The Australian Government has announced a $91 million investment to help heavy industries cut greenhouse gas emissions.
This funding, part of the Powering the Regions Fund, will support six new projects aimed at reducing more than 1 million tonnes of climate pollution annually.
The investment follows a previous $330 million allocation to nine projects in April. The government claims this initiative will have an impact equivalent to removing over 240,000 cars from the roads.
Key industries benefiting from this funding include aluminium, mining, fuel refining, and chemical production. The projects are spread across Queensland, Western Australia, and Victoria, with a focus on supporting jobs in regional communities.
The largest grant of $37.2 million will go to Kestrel Coal in Queensland’s Bowen Basin to reduce methane emissions from ventilation in underground coal mines.
This project aims to demonstrate large-scale use of Regenerative Thermal Oxidation technology, a first for Australia.
Other significant projects include a $28 million grant for a solar and battery storage system at Incitec Pivot Fertilisers in Queensland, and $9.8 million for emissions capture technologies at a Dyno Nobel facility, also in Queensland.
Chris Bowen, Minister for Climate Change and Energy said these grants will help key industries thrive throughout Australia’s net zero transformation.
“This $91 million investment provides the right support at the right time to help Australia’s industries drive down emissions,” Bowen said.
“These industries have traditionally been very energy intensive and hard to abate. These grants will help them make their fair contribution to our national targets.
“The grants unlock technologies that have not been deployed at scale in Australia, including cutting methane from the ventilation air shafts of underground coal mines. A number of the projects cut nitrous oxide, which has 265 times more warming potential than CO2. By demonstrating these technologies, they can more quickly be rolled out across Australian industry.”
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