Orica, a provider of mining and infrastructure solutions, has announced the elimination of one million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions from its Kooragang Island site in Newcastle.
This achievement, marking a major milestone in Orica’s decarbonisation journey, stems from the first use of tertiary abatement technology in Australia on three of the company’s nitric acid plants, reducing emissions equivalent to taking 600,000 cars off the road.
The NSW Government’s Net Zero Industry and Innovation Program contributed $13.06 million towards the project, alongside Orica’s own $25 million investment, which was financed by the Federal Government’s Clean Energy Finance Corporation.
The Clean Energy Regulator has approved the project to generate Australian Carbon Credit Units, further supporting Orica’s sustainability efforts.
Orica revealed it has also made progress in its emissions reduction strategy at other sites.
The company has installed similar abatement technology at its Yarwun manufacturing plant in Queensland, continuing its progress made in FY2024, where global emissions were reduced by 43 per cent from 2019 baseline levels.
Germán Morales, Orica Group Executive and President of Australia Pacific and Sustainability, expressed pride in the achievement.
“This is another proud and critical milestone in Orica’s decarbonisation journey and ambition to achieve net zero emissions by 2050,” he said.
“Sustainability is at the core of our purpose, and this milestone highlights our ongoing commitment to supporting our customers in achieving their sustainability goals.”
To mark the occasion, NSW Minister for Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Heritage, the Hon Penny Sharpe MLC, alongside CEO of the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, Ian Learmonth, and Germán Morales, attended a ceremony at Kooragang Island to celebrate the achievement.
In addition to the emissions reduction, Orica Kooragang Island has also marked the 10-year anniversary of its recycled water usage and completed the installation of a prill tower scrubber, which has reduced ammonium nitrate particle emissions by 95 percent.
Looking to the future, Orica said it is continuing to explore the potential of a commercial-scale renewable hydrogen supply chain in the industrial and port zone of Newcastle.
