Stuart Oil Shale Project

Last updated

Stuart Oil Shale Project
Stuart Oil Shale Project
CountryAustralia
Location Yarwun near Gladstone, Queensland
Coordinates 23°47′12″S151°08′49″E / 23.786652°S 151.146809°E / -23.786652; 151.146809 Coordinates: 23°47′12″S151°08′49″E / 23.786652°S 151.146809°E / -23.786652; 151.146809
StatusOperational
Construction began1999; 2011
Decommission date2004
Owner(s) Queensland Energy Resources
[ edit on Wikidata]

The Stuart Oil Shale Project is an oil shale development project in Yarwun near Gladstone, Queensland, Australia. It is Australia's first major attempt since the 1950s to restart commercial use of oil shale. [1] The project was originally developed by Australian companies Southern Pacific Petroleum NL and Central Pacific Minerals NL (SPP/CPM) and developed now by Queensland Energy Resources. The original facility built at the end of the 1990s was dismantled and the new demonstration facility started its operations in 2011. [2]

Contents

History

In 1997 SPP/CPM signed a joint venture agreement with the Canadian company Suncor Energy to develop the Stuart oil shale deposit. [3] Suncor was designated as the project operator. In April 2001, Suncor left the project and SPP/CPM became the sole shareholder of the project. In February 2002, due to the restructuring of SPP/CPM, SPP became the holding company for the group's interests, including the Stuart Oil Shale Project. As SPP had granted fixed and floating charges in favour of Sandco Koala LLC in May 2003, the chargee appointed receivers of SPP on 2 December 2003. [4] In February 2004, the Stuart Oil Shale Project was sold by receivers to the newly formed company Queensland Energy Resources, which announced on 21 July 2004 that the plant would be closed for economic and environmental reasons. [3] [5] Greenpeace, which had protested the project, viewed the closure as a major victory. [6]

In April 2008, Queensland Energy Resources started to sell the equipment of the plant. [7] On 14 August 2008, Queensland Energy Resources announced that it would replace the Alberta Taciuk Process (ATP) of oil shale processing with Paraho II technology and that it was dismantling the ATP-based plant. The facility was dismantled in 2008–2009, and a new demonstration plant based on the Paraho process was opened in September 2011. [2] [3] [5]

Project stages

The first stage of the project, which cost A$250–360 million, consisted of an oil-shale mine and an ATP technology based pilot retorting plant at Targinnie near Yarwun. The plant was constructed in 1997–1999 and was in operation from 1999 to 2004. [3] [8] It was the first application of the ATP technology in the world used for oil shale pyrolysis. [9] The plant was designed to process 6,000 tonnes of oil shale per day with oil output of 4,500 barrels (720 m3). [3] From 2000 to 2004 the pilot plant produced over 1.5 million barrels (240×10^3 m3) of shale oil. After the closure the facility was dismantled. [2]

The second stage with costs of A$600 million was planned to consist of a single commercial-size ATP module four times larger than the first with total capacity of 19,000 barrels (3,000 m3) of oil products (naphtha and medium shale oil) daily. Originally it was planned to become operational in 2006. The third planned stage was construction of multiple commercial production units with capacity of up to 200,000 barrels of oil products per day. [3] It was envisaged to come on stream during 2010–2013. The environmental impact assessment of stage 2 was suspended in December 2004. [10]

The Paraho II technology based demonstration plant built in 2009–2011 at the new location consists of a vertical shaft kiln. Later the oil upgrading unit will be added. [2] At the demonstration stage, the plant utilises 60 tonnes of oil shale per day producing 37–40 barrels per day (5.9–6.4 m3/d). [11] [12] It uses lumps of shale instead of fine particles used by the ATP processor. [11] The demonstration project is to cost over $100 million. [12]

Environmental issues

The first project was heavily criticized by environmentalists. Over 20,000 people and 27 environment, tourism and fishing groups opposed the shale oil plant. [10] Greenpeace claimed that greenhouse emissions from the production of shale oil were nearly four times higher than from the production of conventional oil. In response, SPP promised to reduce greenhouse emissions from production of shale oil to 5% below those of conventional oil by stage 3. Greenpeace also claimed that the Stuart Oil Shale Project was a significant source of highly toxic dioxins and would damage the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area during stage 3. Public health concerns were also mentioned. [13] Local residents claimed dioxins emitted from the plant affected their health and that the odour was unacceptable. [14]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oil shale</span> Organic-rich fine-grained sedimentary rock containing kerogen

Oil shale is an organic-rich fine-grained sedimentary rock containing kerogen from which liquid hydrocarbons can be produced. In addition to kerogen, general composition of oil shales constitutes inorganic substance and bitumens. Based on their deposition environment, oil shales are classified as marine, lacustrine and terrestrial oil shales. Oil shales differ from oil-bearing shales, shale deposits that contain petroleum that is sometimes produced from drilled wells. Examples of oil-bearing shales are the Bakken Formation, Pierre Shale, Niobrara Formation, and Eagle Ford Formation. Accordingly, shale oil produced from oil shale should not be confused with tight oil, which is also frequently called shale oil.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oil sands</span> Type of unconventional oil deposit

