Sawmill residue could be turned into renewable diesel

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has announced up to $500,000 in funding for Boral Timber, a subsidiary of construction company Boral Limited, to investigate the feasibility of building a ‘second-generation’ biofuels refinery using the waste sawmill residues from the Boral Timber Hardwood Sawmill at Herons Creek, near Port Macquarie on the Mid North Coast of NSW.

Under the $1.2 million study, Boral will explore the technical and financial viability of establishing a biorefinery using innovative technology, which would be located near the Herons Creek sawmill. The study will consider a mechanical catalytic conversion technology, developed by Spanish-based Global Ecofuel Solutions SL, combined with the potential biorefinery at Herons Creek and will be the first time the process would be used in a production-scale facility.

The sawmill’s residue — which includes sawdust, remnant woodchips, shavings and offcuts — is currently used for lower value uses such as landscaping and boiler fuel. If the study is successful, the proposed biorefinery — which would cost an estimated $50 million to build — could convert up to 50,000 tonnes of waste sawmill residue produced each year into transport-grade renewable diesel and bitumen.

Boral is one of the largest consumers of bitumen and has one of the largest truck fleets in Australia, using approximately 100 million litres of diesel each year. Wayne Manners, Boral’s Executive General Manager (Building Products), said the transport-grade renewable diesel produced at the potential new biorefinery could eventually account for up to 15% of the company’s annual diesel needs.

“The application of this technology has the potential to transform the way we use low-value hardwood sawmill residues into a resource that could be highly valuable not just to Boral but to the industry more generally,” he said.

ARENA CEO Ivor Frischknecht agreed, noting, “The transport sector is a significant user of energy in Australia, with liquid fuels a key long-term energy source for heavy-vehicle road and air transport since they cannot readily be electrified.

“Bioenergy comprises a growing proportion of Australia’s energy mix, and this new technology could see residue from the production process be used to reduce Boral’s reliance on diesel and bitumen derived from fossil fuels,” said Frischknecht.

The news has also been welcomed by Bioenergy Australia, which noted that biofuels production results in significant positive impacts on the environment, reduced health impacts through reducing air particulate matter, increased jobs through regional development and enhanced fuel security through reduced reliance on imported fuels. With Australia currently lagging well behind other nations in production of biofuels, the company believes that a local biofuels industry could create over 8000 direct and indirect jobs, contribute over 1.1 billion annually to regional communities and reduce particulate matter in our air by 26%.

“If this groundbreaking technology is successful, we hope to see a transition to similar biorefineries by other companies which have a waste stream in forestry or agriculture,” said Frischknecht.

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/Kirill Livshitskiy