The two gasifiers are destined for a where they are to be used to convert lignite to ammonia. In an adjacent plant the ammonia will be used to produce the fertilizer urea. After commissioning in 2012, the plant will have an annual production capacity of approximately 1.2 million tonnes of urea.
The fertilizer production plant is located in Victoria in the vicinity of the Loy Yang coal mine and will use the extensive lignite available there as feedstock for fertilizer production.
As of 2015, a second phase of the project makes provision for the CO2 generated during fertilizer production to be transported via a pipeline for storage in the CO2 dumps in Bass Strait off the south coast of Australia.
Allan Blood, chairman of AEC, said: We have opted for Siemens gasification technology because it is easy to operate and very robust. It is particularly well suited to the grade of coal mined at Loy Yang.
