Perdaman Industries, Perth, Western Australia, reported on Dec. 2 that it had signed an agreement with Murujuga Aboriginal Corp. (MAC) facilitating planning and environmental approvals for the company’s proposed ammonia and 2 million mt/y capacity granular urea project near Karratha on the Burrup Peninsula, Western Australia.
The deal with MAC includes Perdaman contributing more than A$11 million (approximately US$7.5 million at current exchange rates) to MAC over the estimated 25-year operating life of the urea plant, and is partly for support and preservation of indigenous art and culture, including rock art, on the Burrup Peninsula. There have been some concerns that cumulative emissions from heavy industry on the peninsula is degrading the rock art.
Perdaman said in August it had selected Copenhagen-based Haldor Topsoe’s new SynCOR Ammonia™ technology for its planned 3,500 mt/d plant (GM Aug. 23, p. 25). Stamicarbon has been chosen as the urea licensor, and in November 2018 the company inked a gas supply deal with Australian oil and gas firm Woodside Energy for a 20-year term.
The Karratha urea project was granted major project status by the country’s Government Department of Industry, Science, and Technology in March (GM March 29, p. 28). Receiving major project status will assist Perdaman with obtaining expedited federal government assistance and approvals for the project through the Major Project Facilitation Agency, Perdaman Chairman Vikas Rambal said at the time.
The project is aimed at being mainly an export operation, utilizing the nearby Dampier port, where Perdaman is reported to be discussing expanded berth capacity with the port authority to accommodate Panamax ships.
Still, for the 2 million mt/y capacity project to go ahead, Perdaman must finalize financing arrangements for the A$4.5 billion plant and bring in equity partners. It must also finalize offtake agreements with customers for the urea output, in addition to securing the required government approvals.
The company currently expects planning and environmental approvals to be completed by March of next year and project finance to be in place by the end of the second quarter of 2020, followed immediately by a start to field construction, according to Western Australia’s Business News, citing the company.