• Resources major South32 has announced a feasibility study with Pilot Energy to advance Pilot’s Mid West Clean Energy Project

• The South32 study, which has already started, will focus on carbon capture and storage at the MWCEP

• KOSPO, a major energy provider in Korea, will further investigate clean ammonia production and progress the MWCEP FEED tender with support of funding from the Export–Import Bank of Korea

Special Report: South32, a major corporation and large-scale, hard-to-abate emitter, has got behind Pilot Energy’s Mid West Clean Energy Project (MWCEP) by announcing a milestone feasibility study with the Aussie junior.

South32 Worsley Alumina has signed an agreement with Pilot (ASX:PGY) to conduct a joint feasibility study into carbon capture and storage (CCS) at the project.

Meanwhile, Korean Southern Power Co. (KOSPO) is launching a feasibility study for the next phase of the project – ammonia production.

The South32 study, which started this quarter, focuses on the supply chain for capturing and storing up to ~700,000 tonnes per annum of carbon dioxide.

Expected to be completed in Q3 CY2025, the study will include an assessment of the onshore conditioning, transportation and delivery of carbon from the alumina refining process’s flue gas streams to Pilot’s Cliff Head Carbon Storage project.

The study could then form a basis for more commercial and technical engagement on decarbonisation options for Worsley Alumina, depending on the results.

Results will also complement Pilot’s engagement with other emitters in WA to advance the Cliff Head Carbon Storage Project, which forms the first phase of the MWCEP.

To support the South32 study Pilot has partnered with Chiyoda Corporation, a large engineering company specialising in onshore facilities, and Knutsen NYK Carbon Carriers, a major marine transportation provider.

Pilot’s chairman Brad Lingo said: “Pilot has been engaging with emitters in parallel with the technical development of the Cliff Head Carbon Storage Project.

“This study represents an important milestone in the development of the project and future supply chain infrastructure. We look forward to progressing the study with teams from South32, Chiyoda and KNCC.”

Powerful Korean connection

As the South32 study on CCS gets into full swing, KOSPO has announced its funding agreement is now in place to provide funding for its study for clean ammonia development at the MWCEP and to progress the tendering of engineering services for the project’s front end engineering design (FEED).

KOSPO is a leading member of the Korean Consortium, or K-Consortium, of power generation and energy companies, which also includes Samsung C&T, Korea East-West Power and Approtium.

As noted by KOSPO, the K-Consortium and Pilot plan to begin producing and introducing clean ammonia from 2029.

The study is expected to be finalised in line with the previously announced project framework agreement schedule announced in January, which has Pilot and the Consortium planning to commence FEED in August 2025.

A KOSPO spokesperson said: “With the support of the feasibility study from the Export-Import Bank of Korea, we will successfully develop the clean ammonia project in central Western Australia and actively implement the (South Korean) government’s policy of opening the world’s first Clean Hydrogen Power Generation Bidding Market (CHPS) as an energy public corporation.”

Clean energy leader

The Australian federal government granted the MWCEP Australia’s first offshore CCS permit last June.

It’s since received a $6.5 million federal government grant as part of the Carbon Capture Technologies Program.

The project will use established oil and gas assets, alongside other infrastructure, to capture CO2 emissions from the atmosphere, the project itself and industrial facilities.

It will then store the CO2 permanently in the depleted Cliff Head oil field about 12km off the coast in Western Australia’s Mid West region.

The first stage of the project, with an expected launch in 2028, will offer permanent storage capacity exceeding 1 million tonnes of CO2 annually, making it one of the world’s largest carbon capture and storage facilities.

The next stage, set to launch from 2029, involves the MWCEP producing up to one million tonnes of clean ammonia for export into key APAC markets such as South Korea and Japan.

This article was developed in collaboration with Pilot Energy, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.