Business
Miners lead renewables power push
Stalled efforts to supply energy into the local grid highlight the changing relationship between miners and the power they need.
Power supplied to Northern Star Resources’ Kalgoorlie Consolidated Gold Mines will soon come from a renewable resource adjacent to the town from which it takes its name.
By the middle of 2027, commissioning will start on a new source of energy to fuel the region’s most prolific mine for decades to come.
Zenith Energy is in the throes of planning a renewably fed power facility that will revolutionise the supply into Northern Star’s KCGM operation, moving it away from the South West Interconnected System (SWIS) and the ageing, dual-fuel Parkeston power station of which it is a part-owner alongside TransAlta.
Once complete, Zenith’s Eastern Goldfields Power project will comprise 256 megawatts of wind generation, 138MW megawatts of solar generation and 138MW/300MW hours of battery energy storage.
Zenith’s new project will sit just 10 kilometres outside of Kalgoorlie, feature some of the largest wind turbines in Australia – 150 metres high with a rotor diameter of 182 metres – and will be supported by a back-up thermal generation plant.
Northern Star will buy energy from the renewable project under a powerpurchase agreement for 25 years, while taking a stake as a joint venture partner in the thermal project.
The development is likely to garner plenty of interest in a city where awareness of the need for energy supply and security have reached new heights in recent years.
“The KCGM project provides a blueprint for what modern mining energy systems should look like: cost-effective, clean, scalable, reliable and delivery of real benefits to local and regional communities,” Zenith managing director Hamish Moffatt said following the announcement late last year.
The project will clearly deliver in terms of local jobs and supply chain engagement.
But the desire to bring electricity benefit beyond the mine gate has come to little so far.
SWIS support
The SWIS is the main source of power for the town of Kalgoorlie, KCGM, and a number of other prolific mining and processing projects in the Goldfields.
It connects Kalgoorlie to the state’s South West through to Dongara, via a single 655km transmission line that has stood since 1984.
The reliability of that line is a source of frustration for some industrial operators, most vocally Lynas Rare Earths, which blamed the network for production downgrades in November last year.
It also powers residential homes and businesses in Kalgoorlie and surrounds, and its fragility was highlighted when it was knocked out by a freak storm in January 2024.
The state government is planning to build a $150 million vanadium redox flow battery in Kalgoorlie and is considering construction partners ahead of an operational target of 2029.
The state insists the battery will be built with Western Australian vanadium, a material not currently mined in the state.
ASX-listed Australian Vanadium appears to be the likely feed source for vanadium material as it progresses its namesake project north of Cue, despite having yet to take a final investment decision there.
At time of writing, stage-two tenders for the battery project were open, with AVL among the bidders pitching to build the battery as well as supply the material.
The government also has plans for a Goldfields regional network: a common-use transmission project it says will link renewable energy resources in the region to industrial centres and local communities.
Early studies into the network have assumed the regional network will not be operational until 2033.
In the meantime, concerns linger over the state of Kalgoorlie’s power network; an issue Northern Star sought to address when planning its new power solution.
In January, documents submitted to the Environmental Protection Authority revealed Northern Star had hoped to plug its new thermal plant back into the SWIS as a source of electricity supply to support the network.
That proposal has been knocked back.
Under current plans, the thermal power station would be built on tenure granted under the Mining Act, leaving its proponents – Northern Star and Zenith – subject to a different set of rules than if they were to build the plant outside a mining project.
“[The Department of Mines, Petroleum and Exploration] has expressed the view that Mining Act tenure should be used exclusively for mining purpose and not for the export of electricity to the grid,” Northern Star wrote in its EPA submission.
“While the proposed power station and associated assets are proposed on Mining Act tenure, the facility will not export electricity to the South West Interconnected System until the state formally endorses a tenure and approvals pathway that expressly permits such exports.”
Projects built under the Mining Act have lower cost and regulatory burdens compared with those built under the Land Administration Act, which the government prefers as a pathway to energy development.
It is a similar regulatory hurdle to that faced by Fortescue in the Pilbara, where the Andrew Forrest-led miner hopes to supply excess energy from its growing renewable energy network – built on Mining Act tenure to power mines – to data centres.
While the new energy system will keep Northern Star from drawing as heavily on the constrained Kalgoorlie SWIS network, it will also prevent the goldminer from giving back to it.
In June, WA opposition energy spokesperson Steve Thomas told Business News the state had not fully shut the door on miners feeding excess power into common-user grids, but voiced concern over the precedent that would be set if they were allowed to.
“The issue is simply that renewable energy development is not mining,” Mr Thomas said.
