Carnarvon creates new renewables fuels business

Carnarvon Petroleum has formed a 50:50 joint venture with Frontier Impact Group (FIG), to develop a biorefinery business in Western Australia to produce renewable diesel and ‘other highly valuable products’.

The joint venture plans to process waste lignocellulosic biomass as a feedstock and produce renewable diesel, high-quality biochar and wood vinegar. The local implementation of the technology will be an Australian first, reports the venture. Much of the high-quality biochar could be processed further into high-quality graphene, which has many next-generation applications such as electronics, batteries and material composites.

First production from the facility is targeted for late 2022, which would occur ahead of a successful Buffalo field redevelopment scheduled for late 2023 and first production from Dorado scheduled for late 2025.

An attraction of the venture is its potential to lower Carnarvon’s emissions intensity on a portfolio basis, particularly as projects are scaled up in the future, says the company. The joint venture intends to pursue the accreditation of Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) for the production of renewable diesel and other associated activities. It is also looking to be involved in a number of carbon project development activities, such as tree planting, that will enable Carnarvon to generate ACCUs to offset carbon emissions produced from Buffalo and Dorado and place the company firmly on the path to achieving net zero before 2050 target.

The biorefinery business is not expected to draw on Carnarvon’s Buffalo and Dorado-focused resources or detract from exploring the potential of the vast Bedout Basin. However, the venture is expected to be favourably received by lenders supporting these core projects, reports Carnarvon Managing Director and CEO, Adrian Cook.