Worsley Refinery power station
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Worsley Refinery power station is an operating power station of at least 404-megawatts (MW) in Worsley aluminum refinery, Western Australia, Australia.
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Plant name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Worsley Refinery power station | Worsley aluminum refinery, Western Australia, Australia | -33.23519, 116.068694 (exact) |
The map below shows the exact location of the power station.
Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):
- Unit 1, Unit 1, Unit 2, Unit 2, Unit 3, Unit 5, Unit 6: -33.23519, 116.068694
- Unit 1: -33.15127958, 116.2614403
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Unit name | Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Technology | CHP | Start year | Retired year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | operating | coal - unknown, fossil gas - natural gas[1] | 34 | subcritical | – | 1982 | 2023 |
| Unit 1 | operating[2] | gas[2] | 120[2][3] | combined cycle[3] | yes[3] | 2009[2] | – |
| Unit 1 | operating | coal - unknown, fossil gas - natural gas[1] | 34 | subcritical | – | 1982 | 2023 |
| Unit 2 | operating | coal - unknown, fossil gas - natural gas | 34 | subcritical | – | 1982 | 2024 (planned) |
| Unit 2 | operating | coal - unknown, fossil gas - natural gas | 34 | subcritical | – | 1982 | 2024 (planned) |
| Unit 3 | operating | coal - unknown | 34 | subcritical | – | 1982 | – |
| Unit 5 | operating | coal - unknown, bioenergy - wood & other biomass (solids) | 57 | circulating fluidized bed | – | 2012 | – |
| Unit 6 | operating | coal - unknown, bioenergy - wood & other biomass (solids) | 57 | circulating fluidized bed | – | 2012 | – |
CHP is an abbreviation for Combined Heat and Power. It is a technology that produces electricity and thermal energy at high efficiencies. Coal units track this information in the Captive Use section when known.
Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details
| Unit name | Owner | Parent |
|---|---|---|
| Unit 1 | South32 Worsley Alumina Pty Ltd [100.0%] | – |
| Unit 1 | Worsley Alumina Pty Ltd[2] | Worsley Alumina Pty Ltd [100.0%] |
| Unit 1 | – | – |
| Unit 2 | South32 Worsley Alumina Pty Ltd [100.0%] | – |
| Unit 2 | – | – |
| Unit 3 | South32 Worsley Alumina Pty Ltd [100.0%] | – |
| Unit 5 | South32 Worsley Alumina Pty Ltd [100.0%] | – |
| Unit 6 | South32 Worsley Alumina Pty Ltd [100.0%] | – |
Project-level captive use details
- Captive industry use (heat or power): aluminum
- Captive industry: Power
Background
Worsley Refinery power station is a five-unit coal-fired power plant with a total capacity of 216 MW. The plant was completed in 1982 and 2012, and is owned by BHP Billiton.[4] Units 5 and 6 co-fire with biomass.[5]
In 2009, a gas fired Co-generation plant was installed.[6]
In November 2014, a refinancing agreement for Units 5-6 of the Worsley Refinery power station was signed. US$741 million in loans was provided by a consortium of banks that included Australia and New Zealand Banking Group, MUFG Bank, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, DBS Bank, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, National Australia Bank, Intesa Sanpaolo, Societe Generale, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, and Westpac.[7]
Gas conversions
In October 2023, reporting announced that the first coal-fired boiler at Worsley refinery's power station had been converted to natural gas, and that the second coal-fired unit would follow suit in 2024.[8] The plant's owner, South32, said that these conversions were part of its larger effort to reduce operational GHG emissions down to zero by 2050.[9]
Emissions
A May 2021 analysis by 'Boiling Cold' found that the refinery's coal plant emits two-thirds more greenhouse gases to make a tonne of alumina than a gas-fueled Australian refinery run by Alcoa.[10]
Worsley bauxite mine expansion plans (2022)
In June 2022, South32 submitted a revised proposal to Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) for the expansion of their bauxite mine for alumina production, which included the statement that at the time, Worsley Alumina were "completing studies to detail the optimal approach to reduce the use of coal, with a prefeasibility study for conversion of the existing coal-fired boilers to natural gas." [11]
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20240125141239/https://aluminiuminsider.com/south32s-worsley-alumina-initiates-shift-to-natural-gas-with-first-boiler-conversion/. Archived from the original on 25 January 2024.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 https://web.archive.org/web/20200718185232/http://www.ussl.com:80/ussl/en/projects/1/1/83.html. Archived from the original on 18 July 2020.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 (PDF) https://web.archive.org/web/20221013181151/http://www.epa.wa.gov.au/sites/default/files/EPA_Report/2083_B1189_0.pdf. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 October 2022.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ Welcome to Worsley Alumina, BHP Billiton investor presentation, Sept. 2003.
- ↑ Worsley Multi-Fuel Cogen Power Plant Australia, Global Energy Observatory, Sept. 12, 2016
- ↑ "Worsley Power Plant Project - USSL". www.ussl.com. Retrieved 2022-12-07.
- ↑ Worsley Co-Generation Plant Refinancing 2014, IJGlobal, Jan. 22, 2015
- ↑ South32’s Worsley Alumina Initiates Shift to Natural Gas with First Boiler Conversion, Aluminum Insider, October 21, 2023
- ↑ First boiler at South32's Worsley Alumina converted to natural gas, Engineering News October 19, 2023
- ↑ South32's coal-fired Worsley Alumina two-thirds dirtier than Alcoa, May 3, 2022
- ↑ South32 Worsley Alumina ERD, South32, June 2022
Additional data
To access additional data, including interactive maps of the power stations, downloadable datases, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker and the Global Oil and Gas Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
