Fast facts

Challenge

The Liontown Resources Kathleen Valley lithium mine project, looked to deliver over 60% of its power from renewable resources. This would require 95MW of combined wind, solar and battery power. Being a remote site, labour would be constrained.

Solution

The 5B Maverick is a prefabricated, plug and play solar solution. With a small team an entire array can be deployed in a very short amount of time. A 5B Maverick array requires 70% less labour hours compared to single axis trackers*, making it perfect for the project. 17MW were deployed by a team of 10, in 50 days.

Benefits of 5B Maverick for off-grid and remote mines

Energy density

The 5B Maverick solution achieves typically 98% more energy yield per unit area (kWh/hectare/annum) than single axis tracker systems and 87% more when compared to fixed tilt structure PV array systems*. The increased density reduces overall system footprint, lower dc losses, and provides flexibility in layout design to better manage earthwork requirements and other civil design constraints.

Reduced decommissioning costs

In comparison to typical single axis tracker and fixed tilt array solutions, the ability to fold up and relocate 5B Mavericks allows faster and safer system decommission at the end of the project life - or to extend asset life by re-using the Maverick elsewhere**.

*based on DNV modelling of 6 sites, latitudes ranging from -12.5° to +43.6° (prepared 12/2021).

**Based on 5B comparative studies conducted across sites in Australia and Chile. Includes piling, module mounting and string cabling.