Orica (ASX: ORI), one of the world’s leading mining and infrastructure solutions providers and major Australian manufacturer is on track to achieve another major decarbonisation milestone.
By deploying tertiary abatement technology at a second site - its Yarwun facility in Gladstone, Queensland - Orica expects to eliminate an estimated 200,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2-e) annually once the project is complete.
The installation of two tertiary abatement reactors at Orica’s Yarwun manufacturing facility will eliminate the equivalent of approximately 50 per cent of the facility’s total greenhouse gas emissions - equivalent to taking 120,000 cars off the road. Furthermore, it is estimated the project will reduce Australia’s overall industrial chemical sector emissions by four per cent1, and Queensland’s emissions for the same sector by approximately 16 per cent2.
The installation of the first reactor at Yarwun was achieved safely, on time and on budget earlier this year, with the second reactor in the final stages of commissioning, to be operational by the end of September. It follows the successful implementation of similar tertiary emissions abatement technology at Orica’s Kooragang Island facility in New South Wales, Australia, which is forecast to reduce Australia’s chemical industry emissions by 11 per cent3.
To celebrate these decarbonisation milestones, Federal Minister for Climate Change and Energy, the Honourable Chris Bowen MP and Orica Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Sanjeev Gandhi joined other officials at a ceremony in Gladstone.
Speaking at the ceremony, Mr Gandhi said:
“Sustainability is at the core of our purpose, and we continue to make progress towards our sustainability and climate targets. This milestone highlights Orica’s commitment to sustainability, to supporting our customers in achieving their sustainability goals and to our long-term support of the local Gladstone region.
The federal parliament’s passage of safeguard reforms last year provided Orica with the investment certainty we needed to proceed with the extension of our decarbonisation strategy. This outcome demonstrates how the right policy settings can enable key corporate commitments and result in significant emissions reductions, even across hard-to-abate sectors.”
Orica’s Yarwun facility supplies essential products to mining, agriculture and infrastructure customers throughout Australia and around the world. This tertiary abatement will provide customers with lower carbon intensive products and enable the reduction of their Scope 3 emissions while supporting the overall decarbonisation goals of regional communities and economies.
Having invested responsibly to deliver significant reductions in net operational Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas, Orica is continuing to build on progress delivered in FY2023, with emissions already reduced by 22 per cent from 2019 baseline levels.
In addition to investing in low emissions technology to decarbonise its operations at its Yarwun facility, Orica is a proud strategic partner and shareholder in the neighbouring Alpha HPA manufacturing operations, an Australian-based company that produces ultra-high purity aluminium materials, serving end markets such as lithium-ion batteries, LED lighting, and smartphone manufacturing. The partnership further reinforces Orica’s desire to grow its exposure in future-facing industries, including eMobility. It also leverages Orica’s strong global manufacturing asset base, simultaneously creating value and reducing waste through a circular supply and offtake agreement with Alpha HPA.
These initiatives are indicative of Orica’s strong progress in reaching its accelerated climate target of reduced net operational Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by at least 45 per cent by 2030, from 2019 levels and a critical step towards Orica’s ambition of achieving net zero by 2050.
To learn more about Orica’s commitment to sustainability, visit orica.com/sustainability.
Orica's Yarwun Manufacturing Facility
Tertiary Abatement Technology instal at Orica's Yarwun Manufacturing Facility
Tertiary Abatement Technology Process
1 Time period Orica FY2019 (October 2018 - September 2019), sourced from DCCEEW National Greenhouse Gas Inventory: Quarterly Updates https://www.dcceew.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/nggi-quarterly-update-dec-2023-data-sources.xlsx
2 Time period CY2018, sourced from Queensland Government State of the Environment Report 2020, https://www.stateoftheenvironment.des.qld.gov.au/pollution/greenhouse-gas-emissions/industrial-processes-sector-greenhouse-gas-emissions
3 Forecast for 567,000 tCO2-e reduced from KI. Time period Orica FY2019 (October 2018 - September 2019), sourced from DCCEEW National Greenhouse Gas Inventory: Quarterly Updates https://www.dcceew.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/nggi-quarterly-update-dec-2023-data-sources.xlsx