Solar and storage in energy-intensive industry

In March 2025, Rio Tinto announced an agreement with Edify Energy involving solar generation and battery storage for its Gladstone operations. The announcement described 600 MWac of solar and 600 MW / 2,400 MWh of storage, with construction then planned to begin in late 2025 and completion targeted for 2028. Those dates describe the announcement’s plan, not a verified completion update.

The example shows why energy-intensive users increasingly assess generation, storage and long-term commercial arrangements together. The supply profile and the industrial operating profile must be considered as a system.

NEC perspective: For mining and remote operations, the appropriate configuration depends on process continuity, existing supply, fuel logistics, electrical protection and site conditions. The size of another company’s project is not a specification for the next site.

NEC’s work focuses on site-specific assessment of solar, storage and intelligent energy management. Rio Tinto and Edify Energy are cited as an external industry example; no NEC involvement in, or partnership relating to, that project is represented.

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