Oil sands, tar sands, crude bitumen, or bituminous sands, are a type of unconventional petroleum deposit. Oil sands are either loose sands or partially consolidated sandstone containing a naturally occurring mixture of sand, clay, and water, soaked with bitumen, a dense and extremely viscous form of petroleum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Athabasca oil sands</span> Oil and bitumen deposits in Alberta, Canada

The Athabasca oil sands, also known as the Athabasca tar sands, are large deposits of bitumen or extremely heavy crude oil that constitute unconventional resources, located in northeastern Alberta, Canada – roughly centred on the boomtown of Fort McMurray. These oil sands, hosted primarily in the McMurray Formation, consist of a mixture of crude bitumen, silica sand, clay minerals, and water. The Athabasca deposit is the largest known reservoir of crude bitumen in the world and the largest of three major oil sands deposits in Alberta, along with the nearby Peace River and Cold Lake deposits.

Shale oil is an unconventional oil produced from oil shale rock fragments by pyrolysis, hydrogenation, or thermal dissolution. These processes convert the organic matter within the rock (kerogen) into synthetic oil and gas. The resulting oil can be used immediately as a fuel or upgraded to meet refinery feedstock specifications by adding hydrogen and removing impurities such as sulfur and nitrogen. The refined products can be used for the same purposes as those derived from crude oil.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Suncor Energy</span> Canadian energy company

Suncor Energy is a Canadian integrated energy company based in Calgary, Alberta. It specializes in production of synthetic crude from oil sands. In the 2020 Forbes Global 2000, Suncor Energy was ranked as the 48th-largest public company in the world.

Syncrude Canada Ltd. is one of the world's largest producers of synthetic crude oil from oil sands and the largest single source producer in Canada. It is located just outside Fort McMurray in the Athabasca Oil Sands, and has a nameplate capacity of 350,000 barrels per day (56,000 m3/d) of oil, equivalent to about 13% of Canada's consumption. It has approximately 5.1 billion barrels (810,000,000 m3) of proven and probable reserves situated on 8 leases over 3 contiguous sites. Including fully realized prospective reserves, current production capacity could be sustained for well over 90 years.

Oil shale reserves refers to oil shale resources that are economically recoverable under current economic conditions and technological abilities. Oil shale deposits range from small presently economically unrecoverable to large potentially recoverable resources. Defining oil shale reserves is difficult, as the chemical composition of different oil shales, as well as their kerogen content and extraction technologies, vary significantly. The economic feasibility of oil shale extraction is highly dependent on the price of conventional oil; if the price of crude oil per barrel is less than the production price per barrel of oil shale, it is uneconomic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oil shale industry</span> Resource extraction industry

The oil shale industry is an industry of mining and processing of oil shale—a fine-grained sedimentary rock, containing significant amounts of kerogen, from which liquid hydrocarbons can be manufactured. The industry has developed in Brazil, China, Estonia and to some extent in Germany and Russia. Several other countries are currently conducting research on their oil shale reserves and production methods to improve efficiency and recovery. Estonia accounted for about 70% of the world's oil shale production in a study published in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shale oil extraction</span> Process for extracting oil from oil shale

Shale oil extraction is an industrial process for unconventional oil production. This process converts kerogen in oil shale into shale oil by pyrolysis, hydrogenation, or thermal dissolution. The resultant shale oil is used as fuel oil or upgraded to meet refinery feedstock specifications by adding hydrogen and removing sulfur and nitrogen impurities.

Oil shale economics deals with the economic feasibility of oil shale extraction and processing. Although usually oil shale economics is understood as shale oil extraction economics, the wider approach evaluates usage of oil shale as whole, including for the oil-shale-fired power generation and production of by-products during retorting or shale oil upgrading processes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of the oil shale industry</span> Timeline of the production of oil shale

The history of the oil shale industry started in ancient times. The modern industrial use of oil shale for oil extraction dates to the mid-19th century and started growing just before World War I because of the mass production of automobiles and trucks and the supposed shortage of gasoline for transportation needs. Between the World Wars oil shale projects were begun in several countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Energy in Queensland</span> Overview of the production, consumption, import and export of energy and electricity in Queensland

Queensland's energy policy is based on the year 2000 document called the Queensland Energy Policy: A Cleaner Energy Strategy. The Queensland Government assists energy development through the Department of Energy and Water Supply. The state is noted for its significant contribution to coal mining in Australia. The primary fuel for electricity generation in the state is coal with coal seam gas becoming a significant fuel source. Queensland has 98% of Australia's reserves of coal seam gas. An expansion of energy-intensive industries such as mining, economic growth and population growth have created increased demand for energy in Queensland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Queensland Energy Resources</span> Australian energy company

Queensland Energy Resources Limited (QERL) is an Australian oil shale mining and shale oil extraction company with the headquarters in Brisbane. It is the developer of the Stuart (Yarwun) and McFarlane oil shale projects.

