The fledgling mallee farming industry has taken a major step forward with the recent completion of all objectives by a pilot integrated wood processing plant in the state’s Great Southern.
The fledgling mallee farming industry has taken a major step forward with the recent completion of all objectives by a pilot integrated wood processing plant in the state’s Great Southern.
Concerns were raised earlier this year by the Oil Mallee Association of Western Australia that the pilot integrated wood processing plant at Narrogin, 192 kilometres south-east of Perth, would be phased out before achieving all its goals. These included the production of activated carbon, one of four target goals along with eucalyptus oil, charcoal and renewable energy production.
Last week, Energy Minister Francis Logan announced that, following the production of activated carbon three weeks ago, the project had achieved what it had set out to do.
“I have asked Verve Energy to seek expressions of interest from within the private sector about the commercial application of the technology,” Mr Logan said.
“With the right kind of investment, five to 10 mallee-tree generators could be built for the Wheatbelt and generate up to 50 megawatts of electricity.
“There is still a long way to go, but I believe this technology represents a terrific opportunity for investment.”
Notre Dame University environmental management professor and Oil Mallee Company chairman, Syd Shea, told WA Business News the production of renewable energy, eucalyptus oil, charcoal and activated carbon was at the cutting edge of technology.
“The biggest problem was getting past the first step of creating the four products,” Professor Shea said.
“The mistakes were made [in the production of activated carbon] but they have been corrected and now it is up to the private sector to get behind the development of other processing plants.”
He said there was also scope for the future plants to produce bio-fuels.
“Bio-fuels are in the headlines, and while mallee makes charcoal and activated carbon, it can produce other products in liquid fuels including ethanol and bio-diesel,” Professor Shea said.
“We are looking at shortages of liquid fuels in this country and we are optimistic that from mallee there will be a variety of products on the horizon including bio-fuels.”
He said mallee production would have more success if more products were to be produced by possible future plants.
“By spreading the number of products produced, then if there is a downturn in the market of one product…you are not in such a bad position,” he told WA Business News.
“The carbon the processing plant produces is of a very high grade, which is scarcer and more sought after than the lower grades of carbon.”
In April, Verve Energy manager for sustainable energy Adrian Chegwidden said the operation of a gasifier, the first in Australia, which produced gas from wood waste, was among the plant’s successes
Oil Mallee Association president Mike Kerkmans said the success of the plant was very important to mallee farmers and to the socioeconomic standing for towns throughout the Wheatbelt.
“The mallee industry initially focused on helping farmers during dry farming periods,” he said.
“Now [through the pilot plant meeting its objectives of producing power] it can help sustain whole towns in the Wheatbelt.”
Following the successful completion of the pilot plant, Wagin MLA Terry Waldron said it was now imperative that the state government encourage private sector investment by underwriting off-take agreements for the production of energy from mallees.
“Without an ongoing market for the electricity generated by these plants investors may think twice about involvement in a roll-out of similar units,” he said.
Mr Waldron said the initial success of the Narrogin pilot plant may result in oil mallees taking on greater significance as a commercial tree crop in the Wheatbelt.
In 2001, Western Power, the Oil Mallee Company of Australia Ltd and project developer Enecon Pty Ltd announced plans to construct the pilot plant, which was designed to show that mallee eucalypts could be converted into activated carbon, eucalyptus oil and renewable energy.
It was envisaged to produce 7.5 gigawatt hours of electricity, 210 tonnes of eucalyptus oil and 690t of activated carbon.
Mallees have previously been grown throughout the Wheatbelt to help combat the region’s dryland salinity problem.
The mallee eucalypt is viewed as an ideal ‘carbon sink’, which absorbs dioxide into leaves, branches and a large root system.
In November last year, Oil Mallee Company of Australia became the first company in the state to take advantage of legislation enabling businesses to offset carbon dioxide pollution by mallee plantings.
The legislation allows carbon dioxide absorbed from the atmosphere to be claimed as a carbon credit, with the credit traded to offset pollution.
Trials at the Narrogin pilot plant are due to close this week.
