Solid Energy lignite trials prove successful

Solid Energy lignite trials prove successful

A trial in North Dakota has successfully upgraded Southland lignite into high-energy briquettes, taking resources company Solid Energy a step closer to building a pilot briquetting plant in Eastern Southland.

Solid Energy has welcomed this and an announcement by its joint venture partner GTL Energy (GTLE) today, that the company had successfully commissioned its first commercial-scale lignite upgrading plant near South Heart, North Dakota in the United States.

GTLE says it has produced its first high-energy, low-moisture briquettes and has successfully completed the Solid Energy bulk sample trial and United States combustion trials for 420 tonnes of New Vale Mine lignite that was shipped from Bluff at the end of 2009 for testing.

The trials were part of a joint venture agreement between Solid Energy and GTLE to investigate the feasibility of building a pilot briquetting plant that could upgrade about 100,000 tonnes of lignite per annum mined at Solid Energy’s New Vale Opencast Mine, near Mataura.

Solid Energy’s General Manager New Energy, Brett Gamble, said he was impressed by the trial results, which boded well for Solid Energy’s proposed pilot briquetting plant in Southland.

“GTLE reduced the moisture of the New Zealand lignite by an average of approximately 65%, raising the energy content by about 50%, so it turns lignite into a product that is on a par with Ohai coal. The final test though is how well it performs in local conditions.

“We are bringing the trial batch back for our own commercial customers in New Zealand to test in their boilers and this data will inform our decisions on the pilot briquetting plant.”

The proposed Southland briquetting plant is the first of three Solid Energy lignite development projects planned for lignite resources based around the Waimumu, Croydon and Mataura areas of Southland. All these projects are expected to achieve full carbon compliance, using a range of options to reduce CO2 emissions, including carbon capture and storage, biosequestration and biofeedstock options. Solid Energy also operates New Vale Mine near Waimumu and continues to rehabilitate the former Ohai Mine.

GTLE Chief Executive Officer Robert French says he is delighted that GTLE’s lignite upgrading technology has been proven on a commercial scale in North Dakota, providing significant opportunities to utilise lignite in an environmentally responsible way.

“It enables largely underutilised resources to be monetised and helps meet the world’s ever growing demand for energy. GTLE’s unique upgrading process removes moisture from low rank coals to produce low moisture, high energy briquettes. The technology improves the efficiency of low rank coals ensuring a reduction in emissions, including CO2, as well as increasing the market value of low rank fuels,” Mr French said.

ENDS

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