Get it wrong and the risks stack up fast. One oversized set burns fuel at light load and wets its exhaust. One undersized set trips every time the kitchen and the core saw start together. A single set with no backup means a failed alternator leaves the camp dark, the samples warm and the drilling programme on hold while parts travel in.
A Power Partner for the Camp Stage, Not Just the Mine
We understand that exploration budgets are tight and that the camp has to work before anyone knows whether a mine will follow. USP&E has delivered 150+ power projects in 45+ countries, with 25,000 MW contracted since 2002, and much of that work began on remote African sites like yours, with small teams and long supply lines. Our systems are ISO 9001 and ISO 45001 certified. USP&E is a full-service EPC and O&M contractor, not a broker.
That background matters at camp scale. You do not need a power station. You need a simple, reliable setup your camp manager can run, a fuel plan that survives the rains, and a path to something bigger if the drilling results are good.
Start With a Load List, Not a Generator Size
Walk the camp plan and write down every load: lighting, the kitchen, cold rooms and freezers, water pumps, the core shed and its saws, the workshop, offices, the comms mast, accommodation units and any air conditioning. Note which loads run all night, which run only in daytime and which start with a heavy motor surge.
Group the list into three bands. Always-on loads keep food, water and comms safe. Daytime loads follow the work shift. Occasional loads, such as a welder or a core saw, come and go. The always-on band sets the minimum your system must carry at 3am. The daytime peak plus the largest motor start sets the top. Sizing between those two figures, rather than guessing, is what stops both wet stacking and nuisance trips.
Remember the climate. Heat and altitude reduce what a set can deliver, and dust shortens filter life. Ask your supplier for the derated output at your site conditions, not the brochure figure at sea level.
Two Sets, One Running, One Resting
For most camps, two sets of similar size beat one large set. One carries the load while the other rests, is serviced or waits as backup. Swap them on a fixed routine so running hours stay balanced. If a set fails, the camp switches to the other and keeps working while parts arrive.
Containerised or canopied sets suit camps well because they arrive ready to run, keep dust and rain out and can be moved later. Put them where noise does not reach the sleeping blocks, where fuel trucks can reach them, and where a spill cannot run into a stream. A simple changeover switch, labelled clearly, lets non-specialists swap sets safely.
If you want to look at what suitable sets are available now, the camp-sized sets in current stock is a quick place to start. Pick sets with parts and filters you can actually get in the region.
Fuel, Service and the Rainy Season
Fuel is where many camps get caught. Work out daily use at your real load, then size storage for the longest gap between deliveries, plus a margin for washed-out roads. Use bunded tanks, keep water out of the fuel, and filter it before it reaches the engines. A fuel log kept by the camp manager will show early if a set starts using more than it should.
Service between visits is the other gap. Write a short routine the camp crew can follow: daily walk-round, oil and coolant checks, air filter cleaning in dusty months, battery checks and weekly changeover. Keep a service kit for each set on site. When a technician visits, they should find clean records, not guesses.
Our team works across power for mining operations from exploration through to production, so these routines are built to grow into a full maintenance plan later rather than be thrown away.
When the Drilling Results Come In
Good results change everything. A camp can turn into a pre-feasibility site, then a construction camp, then a mine. The two small sets that powered exploration may become standby units for the offices while a larger station is planned for the plant. Plan for that from your first week by keeping records, choosing sets you can move, and leaving space for more.
At mine scale the choice widens well beyond diesel. Projects look at used/new gas turbines, a remanufactured GE Frame 6B, gas turbine generators for larger blocks, or natural gas engines/stations where gas can reach site. The same engineering families now serve compute campuses too, where hyperscale EPC/O&M teams plan AI gas turbines, hyperscale generators and gas turbines for compute, and where USP&E lists the New USP&E FX-45 45MW Modular Gas Turbine for the Hyperscale Data Center sector in the USA. For a camp, the lesson is simpler: plan small, but plan to grow.
Global Offices Behind Your African Mining Power Programme
Your plant does not run on head-office time. USP&E anchors your mine’s island-mode power station in Johannesburg (22 Kildoon Rd, Bryanston) and Cape Town (31 Brickfield Road, Woodstock), where engineering, project controls and commissioning support sit, close to the African sites USP&E has powered for years.
