Montem Resources Ltd (ASX:MR1) has struck up a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with government-backed Invest Alberta to establish the Tent Mountain Renewable Energy Complex in Canada.
The MoU entered effect on March 23 and outlines the role each company will play in bringing the green energy hub to life in southwest Alberta.
At Tent Mountain, Montem is looking at ways it can convert a historical coal mine of the same name into a renewable energy complex with at least a 50-year lifespan.
The hub will include three primary elements:
- 320 megawatts of pumped hydro energy storage;
- A 100-megawatt green hydrogen electrolyser; and
- An offsite, 100-megawatt wind farm.
From coal to renewable energy
Speaking to the MoU, Montem managing director and CEO Peter Doyle said the innovative project had the potential to be a paradigm shift for green energy in Alberta.
“The TM-REX will see the conversion of a coal mine into a renewable energy complex, with the ability to host Canada’s first large-scale green hydrogen electrolyser production facility,” Doyle explained.
“Tent Mountain’s ideal topography and location provides the opportunity to develop an outstanding renewable energy asset that will provide improved stability to Alberta’s electricity transmission system as the Province looks to further diversify its power grid to reliable, affordable and renewable energy sources.”
“Destination of choice”
Invest Alberta CEO Rick Christiaanse echoed Doyle’s comments: “Alberta’s reputation as a reliable and sustainable global energy provider is making the province a destination of choice for green energy investment.
“We have seen a number of cleantech investments in Alberta recently, and it is encouraging to see investors focused on harnessing Alberta’s history of innovation to build a cleaner, more sustainable future,” he concluded.
Montem says the Tent Mountain complex will spur economic growth and high-quality job creation within the clean energy and cleantech sectors in Alberta by creating more than 200 local jobs.
In turn, the Invest Alberta partnership enables the ASX-lister to invest in the local workforce as it establishes the clean energy hub.
Tent Mountain’s development is also poised to bolster Alberta’s reputation as a global clean energy hub.
As global demand for green energy solutions persists, the partnership will support the potential transition of the Tent Mountain mine — a move Montem believes represents “a transformational opportunity for Alberta’s energy sector”.
About Montem
Montem Resources is a steelmaking coal and renewable energy development company that owns and leases coal tenements and freehold land in the Canadian provinces of Alberta and British Columbia.
The company’s objective is to operate steelmaking coal mines and renewable energy developments in Canada by developing its projects in the Crowsnest Pass.
The company is planning an integrated mining complex in the Crowsnest Pass, focusing on the low-cost development of open-cut operations that leverage central infrastructure, and the first step in this objective is to re-establish mining at the Tent Mountain mine.
Montem completed a definitive feasibility study on the mine in 2020 and continues to advance through the regulatory process to re-start the hub.
In 2021, the project was designated for Federal review by the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada, and the company continues to seek approval to re-start the mine.
In light of delays to the mine re-start, Montem identified alternate opportunities for Tent Mountain, including transitioning the project to a renewable energy complex, employing an onsite pump hydro energy storage facility, an offsite wind power facility, and onsite production of green hydrogen.
Now, Montem is progressing studies to support Tent Mountain's development, including a feasibility study.
The ASX-lister is also progressing the Chinook project, which covers historical steelmaking coal mines that previously exported hard coking coal to Japanese steel mills.
Chinook has the potential to produce multiple open-cut hard coking coal mines, and the company plans to explore, define and develop these mines down the line.