“You start to establish precedents [whereby] renewable energy is coming under the Mining Act, but it’s not mining, so what else might ultimately come under the Mining Act that is not mining?”
The legality of feeding non-mining infrastructure with energy projects on Mining Act tenure is a grey area.
As the nature of mining power supply changes, particularly in areas where grid supply is constrained, like the Goldfields, it is a question that will continue to be asked.
Renewables boom
The mix of sun, wind, vast expanses and isolation from major energy networks beyond the fringes of the SWIS make the Goldfields particularly suited to renewable projects.
Zenith’s plans on the outskirts of Kalgoorlie are the headline act in a suite of renewable energy activations across the Goldfields in recent years.
Among the proponents to go the renewables path in the region are Gold Fields and Lynas Rare Earths, while newer market entrants such as Liontown Resources and Bellevue Gold have had the benefit of building out lower carbon energy from scratch.
Bellevue and Lynas are both run on energy produced by Zenith.
And while Gina Rinehart-backed Lynas floated the potential of leaning more on diesel generators as a standby source of energy when its SWIS connection doesn’t hold up, the company has also benefited strongly from the 65MW hybrid renewable power station at Mt Weld.
Between the March quarter of 2025, when it was relying on a diesel plant, and the same quarter this year with the new facility in place, Lynas used 870,000 fewer litres of diesel at Mt Weld.
As geopolitical ruptures in the Middle East drove the price of diesel to record highs, that was a significant boost.
The rare earths producer’s power station, also built, owned and operated by Zenith under a 15-year power purchase agreement, comprises 24MW of wind, 7MW of solar and 12MW of battery storage, along with a 17MW gas-fired station and 5MW of diesel on standby.
As recently as last year, Lynas leadership vented over the challenges of accessing reliable and affordable power when competing in a market dominated by China.
As a participant in Western Power’s Eastern Goldfields Load Permissive Scheme, it is autonomously supplied grid power when available and turned down when demand is high elsewhere.
The rollout of renewables appears to have boosted Lynas’s power position greatly.
South African goldminer Gold Fields was one of the earliest movers on renewables at its mine sites in the region.
Gold Fields’ Granny Smith mine is powered by a hybrid solar and battery microgrid, delivered in 2020 by Aggreko and expanded with an increase in renewables starting in 2025.
The Granny Smith renewables system supplies about 21 per cent of the mine’s power needs.
Gold Fields’ Agnew mine has been fuelled by a hybrid renewable microgrid built by EDL since 2020, which was the first project in the country to fuel a mine site with large-scale wind generation.
Its St Ives project will be the beneficiary of a $296 million renewables project from this year, currently being built by Pacific Energy.
The project will draw energy from a 35MW solar farm and 42MW of wind power and is expected to supply more than 70 per cent of St Ives’ power once commissioned.
Gold Fields expects it to slash the mine’s carbon emissions by 50 per cent once commercial operation starts in the second half of this year.
The miner has not closed the door on further renewables expansion across its suite of projects in the area, according to Granny Smith general manager Mark Glazebrook late last year.
“Goldfields and Granny Smith are always looking at opportunities to expand our renewables,” he said on a site visit in November.
“Obviously, we have to look at it from both a sustainability context as well as a cost context.
“There are definitely opportunities for further expansion of the renewables in terms of solar farm and potentially wind turbines into the future.”
Queensland-based remote energy specialist EDL built the system supporting Gold Fields’ Agnew mine as a first mover in the space.
Speaking with Business News last year, chief executive James Harman said there was a global shift by companies operating on grid fringes nationally in finding their own power solutions, including those that had historically drawn from the SWIS at Kalgoorlie.
“There’s a common thread, and that is that a lot of industry is concerned about reliability, and so are we,” he said.
“We are looking at lots of fringe-of-grid opportunities, where we are able to design wind, solar, battery solutions for a customer and then firm it from the grid.
“That is something we’re working on here in WA. We’ve got a project that we’re very advanced with as well, in Far North Queensland.
“I think we’ll see a lot more of that, instead of industry relying on the grid to supply largely renewable power.
“We can build microgrids that connect to the grid, as fringe of grid for that backup if needed, but we’re able to design the wind-solar-battery component as a microgrid and provide fraction renewables.”
- From the recent Business News Goldfields-Esperance publication released in June.
Business
Myles Garrett Thanks Girlfriend Chloe Kim After She Presents Him Record-Breaking ESPY Award in New York
NEW YORK — Myles Garrett had a message for his girlfriend, Olympic snowboarding champion Chloe Kim, after she walked onto the stage Wednesday night to hand him one of the biggest honors of his career.
