| Australia’s largest energy retailer, AGL, is putting | | | | Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions by around |
| its energy into innovative and sustainable renewable | | | | 2,500 tonnes per annum - equivalent to taking about |
| energy projects, in an effort to minimising the | | | | 650 cars off the road each year. It has also solved |
| effects of climate change. | | | | the problem of what to do with the 5,000 tonnes of |
| Included in its suite of 29 renewable energy assets | | | | macadamia shells, enough to fill three Olympic-sized |
| that it owns or operates, is Suncoast Gold | | | | swimming pools, that Suncoast Gold Macadamias |
| Macadamias in Gympie, Southeast Queensland, which | | | | processes each year. |
| is Australia’s first waste-to-energy (biomass) | | | | Suncoast Gold, which exports Australia’s largest |
| renewable cogeneration project. | | | | native agricultural crop to more than 20 countries |
| ‘Cogeneration’ is generation of both | | | | including Japan, Europe and the US, has had its |
| electricity and useful heat that can be used onsite for | | | | efficiency significantly boosted by the provision of |
| good use. | | | | electricity, heat and steam. It has also enhanced its |
| What is Biomass? | | | | green credentials in the European and Asian markets |
| Biomass is all matter that can be used as fuel for | | | | where consumers are extremely environmentally |
| industrial production. It can also include biodegradable | | | | aware. |
| wastes that can be burnt as fuel. | | | | By 2010, more than 150 growers throughout |
| How is Biomass energy created? | | | | Queensland and northern New South Wales are |
| Biomass can be thought of as storage of solar | | | | expected to supply Suncoast Gold with about 10,000 |
| energy in chemical form. It can be combusted to | | | | tonnes of macadamia nuts each year, doubling the |
| generate heat and then subsequently converted into | | | | Gympie facility’s output. |
| other forms of energy. | | | | AGL’s Asset Manager Neil Cooke says the |
| How do we create energy from Macadamias? | | | | innovative plant has achieved several firsts. It’s |
| Creating energy from a waste product like the | | | | the first of its kind in the world,” he said. “It |
| macadamia nut shells involves the following process: | | | | also has the largest macadamia shell silo (400 tonne |
| • Nut shells are burnt in a fire boiler, which creates | | | | capacity, 18 metres high and 10 metres in diameter) |
| steam | | | | in the world and the boiler is showing that it is |
| • Some of the steam is used to dry the | | | | possible to achieve consistent performance from a |
| macadamia nuts | | | | renewable energy plant operated on shells.” |
| • The majority of the steam is used to drive a | | | | AGL is one of Australia’s leading integrated |
| turbine to generate clean, renewable electricity | | | | energy companies and the only Australian energy |
| • About 40% of the electricity is sent to the | | | | producer with a full suite of renewable generation, |
| national power grid as GreenPower | | | | providing natural gas and electricity to over 3.2 million |
| • About 60% goes to the customer. | | | | customers more than six million Australians. |
| What this means for the environment | | | | Other innovative renewable energy assets AGL owns |
| The macadamia plant produces enough energy from | | | | or operates include the ISIS Central Sugar Mill facility |
| the macadamia nut shells to power the | | | | in Childers, Queensland, which is AGL’s first |
| company’s entire manufacturing and processing | | | | renewable cogeneration project to produce energy |
| activity, as well as about 250 Queensland homes. | | | | from sugar cane by-product (bagasse). |
| This innovative waste-to-energy project cuts | | | | |