Turning mines into solar panels - The process could add 300 GW of renewable energy by 2030
Converting recently closed coal mines into solar power plants could add almost 300 GW of renewable energy by 2030, turning abandoned lands into productive plants.
Researchers from the Global Energy Monitor (GEM) identified 312 closed surface coal mines worldwide as of 2020, as well as 134 expected to close by the end of the decade. Together, these cover 5,820 square kilometers, a land area almost the size of Palestine.
Mining turns the land into wastelands, polluted and stripped of their topsoil. But if they were filled with solar panels and developed into power plants, they could generate enough energy to power a nation like Germany.
"The shift from mining to solar energy is underway and this potential is ready to be unlocked in major coal producers such as Australia, the US, Indonesia and India," the researchers say.
“Repurposing mines for solar energy development offers a rare chance to combine land restoration, job creation, and clean energy deployment into a single strategy. The same land that powered the industrial age can help solve climate problems,” they point out.
Burning coal for energy is being phased out around the world due to its high carbon emissions. At the same time, solar energy has become more accessible and affordable.
By 2024, 599 GW of solar capacity had been installed worldwide, and more than 2,000 GW of solar projects were still under development, according to the report. Globally, total installed photovoltaic capacity at the end of last year exceeded 2 TW (terawatts).
But the space needed to accommodate enough solar panels has led to land-use conflicts, with the agricultural and conservation sectors opposing solar developments. Using mining lands could be a partial solution to such conflicts, as 96% of recently abandoned plants are located less than 10 km from a power grid.
The report estimates that about 260,000 permanent jobs in manufacturing and trade could be created in countries transitioning from coal to solar energy. In addition, 315,000 temporary jobs in construction would be added. Taken together, these figures exceed the number of workers the coal industry will lay off by 2035.
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