Tag Archives: Voltvision

VoltVision moves to Phase 2 of digitising Endeavour’s West African gold mine power networks

VoltVision, a UK-based specialist in digitised industrial power networks, says it has completed the first phase of a program to digitise the power networks at Endeavour Mining’s six West African gold mines.

The project has been designed to help maximise the efficiency of Endeavour’s electrical power systems, enabling it to improve power quality, increase uptime and reduce CO2 emissions, while lowering energy consumption and operating costs, VoltVision said.

Endeavour has identified significant power efficiency gains and cost savings as the project has been rolled out. VoltVision has progressed to Phase 2 of the roll-out, which is focusing on condition monitoring, failure prevention and further power reduction analysis.

Back In May 2022, VoltVision announced that the first phase of a pioneering energy efficiency and operational enhancement project at Endeavour Mining’s Houndé Mine in Burkina Faso had been completed.

VoltVision says its V-Cube data modules represent the only commercially available electrical data analytics system in the mining industry able to be both installed, operated and managed remotely, requiring no site visits from Voltvision personnel.

Manoli Yannaghas, VoltVision Managing Director, said: “Because our technology is plug-and-play, Phase 1 was installed successfully by Endeavour’s own engineers, without any site visits from us or disruption to production. It also proved its suitability for remote and hostile environments.”

VoltVision’s digitisation program works by retrofitting its V-Cube data modules to virtually any electrical asset, connecting them to the cloud and VoltVision’s ViVid platform. The V-Cube extracts detailed system and/or asset performance data 24/7, which is then stored in the cloud, reducing the cost of in-situ historians databases, the company says. Its advanced analytical capabilities convert this data into actionable information for use by management teams, which is available through dashboards and alerts.

VoltVision’s ViVid platform

Yannaghas added: “Digitising industrial power networks, including high voltage, can deliver immediate savings of up to 15% of annual static energy costs, plus a host of benefits including greater reliability and lower carbon emissions.

“Our solution converts previously stranded assets into actively monitored elements of a cloud-based IoT system capable of analysing massive amounts of data with minimal infrastructure investment. This gives users unprecedented visibility of power consumption, quality, emissions and costs, so they can make intelligence-based management decisions.”

Voltvision brings energy efficiency enhancements to Endeavour’s Hounde mine

Voltvision, the high voltage (HV) electrical data analytics business, has announced the successful completion of Phase 1 of what it says is a pioneering energy efficiency and operational enhancement project at Endeavour Mining’s Houndé Mine in Burkina Faso.

The results of this initial phase have proved so constructive that Voltvision has been commissioned to roll out the project to all of Endeavour Mining’s mines and development projects across West Africa, it said.

This project hinges on Voltvision’s big data software solution, a program that has been designed by mining specialists and engineers to optimise energy consumption and improve predictive maintenance on all high voltage equipment used on mine sites. This software is coupled with a data extraction cube, a secure ‘plug-and-play’ analytics device installed on a mine’s network. This device extracts and transmits hundreds of energy-related data points to the cloud-based software using Wi-Fi /4G networks, Voltvision explained.

Manoli Yannaghas, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Voltvison, says: “The Phase One roll out of this project was intended to provide high resolution data extraction in support of existing data systems presented in mobile- and PC-based dashboards. This allowed the mine’s technical team to monitor incoming grid power quality and the power quality across the Houndé power system. It has also allowed the accurate recording and logging of power usage as well as the movement from source to point of use again across the whole HV and MV networks.

“Phase 1 of the project commenced in December 2021 when the Cube device was remotely installed across Hounde’s high voltage electrical network, with assistance from the Endeavour team. The ‘plug-and-play’ nature of the device allowed the project to commence with minimal hassle and zero downtime in production.

“In the four months since this installation, a wide range of data points, numbering more than 200 individual points, have been collected and analysed. Early analysis of this data has facilitated a clear and comprehensive understanding of how the mine’s electrical network is behaving and how power is utilised in real time. This has made it possible for the Endeavour team to identify hidden problems and inefficiencies and understand what changes are required to achieve greater energy efficiency across the entire operation. The correction of such efficiencies can deliver quick cost savings and CO2 reduction as well as edging closer to operational excellence.”

The data recorded in this initial phase is a solid foundation for Phase 2, which is due to commence in May, he added.

“Phase 2 is intended to identify further power savings opportunities; develop early warning mechanisms for grid outages; and extract demonstrable Scope 1 and 2 GHG emission numbers. Voltvision will also provide highly accurate asset management services on capital equipment using algorithms it has developed with leading machine learning universities to provide advanced warnings of performance changes and fault development.”

Voltvision’s electrical management software is in the process of being rolled out across the rest of Endeavour’s operations, as mentioned.

Yannaghas concluded: “Through this initial Phase 1, we have formed an excellent working relationship with Endeavour Mining and are exceptionally pleased with the results produced thus far. We look forward to further engagement and assisting the company in optimising its HV electrical asset base, realising cost savings and facilitating the decarbonisation of its mine and project portfolio.”