News: LYC UPDATE 1-Australia's Lynas Rare Earths signs contracts for Mt Weld power station

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July 22 (Reuters) - Australia's Lynas Rare Earths (LYC) has signed a contract with power provider Zenith Energy for a new hybrid power station at its Mt Weld mine and concentration plant, the company said on Monday.

The hybrid power plant will consist of a wind farm, a solar farm and a battery energy storage system, with a total installed capacity of 65 megawatt (MW) once completed, the rare earths company said.

The facility will be supported by a 17 MW high efficiency gas fired power station and a 5 MW diesel standby generator as backup, Lynas said.

The hybrid power station is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 60,000 tonnes of CO2-equivalent compared with a diesel only power station of the same size, Lynas said.

Zenith Energy will be responsible for financing, building, operating and maintaining the hybrid power station for 15 years, it said.