Microgrid
ProjectsSubmit a project

Home / Directory / Nova Nickel Mine Microgrid

Asia / Industrial & mining

Nova Nickel Mine Microgrid

Current status, energy mix, organizations, suppliers, equipment, controls, reported specifications, and project updates—with source-level citations.

CoverageDetailed public record
Named organizations7
System facts21
Sources reviewed10
Evidence reviewed2026-07-20

Nova is IGO's remote nickel-copper-cobalt operation in Western Australia's Fraser Range. Its power system evolved from a 19 MW diesel station to a battery-free solar-diesel hybrid in 2019 and then to an engine-off hybrid with approximately 16 MW total solar, a 12 MW/12 MWh BESS and two synchronous condensers. The archived 6.7 MW solar/20 MW diesel figures reflect the original contract/design scale, while Zenith's current as-built account reports 5.5 MW initial solar and 19 MW diesel before the 10.2 MW relocatable-solar expansion.

Research status
Operational, with the renewable expansion commissioned and engine-off operation demonstrated. IGO's FY2023 report says the new solar farm and battery were commissioned and achieved Nova's first period on 100% renewable power; later company material lists the full 16 MW-solar/12 MW-battery system as installed. The power system also experienced a major diesel-engine-room fire in December 2022 that shut the mine for 18 days before 14.9 MW of temporary generation restored operations. IGO now expects the Nova mine to reach end of life in late 2026, making the expansion's relocatable design important; no public post-closure destination or current battery-health data was found.
Historical classification
Industrial
Reported capacity
See component specifications
Coordinates
-31.82323, 123.19103
Evidence note: “Every company” cannot be proven from public material alone. This page lists every organization found in the recovered record and reviewed sources, preserves unknown roles, and explicitly marks undisclosed controller or equipment details.
Report missing evidenceResearch methodology

Project delivery

Who was involved in Nova Nickel Mine Microgrid?

7 publicly identified organizations. Where a recovered source named a participant without explaining its work, the role remains explicitly unspecified.

Organization

5B

Supplied the relocatable Maverick solar technology for the approximately 10 MW expansion. [7]

Organization

IGO Limited (formerly Independence Group)

100% owner/operator of the Nova mine and power-system client/offtaker. [3][4][5]

Organization

NGK Insulators / BASF Stationary Energy Storage

NGK manufactured and BASF's storage subsidiary supplied a separate 250 kW/1.45 MWh sodium-sulfur demonstration battery that began operating in February 2023. [8]

Organization

SOLEA

Publicly named participant; role not specified in the recovered record [1]

Organization

Solea AG

Named as Zenith's solar-integration partner in the original 2015 battery-free development concept; later as-built/current sources do not clarify its continuing role. [9][10]

Organization

Zenith Energy (formerly Zenith Pacific)

Built, owns/operates and integrates the diesel, solar, battery and synchronous-condenser power system under a ten-year contract reported on its current project page. [2][4]

Organization

Zenith Pacific

Publicly named participant; role not specified in the recovered record [1]

System evidence

Energy mix, capacity, and specifications

Values can describe different project phases, generation sources, storage systems, or other components. Source citations are attached to each figure so discrepancies remain visible.

KW Solar
6700 [1]
KW Gas/Diesel
20000 [1]
Storage
NA [1]
Diesel station
19 MW installed according to Zenith's current as-built project page. Early development announcements rounded the design to 20 MW. [2][9]
2019 solar phase and rating conflict
Zenith's current project page says 5.5 MW commissioned in 2019 and an ASX presentation described 5.67 MWp, while the amended PPA/original archived record used 6.7 MW and forecast 12.5 GWh/year. These appear to be design/DC-nameplate versus delivered/rounded figures; they should not be added together. [2][4][10]
Expanded solar capacity
Approximately 16 MW total on Zenith's current page, comprising the original approximately 5.5 MW plus 10.2 MW of relocatable solar (15.7 MW before rounding) [2][7]
Main battery energy storage
12 MW / 12 MWh BESS, a one-hour nameplate ratio, supporting cloud smoothing, solar-spill capture and engine-off operation [2][5]
Synchronous support
Two 2.8 MVAr synchronous condensers provide grid-forming/reactive support when diesel engines are off [2]
Separate long-duration-storage trial
One containerized NGK NAS sodium-sulfur battery, 250 kW DC maximum and 1,450 kWh DC at beginning of life, started operation in February 2023 for fluctuation mitigation, peak shifting and research. This is separate from, and should not be merged into, the 12 MW/12 MWh engine-off BESS. [8]
Initial-solar operating result
Zenith reports an average 11 GWh/year in the first three years, approximately 3 million litres/year of avoided diesel and 8,100 tCO2/year avoided. These are operator-reported figures and predate the full engine-off expansion. [2]

Controls and hardware

Equipment and controller details

Manufacturer and model are shown only when a source names them. Generic descriptions are not converted into guessed product assignments.

