Caledonia Mine sells its 12.2MW solar farm

Less than two years after commissioning its US$14.3 million solar plant, Caledonia Mining has sold it for US$22.35 million, and will use the profits for its operations.

Energy Company CrossBoundary Energy (CBE) is to pay cash for the 12.2MW plant, which supplies a fifth of Blanket Mine’s power needs.

The solar plant will continue to supply energy to Blanket Mine under an exclusive deal, and CrossBoundary may expand the plant to add more capacity.

The sale allows Caledonia to “redeploy capital to our core business of mining”, says CEO Mark Learmonth.

“We look forward to developing a strong relationship with CBE – we are already working with them to deliver a meaningful extension to the plant, and we will be considering renewable energy solutions at our other development projects in due course,” Learmonth says.

Caledonia originally funded the construction of the solar plant by raising money through the issue of shares in 2020.

Says the company: “Upon completion of the sale, Caledonia will realise a profit on the $14.3 million construction cost by selling the plant for $22.35 million.”

Since commissioning in February 2023, the solar plant has generated over 47,350Mwh of power, and profits attributable to the solar plant were US$728,023 in 2023.

Early last year, Caledonia reported that the solar plant had cut Blanket’s diesel consumption from 120,000 litres per month to 18,000 litres monthly.

Matthew Tilleard, Managing Partner at CrossBoundary Energy, said: “Our partnership with Caledonia demonstrates the efficacy of this model for the mining sector, benefiting the mine’s operations and ultimately enabling sustainable mining.

“We look forward to pursuing these acquisitions with miners across the continent.”

According to its website, CrossBoundary Energy has a portfolio of over US$285M of renewables and storage projects for companies that include Diageo, Heineken, Rio Tinto, Syrah Resources, AB InBev and Unilever.

Caledonia recently bought three new mining assets, including the US$309 million acquisition of Bilboes, in its push to become Zimbabwe’s largest gold producer.

Zimbabwean miners have scaled up investment in alternative power over recent years to make up for unreliable grid power.

NewZwire