Australian energy technology developer GTL Energy Limited has been selected by a major North American energy consortium to provide its coal beneficiation technology to the proposed US$1.4 billion South Heart coal to synthetic gas project in North Dakota. Under a Memorandum of Understanding, project partners Great Northern Power Development (GNPD) and Allied Syngas Corporation, said Adelaide-based GTLE’s beneficiation technology had been chosen from a worldwide review of coal beneficiation technologies to upgrade the low-quality lignite reserves at South Heart. The GTLE technology is critical to transforming the local low grade coal into low moisture high grade briquette feedstock for use in the joint venture’s proposed US$1.4 billion plant at South Heart in southwest North Dakota, to produce synthetic natural gas by 2013, according to the consortium. GTLE’s beneficiation process converts low rank coal into a cleaner and more productive fuel by removing up to 80% of its water content, together with ash, sodium, and other impurities that interfere with clean combustion. As well as increasing the thermal value of the coal by up to 60%, the upgraded coal is easier to transport and handle, and produces significantly less CO2, nitrous oxide and sulphur dioxide emissions than if the low grade reserves were to be used without pre-treatment, according to the consortium. GTLE said it will now progress to commence construction of its first commercial scale module during 2008, to be in production by the first quarter of 2009.
