Perdaman has commenced construction of its A$6 billion Pilbara urea project - the first new gas manufacturing project in the Pilbara in more than a decade.
Located 20 kilometres north-west of Karratha, Australia, the project will convert Western Australian natural gas from Woodside's Scarborough Gas Project into an estimated 2.3 million tonnes of urea per annum. The project will utilise feedstock from Woodside under a 20-year agreement and has a 20-year offtake agreement with Incitec Pivot.
The facility will be the largest urea plant in Australia and one of the largest in the world. Urea is a vital component of the agricultural fertiliser market with increasing demand as more efficient and intensive global food production is required to meet the needs of a growing world population.
Currently, Australia imports around 2.4 million tonnes of urea per year. The plant’s expected production will help to address the growing demand for high-quality fertilisers, reduce the nation’s reliance on imports and enhance national resilience.
The project is uniquely positioned among key domestic and export markets and critical enabling infrastructure. It has been strongly supported by The Western Australian Government being allocated Project of State Significance status.
The project funding is supported by leading global independent infrastructure investor Global Infrastructure Partners, which has committed to invest over A$2.1 billion through a strategic equity investment. Other investors include the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility and Export Finance Australia.
The urea plant incorporates the latest technology with optimised energy efficiency and low emissions: Topsoe for the ammonia synthesis and Snamprogetti & Thyssenkrupp for the urea and granulation processes.
The plant has been designed to minimise both industrial emissions and the carbon footprint of fertiliser production. Perdaman is committed to making the urea plant net carbon zero by 2050.
“We are excited to be constructing Australia’s largest ever downstream manufacturing project which represents a significant investment in Australia’s manufacturing sector,” said Vikas Rambal, Chairman and CEO of Perdaman. “This state-of-the-art facility will help to ensure that Australia has a secure and reliable source of high-quality urea, supporting our nation’s farmers and food producers.”
Construction of the Project will commence immediately and will be managed by Perdaman’s EPC joint-venture partners Saipem and Webuild.