Garrett, 30, won the ESPY for Best Record-Breaking Performance at the 2026 ESPYS, held at the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center. The award recognized his historic 2025 season with the Cleveland Browns, during which he set the all-time NFL single-season sacks record with 23. Kim, 26, presented the award alongside comedian Tiffany Haddish, and Garrett wasted no time acknowledging her role in keeping the moment a surprise.
“Thank you, baby, for keeping a secret like that, because you definitely knew,” Garrett said as he stepped up to accept the trophy.
The defensive lineman used much of his acceptance speech to thank the people who supported him through a demanding season. He turned first to his parents, reflecting on how difficult it can be for family members to take a back seat to an athlete’s singular focus during a long campaign.
“I want to thank my parents, I know it’s not easy, I can get kind of locked in and focused on my sport, and I know we all try to enter our zone as athletes, and sometimes, the people who mean the most to us take a bit of a backseat for our journeys that we go on throughout the season, so I want to thank them for always loving me and supporting me in their own ways,” Garrett told the audience.
He also recognized his siblings, both athletes in their own right — his brother, former NBA player Sean Williams, and his sister, Brea Garrett, who holds the weight throw record at Texas A&M.
“I want to thank my brother, my sister — they’re athletes in their own right, dominating their field and they know what it’s like and they know how to support someone who’s going through a lot,” he said.
Garrett closed his remarks by turning his attention back to Kim, whose own trophy case includes five career ESPY awards.
“I’m blessed to be on this stage,” he said, before adding, “Most of all, this is an honor, I got a lot of catching up to do with this beautiful woman behind me.”
The record-breaking honor was one of two Garrett took home Wednesday night. He was also named Best NFL Player, becoming the first defensive player in ESPYS history to win the award. His dominant 2025 campaign came shortly before he was traded from the Browns to the Los Angeles Rams.
The evening carried extra significance for the couple beyond the trophies. On the red carpet ahead of the ceremony, Garrett and Kim shared an affectionate moment in front of photographers, with the NFL star kissing his girlfriend on the cheek as she posed in a red gown for the event. Speaking with ESPN afterward, Garrett was quick with a compliment when hosts told the couple they looked “beautiful.”
“Thank you, she is,” Garrett replied.
Kim, for her part, said ahead of the show that she was looking forward to being on the other side of the ESPYS spotlight for once, handing out hardware rather than collecting it.
“I think handing people awards is just as fun as receiving them, so I’m looking forward to it,” Kim told reporters on the red carpet, before revealing she would be the one presenting her boyfriend’s award.
Kim has built her own decorated career on the slopes, most recently adding to her Olympic medal collection with a run at the Winter Games that has kept her among the most recognizable athletes in her sport. Her five ESPYS to date reflect a résumé built over multiple Olympic cycles, and Wednesday’s ceremony offered a rare split-screen moment for the couple: one partner accepting hardware for a historic NFL season, the other stepping into a presenter’s role after years of being the one called to the stage.
Garrett’s ESPYS night capped a whirlwind stretch that began with his record-setting performance for Cleveland and ended with his high-profile trade to Los Angeles. Setting the single-season sacks mark put him in rare company among NFL pass rushers, and Wednesday’s dual recognition — for both the individual record and his overall standing as the league’s top player — underscored how thoroughly he dominated the position during the 2025 campaign.
The 2026 ESPYS drew a broad mix of athletes and celebrities to Lincoln Center, with the ceremony doubling as both an awards show and a showcase for some of the year’s biggest sports storylines. Garrett and Kim’s shared moment on stage was one of several highlights from a night that also featured appearances from other prominent athletes across multiple sports being honored for their achievements over the past year.
For Garrett, the recognition adds to what has already been a landmark year, one that included a record-breaking season, a major trade and now hardware to match. And for a couple whose careers are built on very different playing surfaces — an NFL field and a snowboarding halfpipe — Wednesday’s ceremony offered a public reminder of how closely their orbits have come to intersect, both in celebrating each other’s success and, for one night, in each other’s spotlight.
Business
Burnham urged to go faster on devolution
Andy Burnham has been warned he must complete England’s devolution map at speed or preside over a “two-tier England” in which a firm’s prospects depend on whether it happens to sit inside a mayor’s boundary.
The warning comes from IPPR North, the leading think tank for the North of England, in a paper published as the incoming prime minister prepares a programme built around handing power to regional mayors.
More than a quarter of England’s population still lives outside a Mayoral Strategic Authority, the bodies that increasingly shape transport, housing and regeneration decisions. For business owners in those areas, that means no local champion with the powers and budgets their competitors in Greater Manchester or the West Midlands can call on.
