Rio Tinto Expands Solar Power Capacity at Kennecott - CleanTechnica

Rio Tinto has expanded its solar power capacity at the Kennecott copper operations in Utah by energizing a new 25-megawatt (MW) solar plant, adding to the existing 5MW plant completed in 2023. This brings Kennecott’s total solar capacity to 30MW, sufficient to power about 1,026 average American homes annually and reduce the mine’s Scope 2 carbon emissions by approximately 6%, equivalent to removing 4,400 cars from the road each year. The 25MW plant, constructed in partnership with Bechtel and completed ahead of schedule, features over 71,000 solar panels that incorporate tellurium produced onsite—a critical mineral used in solar technology. Kennecott began producing tellurium in 2022 as a byproduct of copper refining, making it one of only two U.S. producers of this mineral. The tellurium is processed into thin-film semiconductor materials by 5N Plus Inc. in Canada