Leigh Creek Energy (LCK) has acquired the generators required for the upstream commercialisation of the Leigh Creek Energy project (LCEP) in South Australia.
The company has secured the Siemens power generators from Drivetrain Australia to supply power for the flagship project.
The generators are the first long lead production infrastructure items procured and will be installed and tested on site ready to receive first syngas from production wells in 2022.
LCK selected the generators based on its criteria to operate efficiently on LCEP syngas according to LCK’s proven gasification technology.
Upstream (stage 1) of the LCEP will focus on the development of the gasifiers required for the development of the zero carbon 1 mtpa urea plant at the LCEP.
The LCEP will provide urea to the Australian and regional markets with initial studies indicating an NPV of the project of $3.4 billion with a 30 per cent IRR.
Managing director Phil Staveley said it’s rewarding to now be preparing for building major infrastructure on site for commercialisation of the $2.6 billion LCEP.
“The LCEP will be the only fully integrated urea production facility in Australia, allowing us to be the lowest cost sovereign supplier of this critical product for the agricultural sector. It will change the dynamics of the local and Asian fertiliser markets and ensure the Australian agricultural sector is provided with a key input that is cheap, secure, reliable and produced with zero carbon emissions,” he said.
“ We continue to ensure we meet shareholder and community expectations, working under the values of the United Nations Global Compact to ensure we meet the highest standards for safe and reliable operations throughout the construction and operational life of the project.”
In addition, Drivetrain Australia expects the Siemens engines to arrive from Spain in early 2022, which aligns with LCK’s plans to install them onsite and commence syngas production in 2022.
InGauge Energy is currently finalising underground drilling design and Prudentia Process Consulting is design engineering the gas processing plant and the development of gas production systems.
Once installed, the company advised the electricity generators will power site infrastructure, eliminate diesel generation, and enable commissioning of gasifiers with electrically driven compressors, with the extra power to be commercialised to third parties.
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