing them by 2050. The energy generated by the solar park will reduce Vale’s emissions by 134,000 t/y CO2e, which represents the emission of approximately 100,000 compact cars, according to the company. Vale also expects to reach 100% of renewable energy consumption in Brazil by 2025, and globally by 2030.

Vale began operations at Sol do Cerrado in November last year, with the start-up of four of the 17 photovoltaic plants or sub-parks of the complex, and expanded the operation over the following months, according to authorisations from the regulatory body.

The project has 1.4 million solar panels with an automatic tracking system of the sun’s movement during the day, for greater use of the sun’s rays in energy generation. Some 10.2 million metres of cables are used to conduct the energy.

Currently, Sol do Cerrado has about 100 permanent workers of various qualifications, such as electrotechnicians, electricians and general service assistants. During the implementation of the solar park, between 2021 and 2023, about 3,000 jobs were generated at the peak of activities, with almost 50% deemed to be local labour and 16% of the total jobs taken up by women.

Ludmila Nascimento, Vale’s Energy and Decarbonisation Director, said: “Over the past few months, we have been working hard on the ramp-up of the project, which went exactly as planned. We have successfully connected the 17 plants of the solar park and should already reach peak production next summer. Sol do Cerrado is a complex that brings together local development and renewable energy, contributing to our goal of being leaders in sustainable mining.”

The project also includes a 15-km-long transmission line, with a voltage of 230,000 volts, connecting the Sol do Cerrado and Jaíba collector substations, from where the energy is discharged to the National Interconnected System.

Vale has announced that for the first time it has managed to produce commercial-quality iron ore pellets on an industrial scale without using anthracite coal.

In a test carried out in a pellet plant in Vargem Grande, Minas Gerais, Vale replaced 100% of the fossil fuel with biocarbon to fire the pellets (small balls of iron ore used to make steel). Biocarbon is a renewable, zero-emission product obtained by carbonising biomass, it explained.

The announcement comes on the same day as National Climate Change Awareness Day in Brazil.

Anthracite coal accounts for around 50% of carbon dioxide emissions in pellet production, which is Vale’s most carbon-intensive process in terms of direct company emissions. Today, pelletising accounts for 30% of Vale’s total Scope 1 emissions.

The test began by replacing 50% of the coal with biocarbon, before gradually increasing up to 100%. In total, approximately 50,000 t of pellets were produced, of which 15,000 t were produced using 100% certified biocarbon.

According to Engineer, Rodrigo Boyer, who led the initiative, using biocarbon just in the Vargem Grande pellet plant will cut annual carbon dioxide emissions by roughly 350,000 t, equivalent to the annual emissions of approximately 75,400 small one-litre cars.

“More tests will be carried out in 2023, of longer duration, to thoroughly evaluate the process,” he explains. “Only after this stage will we be able to generate information for the development of the necessary engineering work aimed at the definitive implementation of this project.”

Vale’s Executive Manager for Decarbonisation projects, Rodrigo Araújo, says that the test is another major step in the company’s journey, and in line with its commitment to reach net zero Scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions by 2050.

“In the case of pelletising, the use of biocarbon is our main initiative, due to the fact that there is great potential for biomass production in Brazil,” he says.

Vale is investing between $4 billion and $6 billion to reduce its direct and indirect emissions by 33% by 2030, in accordance with the Paris Agreement, and with the aim of reaching net zero in 2050. Furthermore, by 2035, the company is committed to reducing its Scope 3 emissions, related to its value chain (ie suppliers and clients), by 15%.

Rodrigo Lauria, Vale’s Executive Manager for Climate Change, said: “The climate agenda is a priority for Vale. For example, since 2020 the company has adopted an internal carbon price of $50/t of CO2 equivalent when assessing capital allocation in new projects.”

To achieve these goals, the company has been investing in low-carbon technologies, such as the use of 72-t payload electric trucks, already in operation in Indonesia and Minas Gerais, and around 50 items of underground electric mining equipment in Canada.

When it comes to Vale’s advances in Scope 2 emissions, the startup of the Sol do Cerrado solar plant in Jaíba in Minas Gerais stands out. This is one of the biggest solar farms in Brazil, with the capacity to generate enough power to supply a city of around 30,000 residents.

In relation to Scope 3 emissions, Vale has already partnered with more than 30 steelmaking clients, representing around 50% of the company’s emissions. In 2021, the company also launched “green briquettes”, a product made up of iron ore and high-tech binders, allowing clients to cut their greenhouse gas emissions in steel production by up to 10%. Vale is converting two pellet plants in Vitória to produce these green briquettes. The initial production capacity is approximately 6 Mt/y. In all, $182 million will be invested in these two plants, which will start up by the end of this year.

Vale has also entered into agreements in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Oman to create “mega hubs” to make hot briquetted iron (HBI) and high-quality steel products using green briquettes. The production of HBI using natural gas, as planned in the mega-hub project, will emit approximately 60% less carbon compared with traditional steel furnaces that use coke and coal. In the future, the replacement of natural gas with hydrogen and the use of renewable energy could eliminate CO2 emissions.

In shipping, Vale’s emissions are also deemed as Scope 3 considerations, as it does not have its own fleets. Tests are being carried out on ships equipped with rotor sails and air lubrication technology. The goal is to reduce emissions by up to 8% through low-carbon propulsion technology, using wind as energy.

Vale hits solar generation capacity at Sol do Cerrado energy complex in Brazil

Vale produces commercial-quality iron ore pellets without coal