Laguna Resources NL was an Australian mineral exploration and mining company. It explored and developed gold and silver projects in the Maricunga Gold Belt of Northern Chile. It was a developer of the Stuart Oil Shale Project.

The Alberta Taciuk process is an above-ground dry thermal retorting technology for extracting oil from oil sands, oil shale and other organics-bearing materials, including oil contaminated soils, sludges and wastes. The technology is named after its inventor William Taciuk and the Alberta Oil Sands Technology and Research Authority.

The Paraho process is an above ground retorting technology for shale oil extraction. The name "Paraho" is delivered from the words "para homem", which means in Portuguese "for mankind".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Energy in Australia</span> Overview of the production, consumption, import and export of energy and electricity in Australia

Energy in Australia is the production in Australia of energy and electricity, for consumption or export. Energy policy of Australia describes the politics of Australia as it relates to energy.

The Union process was an above ground shale oil extraction technology for production of shale oil, a type of synthetic crude oil. The process used a vertical retort where heating causes decomposition of oil shale into shale oil, oil shale gas and spent residue. The particularity of this process is that oil shale in the retort moves from the bottom upward to the top, countercurrent to the descending hot gases, by a mechanism known as a rock pump. The process technology was invented by the American oil company Unocal Corporation in late 1940s and was developed through several decades. The largest oil shale retort ever built was the Union B type retort.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oil shale in Israel</span> Overview of the industry in Israel

Oil shale in Israel is widespread but an undeveloped resource, largely because of economic and technological constraints. Israeli oil shales belong to the group of Upper Cretaceous marinite deposits. Although oil-shale deposits may lie under as much as 15% of the country, only a small part of these are mineable. According to the Geological Survey of Israel, deposits that could have the biggest economic potential are located in the northern Negev, the largest being the Rotem-Yamin formation. For several decades, oil shale was used for small-scale power generation at Mishor Rotem. Several Israeli companies have proposed shale oil extraction; testing of the viability of the oil shale industry is currently being undertaken by Israel Energy Initiatives. However, as of 2011, there are no commercial oil shale operations in Israel.

There are oil shale deposits in Australia which range from small deposits to large reserves. Deposits, varying by their age and origin, are located in about a third of eastern Australia. In 2012, the demonstrated oil shale reserves were estimated at 58 billion tonnes. The easiest to recover deposits are located in Queensland.

References

  1. ↑ "Petroleum and gas production". Department of Natural Resources and Water of Queensland. Archived from the original on 30 April 2007. Retrieved 20 July 2007.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Carson, Leesa. "Shale oil. AIMR Report 2011". Geoscience Australia . Retrieved 4 November 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Dyni, John R. (2010). "Oil Shale". In Clarke, Alan W.; Trinnaman, Judy A. (eds.). Survey of energy resources (PDF) (22 ed.). World Energy Council. pp. 103–104. ISBN   978-0-946121-02-1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2012. Retrieved 4 December 2010.
  4. ↑ "Esso Australia Resources Pty Ltd v Southern Pacific Petroleum NL. Corporate law judgments. No. 2051 of 2004". University of Melbourne. Centre for Corporate Law & Securities Regulation. 2004. Retrieved 24 July 2007.
  5. 1 2 Wilkinson, Rick (14 August 2008). "Queensland oil shale project still in the wings". Oil & Gas Journal. PennWell Corporation. 106. Retrieved 15 August 2008.
  6. ↑ "Victory: shale oil project collapses" (Press release). Greenpeace. 21 July 2004. Retrieved 28 October 2010.
  7. ↑ "Oil plant equipment up for sale". ABC News Online . ABC. 21 April 2008. Retrieved 8 November 2010.
  8. ↑ "Stuart Oil Shale – Stage 2". Department of Infrastructure and Planning of Queensland. 15 July 2007. Archived from the original on 18 August 2010. Retrieved 28 October 2010.
  9. ↑ "Stuart Oil Shale project ready for restart". IINX. Alexander's Gas & Oil Connections. 31 January 2000. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 20 July 2007.
  10. 1 2 "Climate-changing shale oil industry stopped" (Press release). Greenpeace Australia Pacific. 3 March 2005. Archived from the original on 8 September 2010. Retrieved 28 June 2007.
  11. 1 2 Robinson, Paul (24 March 2011). "Company downplays shale oil plant impact". ABC News Online . ABC . Retrieved 4 November 2012.
  12. 1 2 Syvret, Paul (10 July 2010). "New era of shale oil in Queensland will require capital, commercial nous and political will". The Courier-Mail . Retrieved 4 November 2012.
  13. ↑ Greenpeace Australia Pacific (1 October 2003). "Stuart Oil Shale Project" (PDF). Retrieved 28 June 2007.
  14. ↑ "Plan brings back sick memories". Daily Mercury . APN News & Media Ltd. 19 July 2008. Retrieved 8 November 2010.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.