THUNDER BAY — Ring of Fire Metals is investigating the use of wind power and atmospheric carbon removal as part of a comprehensive effort to develop a net-zero emissions mine at its Eagle's Nest site.
In an announcement Tuesday, the company described the findings of a preliminary study conducted by global renewable energy firm Windlab earlier this year as "promising."
"We are encouraged by the results of the initial wind study and believe there is good potential to generate clean energy using wind turbines in the area, which we will further definite with additional study in the near term," said Stephen Crozier, the company's vice president, sustainability.
Crozier said the company's main focus in planning for a mine at Eagle's Nest, 500 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay, is to implement low emissions technologies throughout the operation.
"Other options for complimentary low and no-emission generation, including biomass, pumped hydro and solar are also being investigated to supplement clean wind energy production if necessary."
Following the completion of the Windlab study, Ring of Fire Metals installed a Vaisala WindCube lidar (light detection and ranging) for the collection of more detailed data.
"Unlike traditional tower installations, lidar devices obtain measurements throughout the air column from the base to the top of the turbine blades rather than just at the hub," Crozier said.
Data from both studies will be matched with projected power demand to guide the modelling of power generation and storage options for the proposed mine.
The company is also participating in a research project with Spain-based Geosciences Barcelona to study the potential use of mine tailings to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
Crozier said tailings from certain types of nickel deposits have been shown to have the potential to absorb significant quantities of carbon dioxide, and that there may be ways to speed up the rate at which this happens.
"We have provided Geosciences Barcelona with samples of tailings from the Eagles Nest project, and they are evaluating their potential for carbon dioxide absortpion."
He said Ring of Fire Metals hopes to use tailings to remove CO2 from the atmosphere and "safely and permanently" store it underground.
The Eagles Nest deposit includes high-grade nickel, copper and platinum group elements.
Ring of Fire Metals is promoting it as a potential catalyst for developing additional downstream processing capability in Ontario and for establishing the province as a globally-significant producer of battery materials.
But at this point, production from the first mine in the Ring of Fire mineral zone is still years away, and dependent on construction of a road, completion of environmental assessment, government approvals and consultations with First Nations.
"It's a challenge right now, getting through the consultation process, and the timeframes are unfortunately way longer than we'd hope they'd be," acting CEO Steve Flewelling said in an interview last month with Northern Ontario Business.
Ring of Fire Metals previously operated as Noront Resources.
The name was changed in September after Australia-based Wyloo Metals acquired Noront earlier this year.
