Coal upgrading technology at US plant

Commercial scale trial for feasibility

Adelaide-based GTL Energy (GTLE) has announced the completion of construction and commissioning of its coal upgrading plant module near South Heart, North Dakota in the US. The GTLE Dakota plant is a single-module, commercial-scale plant which has been designed to provide proof of the GTLE technology for coal consumers and producers. The company intends to increase both the length and volumes of production runs through the remainder of 2010.

The coal upgrading process (coal drying/beneficiation) used at the plant 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.

The first large-scale production of lignite at the plant reduced the moisture by an average of 65%, providing an uplift in energy content of approximately 40%.

A large-scale production trial of New Zealand lignite, for its joint venture partner Solid Energy New Zealand, a government-owned resources company, has also been carried out.

GTLE reduced the moisture of the New Zealand lignite by an average of approximately 65%, thus raising the energy content by approximately 50%. Briquettes of New Zealand lignite have been shipped to Solid Energy for further combustion trials with its commercial customers, following a successful industrial-scale combustion trial in North Dakota.

Data derived from these and further planned commercial scale trials will be used to prepare multiple feasibility studies for projects under various stages of development in New Zealand, Indonesia, Australia, the US and Asia.