The success of CTL fertiliser trials is not a coincident. The story of this success goes back to many years back. It's the result of dedicated focus, long research and sacrifice of GPP management and patience of shareholders for more than 6 years by spending more than $4m.
CHOOSING THE RIGHT TECHNOLOGY
GPP started to accumulate considerable experience in evaluating coal conversion technologies
of all sorts in 2010.
Many of the technologies convert coal to "synthetic hydrocarbons" but at considerable cost to the environment. Most of these processes require additional hydrogen as an input.
GPP gave serious attention to five processes all under development all in North America at that time. Four of the processes are classified as DCTL (direct coal to liquids).
The fifth did not fit into the "direct" or "indirect" category and this process has received most of GPP's attention. This process is called OHD (Oxidative Hydrothermal Dissolution).
The OHD process was invented by American scientist Professor Ken Anderson and converts carbonaceous materials, such as coal, into a range of low molecular weight organic compounds.
MAKING THE RIGHT PARTNERSHIPS
GPP signed an agreement with US-Thermaquatica Inc. who was holding the technology patent, to jointly test and develop the OHD process. (Greenpower has the exclusive licence on the technology for the next 15 years in Australia and New Zealand.)
Testing of samples of Victorian Brown Coal (VBC) shipped to Thermaquatica’s laboratory continued during the 2014 & 2015 and the GPP made contracted payments of $USD 276,000 (2014: $US1,050,000) to Thermaquatica towards their research and development programme including the acquisition of capital equipment for output testing.
They constructed a PDU (Process development unit) (OHD reactor) which had a nominal capacity of 10kg/hr for testing the technology. (This PDU unit or OHD reactor has performed faultlessly in all cases so far).
At the end of 2015, Monash University commenced a test program researching the benefits of some of the output for agricultural purposes (biostimulant and fertilisers) which was jointly funded by a Commonwealth Research Grant of $50,000.
GPP commissioned industrial chemist expert Dr Duncan Seddon to assist GPP’s entry to the chemical industry by selling compounds produced by the OHD process.
SPENDING SHAREHOLDERS MONEY RESPONSIBLY
GPP has has spent $4 million in assessing its OHD technology with US-based partner Thermaquatica and Monash University so far.
FIRST TARGET: BUILDING 20t/d PILOT PLANT IN VIC FOR PRODUCING AGRICULTURAL BIOSTIMULANTS & FERTILISERS
Greenpower Energy is also developing plans to build processing plants in Victoria to treat VBC and Western Australia to treat Collie Coal.
The first plants will be small commercial demonstration units designed to treat 20 tonnes of coal per day and will initially focus on producing agricultural biostimulants.
One of the plants will be completed to the stage where the OHD compounds can be produced as solids.
SECOND TARGET: BUILDING A LARGE SCALE COMMERCIAL PLANT FOR PRODUCING COMMODITY CHEMICALS.
This 20t/d pilot plant will form part of a demonstration facility for a large scale commodity chemical plant. Commodity chemicals are produced on a very large scale to satisFy the demand from the global chemistry industry. For example hydrogenation of the VBC or Collie Coal OHD product will produce BTX commodity chemicals (benzene, toluene, xylenes), C9 & C10 aromatics and naphtha. (the annual world production of benzene is over 20 million tonnes).
Now we all know that Monash Uni will start additional trials in the 2017 growing season. Once this is completed GPP will move to the planned construction phase of a 20 tonne/day OHD manufacturing plant in 2018.
Btw, GPP management must be confident with the project that they are currently in discussions to broaden its OHD license beyond Australia and New Zealand given the Company was instrumental in funding the Process Demonstration Unit (PDU) housed at Thermaquatica Inc’s headquarters in Illinois, USA.
GPP Price at posting:
2.7¢ Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held
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