01

Diesel generator sets

Model not publicly disclosed

Five 3 MW medium-speed sets and three 1.7 MW high-speed sets are listed by Zenith. Their simple arithmetic exceeds the published 19 MW plant total, likely reflecting gross/nominal versus station rating, but the source does not reconcile it. Engine and alternator manufacturers/models are not disclosed. [2]

02

Original solar farm

Model not publicly disclosed

Single-axis-tracking PV integrated directly with diesel generation without battery stabilization in 2019. Public sources reviewed do not identify module, inverter or tracker manufacturers/models. [4]

03

Relocatable solar expansion

5B — Maverick

5B reports a 10 MWp, 210-Maverick array deployed in 42 days by a small onsite team and designed to be removed/redeployed after Nova's short remaining mine life. [7]

04

Main BESS

Model not publicly disclosed

12 MW/12 MWh battery system. Reviewed public sources do not disclose cell chemistry, pack/PCS manufacturer, model, usable energy, warranty or state of health. [2][5]

05

Long-duration demonstration battery

NGK Insulators — NAS battery

Sodium-sulfur chemistry distributed by BASF Stationary Energy Storage; selected for long duration and tolerance of mine-site temperatures approaching 50°C. [8]

06

Forecasting and plant control

Zenith Energy

Cloud-prediction and integration controls forecast large cloud events and increase thermal generation before PV falls. Expanded controls coordinate battery, solar, synchronous condensers and diesel-free operation; algorithm and hardware details are not public. [2]

Technical record

Architecture, performance, and project updates

Concise technical facts, milestones, operating results, and later developments. Dated notes distinguish historical design claims from current evidence.

  • Engine-off capability

    IGO reports the expansion achieved the mine's first 100% renewable operating period, while Zenith describes the installed system as engine-off enabled when solar and storage conditions permit. Earlier targets of eight or nine consecutive hours were design objectives; no public annual hours-at-engine-off dataset was found. [5][2]

  • December 2022 fire and recovery

    A December 3 fire extensively damaged a 10 MW diesel engine room and suspended all mine operations. IGO said the fire did not damage the control room, switch room, solar PV, BESS or distribution network. IGO and Zenith deployed 14.9 MW of temporary generation and resumed operations within 18 days. [6][5]

  • Commercial chronology

    The original power station began in 2015, mine commercial production began in July 2017, the first hybrid solar phase was commissioned in 2019, and the battery/solar expansion reached commissioning and initial engine-off operation in FY2023 with further completion reporting in FY2024. [2][3][5]

  • Mine-life boundary

    IGO announced in March 2025 that Nova is expected to reach end of life in late 2026. The 5B array was expressly chosen to reduce stranded-asset risk by permitting removal and redeployment; public material does not state plans for the diesel station, BESS, synchronous condensers or original solar after closure. [3][7]

  • Open evidence gaps

    No current annual energy mix, engine-off hours, BESS cycling/state of health, PV curtailment, post-fire permanent-repair scope, diesel litres after expansion, plant availability or closure/redeployment plan was located. [2][3]

Provenance

10 sources

Primary owner, government, university, supplier, and engineering sources are preferred. Archived references preserve claims whose original pages moved or disappeared.

  1. [1]
    Recovered Microgrid Projects record

    Internet Archive · Archived source · captured 2020-07-06

  2. [2]
    Nova

    Zenith Energy · Primary source

  3. [3]
    Nova Nickel Operation

    IGO Limited · Primary source

  4. [4]
    Zenith solar powers IGO Nova Operation

    IGO Limited / Zenith Energy · Primary source

  5. [5]
    IGO Annual Report 2023

    IGO Limited / Australian Securities Exchange · Primary source

  6. [6]
    Fire Incident at Nova Operation

    IGO Limited · Primary source

  7. [7]
  8. [8]
  9. [9]
  10. [10]
    Archived Nova Nickel Mine Microgrid record

    MicrogridProjects.com via Internet Archive · Archived source

Continue exploring

Related projects in Asia