The researchers argue that leaving gaps in the devolved map risks rising resentment in communities that feel left behind, with public confidence in political institutions already at historic lows.
Money is already moving on the strength of the mayoral model. NatWest’s recent £20 billion commitment to the North of England was pitched explicitly as a bet on devolution. Firms outside mayoral areas risk watching that capital flow past them.
The current government has already legislated, with the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act receiving Royal Assent in April, and has signalled a willingness to go further on devolving tax powers to mayors. But the think tank warns that slow, incremental change has left Whitehall dominating decision-making, so the full benefits have yet to be felt.
Its recommendations are blunt. Complete the devolution map in England by the end of this parliament, and explore extending regional devolution to city regions in Scotland and Wales. Set out ambitious plans for fiscal devolution at this autumn’s Budget, allowing places to retain a share of taxes and borrow to invest in transport, housing and regeneration. And expand “hyperlocal” government so communities, not just mayors, shape decisions.
The fiscal point is where SME owners should pay closest attention. Rachel Reeves has already described fiscal devolution as her “unfinished business”, with consultations under way on visitor levies and devolving revenues from income, business and land taxes. Who sets and spends those taxes, and where, will matter enormously to firms’ costs and their local trading environment.
Dr Ryan Swift, research fellow and author of the publication, said: “We know the incoming PM has signalled his ambition for devolution in England, but we must move beyond incrementalism, or his efforts could be in vain.
“If the new government is serious about delivering economic growth, tackling regional inequalities, and rebuilding trust in politics we can’t continue as we are. Gradual change won’t cut it any more, this is the time to move quickly and with purpose.
“That means giving regions not just more responsibilities, but powers, resources, and democratic legitimacy to make a real difference in places all across the country. It means empowering communities as well as mayors. And it means embedding these changes constitutionally, so that we can benefit from it for the decades to come, no matter who is in Number 10.
“Now is the time, now is the opportunity. It cannot be squandered.”
Mirte Boot, interim head of IPPR North, said: “With the UK in a political trust crisis, the incoming prime minister does not have time to waste.
“We have set out a radical proposal to see devolution truly make a difference to peoples lives, with ambitious fiscal devolution and a reformed regional second chamber. Local leaders should be in charge of local decisions. We saw the impact that has had in Manchester, now we have to see it replicated across the country.
“But with this radical work must come urgency: Whitehall will resist change and populists will exploit every failure. The test now is if Burnham can act quickly enough to deliver the meaningful change this country has been waiting for.”
For a business community in which eight in ten SME owners have admitted to fears about a Burnham premiership, the test cuts both ways. If Burnham delivers what he calls “the biggest rebalancing of power the country has ever seen”, decisions on transport, skills and regeneration will be taken closer to the firms they affect. If he fails, England’s businesses will be trading in two very different countries.
Business
Johnson Matthey appoints Joachim Rosenberg to board

Johnson Matthey appoints Joachim Rosenberg to board
Business
UK economy returns to growth in May
Yael Selfin, chief economist at KPMG, said the warmer weather in May helped to boost consumer spending, which is likely to have continued into June and July thanks to the World Cup.
However, she added, while this would help the services sector, “it may not be enough to offset weakness across other parts of the economy”.
“The recent rise in energy prices, driven by a pick-up in tensions in the Middle East, could pose a risk to the growth outlook, with financial conditions also tightening as a result,” Selfin said.
Since hostilities resumed between the US and Iran last week, the price of oil has risen from about $72 a barrel to $84, although it remains well below the peak of around $120 seen earlier this year.
The growth in May “is not a bad welcome gift for incoming PM Andy Burnham”, said Paul Dales, chief UK economist at Capital Economics.
“But with higher energy prices still restraining real incomes, he shouldn’t get used to it.”
Responding to the latest figures, a spokesperson for the Treasury said: “We have the right economic plan which has put the UK in a much stronger position than two years ago with the fastest growth in the G7 in the first quarter and the OECD agreeing that we have restored stability.”
Business
Argenica partner with Curtin to study stroke drugs' impact on concussion
Curtin University research has found Argenica’s flagship stroke drug, which protects brain tissue from dying immediately after a stroke, can also significantly reduce the impacts of concussion.
