Wesfarmers Energy has awarded Bunbury thermal processing and materials handling company Ansac Pty Ltd the design/construction contract for its $8 million demonstration plant at Collie.
Construction of the 50,000 tonnes a year plant, which will process Collie coal into a value-added char, is scheduled to begin mid year, with production by the end of the year.
Char is a high carbon content metallurgical product used in smelting operations, such as the innovative direct smelting HIsmelt iron ore project at Kwinana.
It is produced by drying and charring raw coal to remove moisture and volatile substances to a level required by individual customers.
Wesfarmers Char Pty Ltd sales and marketing manager Bill Moody told WA Business News the demonstration plant would provide bulk samples for testing by prospective domestic customers an in developing export markets.
Ansac sales manager Alex Cosenza said the company had been working with Wesfarmers on the char project for more than a year.
The plant process is unique and an Australian patent has been obtained, with several international patents also pending.
“It’s quite a brave step that is ultimately aimed at getting Collie coal into new metallurgical markets,” Mr Moody said.
Wesfarmers Energy managing director David Robb said that, subject to satisfactory results, “this could lead to the development of a larger commercial plant, which will support new metallurgical markets for Wesfarmers’ Premier Coal products, within WA and offshore”.
Ansac was founded more than 20 years ago by Charlie Martella and is engaged in the development, design, manufacture and supply of process equipment for the industrial and mining markets.
The company’s primary focus is on capital equipment for thermal processing, including carbon regeneration and concentrate drying. Its core competencies are in the specialised engineering fields of combustion, heat transfer, high temperature materials engineering, solids and materials handling, and mechanical component design.
