Rio Tinto has energized a new 25-megawatt solar facility at its Kennecott copper mine in Utah, bringing total onsite solar capacity to 30 megawatts. The installation comprises over 71,000 photovoltaic panels and follows an initial 5 MW project commissioned in 2023. Construction began in October 2024 in partnership with Bechtel, reached mechanical completion and commissioning in October 2025, and was energized in December 2025—two months ahead of schedule.

The combined 30 MW array can supply enough electricity for approximately 1,026 average U.S. households annually, cutting Kennecott’s Scope 2 emissions by about 6%, equivalent to removing roughly 4,400 passenger vehicles from the road each year or avoiding 20,000 tonnes of CO₂e. Rio Tinto expects the solar installation to reduce electricity procurement costs over its expected 25-year operating life and to support corporate targets for greenhouse gas intensity reductions across its global portfolio.

The panels contain tellurium sourced as a byproduct of copper refining at Kennecott, where Rio Tinto began producing the critical mineral in 2022. Tellurium from the mine is processed into thin-film semiconductor materials by 5N Plus in Canada and then supplied to First Solar for module manufacture. By integrating mining, refining and panel production within North America, Rio Tinto demonstrates supply-chain resilience and advances U.S. energy security objectives through domestic critical-minerals circularity.