Business
Niagen Bioscience, Inc. (NAGE) Discusses Strategic Expansion Into Pharmaceutical Development and NB4168 Drug Program – Slideshow (NASDAQ:NAGE) 2026-07-16
Seeking Alpha’s transcripts team is responsible for the development of all of our transcript-related projects. We currently publish thousands of quarterly earnings calls per quarter on our site and are continuing to grow and expand our coverage. The purpose of this profile is to allow us to share with our readers new transcript-related developments. Thanks, SA Transcripts Team
Business
Celebrus CFO purchases 60,000 shares at average 96.5p

Celebrus CFO purchases 60,000 shares at average 96.5p
Business
Analysis-Iran war leaves crisis-weary European airlines ready for a shakeout

Analysis-Iran war leaves crisis-weary European airlines ready for a shakeout
Business
Mrs Bectors Food soars 11% after Sunil Singhania’s Abakkus acquires 29.4 lakh shares via block deal
According to exchange data, Abakkus Investment Managers Pvt. Ltd. purchased 29,39,588 shares of Mrs Bectors Food on July 15, representing around 0.96% equity in the company. The shares were acquired at an average price of Rs 168.97 apiece, marginally below the previous day’s BSE closing price of Rs 169.45.
The bulk purchase sparked fresh buying interest in the stock, which has been under pressure in recent months. Over the past three months, Mrs Bectors Food shares have declined around 15%, while the stock has fallen nearly 42% over the last year, significantly underperforming the broader market.
At the current market price, the company commands a market capitalisation of Rs 5,202 crore. The stock has touched a 52-week high of Rs 318.18 and a 52-week low of Rs 164.95, indicating a sharp correction from its peak.
From a valuation standpoint, Mrs Bectors Food trades at a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 36.45, a price-to-sales (P/S) ratio of 2.69, and a price-to-book (P/B) ratio of 4.04.
Technical indicators continue to suggest caution. The stock’s 14-day Relative Strength Index (RSI) stands at 39, indicating that it is approaching the oversold zone, though it remains above the 30-mark typically considered oversold. Additionally, the stock is trading below all eight of its key simple moving averages (SMAs), reflecting a prevailing bearish trend.
Despite the recent weakness, analysts remain optimistic about the company’s prospects. According to Trendlyne data, the consensus target price implies an upside potential of around 35% from current levels. The stock also enjoys a ‘Strong Buy’ consensus recommendation from 11 analysts, highlighting expectations of a potential recovery in the coming months.
Earnings Watch
Mrs Bectors Food Specialities is yet to announce its June 2026 quarter results. In the March 2026 quarter, the company reported an 8.4% year-on-year rise in consolidated revenue to Rs 496 crore, while consolidated net profit increased 3.3% YoY to Rs 35 crore, indicating steady business growth despite relatively modest earnings expansion.(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times)
Business
Analysis-SpaceX’s slide below IPO price risks turning blockbuster IPO into confidence test

Analysis-SpaceX’s slide below IPO price risks turning blockbuster IPO into confidence test
-
Fashion7 days agoLoro Piana Fall 2026 Enters Houston’s Art Scene
-
Fashion5 days agoWeekend Open Thread: Nutriplenish Leave-In Conditioner
-
Sports7 days ago2026 Genesis Scottish Open Thursday TV coverage: Round 1
-
Sports6 days agoSuper Eagles star Moses Simon opens up on Liverpool transfer regret
-
Tech7 days agoCharacter.AI enters the microdrama arena with its own productions, but there’s a twist
-
Politics19 hours agoYoung campaigners urge incoming PM to act on outdoor junk food ads
-
News Videos1 day agoXRP BOMBSHELL… XRP OMBOARDED FOR TRANSACTIONS!!!
-
Tech2 days agoGet Your ESP32 Sunny Side Up With This Solar Dev Board
-
Tech1 day agoDark Secrets Emerge When Jailbreaking LLMs
-
Sports10 hours agoNew Cornerback Enters Vikings Trade Rumor Mill
-
Entertainment14 hours agoDisney’s Most Ambitious Failed Star Wars Attraction Is Coming to SDCC
-
Tech7 days agoLevel Infinite Launches Gangstar Mirage City in India with Pre-Registrations
-
NewsBeat7 days agoMajor update after Huntingdon train attack as man enters plea
-
News Videos3 days agohow to make coin bank box with cardboard #scienceproject #money #diy #shorts
-
Tech3 days agoCloudflare Precursor Watches Your Mouse and Keyboard To Decide If You Are Human
-
Entertainment13 hours agoVicki Gunvalson Defends Discussing Heather Dubrow’s Money
-
NewsBeat10 hours agoWatch: Is Donald Trump facing a popular backlash on immigration?
-
Crypto World2 days ago
Ripple, Coinbase, Circle Join Linux x402 Foundation to Help Shape AI Payments
-
Sports7 hours agoMichigan officials not expected to discuss AD Warde Manuel at Thursday meeting
-
NewsBeat9 hours agoFirefighters issue update on Dovestone moorland blaze as fire enters fourth day

You must be logged in to post a comment Login