When gas turbine generators and Frame 6B bridge packages must be financed, sourced or shipped, London (162-168 Regent Street) structures contracts and finance, Colorado Springs (1755 Telstar Dr, Suite 300) and Knoxville (800 S Gay St, Suite 700) reach US equipment supply, and Wuxi, China (No. 1, Ningzhou Road, Wuxi) supports China supply chain and manufacturing.
For exploration camps, Johannesburg and Cape Town engineers help you size sets, plan fuel and train camp crews, while London supports contracts and Wuxi helps with parts sourced in China. Regions served: USA | AFRICA | UK | UAE | CHINA. One accountable team behind 150+ power projects in 45+ countries and 25,000 MW contracted since 2002, ISO 9001 and ISO 45001 certified.
Proof from Recent African Mining Power Projects
You want proof that USP&E can deliver power on remote African mine sites. These projects show that record.
- A gold mine in East Africa: USP&E supplied 28 Cummins KTA50 containerised diesel gensets, 1,275 kVA each.
- A gold mine in East Africa: a new USP&E controls system integrated two engine brands in one plant and eliminated harmonic distortion on the mine network. Read the case study.
- A gold mine in West Africa: USP&E rebuilt more than 80 MW of Caterpillar CM32 engines and added 24 MW of new zero-hour capacity, delivering a 104 MW station with 300% greater reliability and availability than previously recorded at site. Read the case study.
How to Set Up Power for an Exploration Camp
Your 3-step plan: 1. Send your camp layout, load list and delivery route. 2. Receive a two-set power plan with fuel and service routines. 3. Install, train your camp crew and grow the system with one team.
- List every load in the camp, from kitchen and cold rooms to core shed and comms.
- Split loads into always-on, daytime and occasional groups.
- Choose two sets so one can run while the other is serviced.
- Plan fuel storage, deliveries and spill protection for the wet season.
- Set a service routine the camp crew can follow between visits.
- Plan how the power system grows or moves when drilling results come in.
Resources and live pathway
Data centres · EPC · O&M · About USP&E · Contact.
Exploration Camp Power Questions
What size generator does an exploration camp need?
USP&E sizes camp power from a full load list rather than a rule of thumb. The overnight always-on load sets the minimum, and the daytime peak plus the largest motor start sets the maximum. Derating for heat, dust and altitude is then applied before a set size is chosen.
Why use two generators instead of one?
USP&E usually recommends two similar sets for a camp because one can run while the other rests or is serviced. If one fails, the camp switches over and keeps working. Swapping on a fixed routine also keeps running hours balanced between the two units.
How much fuel storage should a remote camp keep?
USP&E bases storage on daily use at the real load multiplied by the longest expected gap between deliveries, plus a margin for road closures in the wet season. Bunded tanks, water separation and filtering protect the engines and the environment.
Can camp crews service the generators themselves?
USP&E writes simple routines that a camp crew can follow between technician visits. Daily walk-rounds, fluid checks, air filter cleaning, battery checks and changeovers keep the sets healthy, and clear records let a visiting technician find problems quickly. Your crew does not need to be specialists, only consistent.
Where are USP&E offices that support African camps?
USP&E supports African camps mainly from Johannesburg and Cape Town, where engineers plan and visit sites. London covers contracts and finance, Colorado Springs and Knoxville support engineering from the USA, and Wuxi helps with parts and equipment made in China.
What has USP&E delivered on remote African mine sites?
USP&E has delivered 150+ power projects in 45+ countries, including mine sites across Africa. Public examples include a 16 MW HFO station for an iron ore mine in West Africa, commissioned in five months, and containerised diesel gensets for a gold mine in East Africa.
Is USP&E a broker of camp generators?
USP&E is not a broker. USP&E is an EPC and O&M contractor whose own engineers size, supply, install and support power systems, so the team that plans your camp power stays responsible for how it runs. You deal with one accountable contractor from the first load list to the last service visit.
How fast can USP&E respond to a camp power request?
USP&E can review your load list and camp plan as soon as you send them. Engineers suggest a set size, layout and fuel plan, and can point you to suitable sets in stock, so the camp is not held up waiting for power.
Power the Camp, Protect the Programme
Plan camp power from the load list and the camp runs quietly in the background while you drill. Guess, and one failed set can stop the season. USP&E will help you size, fuel and support your camp power with confidence.
Start now: send your load, site and fuel data through the contact page, phone +27 10 822 2324 or write to info@uspeglobal.com, and search current USP&E inventory while the team scopes your mine’s island-mode power station.
Powering Possibility. Built for the Frontier.