In New Zealand, global dairy major Fonterra Co-operative Group Ltd (Fonterra) has recently announced that has begun commissioning a boiler conversion from coal to wood pellets at its Te Awamutu milk processing site on the North Island.
In January 2020, Fonterra announced that its Te Awamutu site would shift from using a mix of coal, gas, and electricity to process milk to using renewable energy.
According to Fonterra Chief Operating Officer Fraser Whineray, sustainability is core to the Co-operative’s long-term strategy and while the coronavirus ( COVID-19) pandemic has presented some challenges, they’ve still managed to complete the decarbonisation project at Te Awamutu before the spring milk arrived.
We did have some delivery delays with certain offshore components, and I’m pleased with the outcome thanks to our team and suppliers. It’s really important sustainability investments like this are maintained despite the pandemic challenges, said Fraser Whineray.
The move away from coal at Te Awamutu is part of Fonterra’s plans to have net-zero emissions at its manufacturing sites by 2050. Once completed, it will reduce the Co-operative’s national coal consumption by almost 10 percent, saving more than 84 000 tonnes of carbon emissions per year.
It’s a positive step towards meeting our interim target of achieving a 30 percent reduction in emissions by 2030 and shows us what can be achieved by using wood biomass to decarbonise our manufacturing sites. We value our partnerships with Nature’s Flame and Energy Efficiency Conservation Authority (EECA) – they are integral to major projects like this, said Fraser Whineray, adding that partnering has been important in reaching this sustainability milestone.
Pellet producer Nature’s Flame, say they are delighted to have partnered with Fonterra to make the change to sustainable wood pellets as smooth as possible.
It’s a great environmental story on all fronts. Our pellets are made from renewable, plantation-based fibre residues from local sawmills in the form of sawdust and shavings. We use renewable geothermal energy to transform the residues into a premium and reliable fuel, which customers like Fonterra can then use to reduce their greenhouse emissions. We welcome Fonterra as a customer and look forward to working together on this and other future opportunities, said John Goodwin, Operations Manager, Natures Flame.
According to EECA CEO Andrew Caseley, industrial process heat makes up a little over a quarter of New Zealand’s energy-related emissions.
There’s enormous potential in New Zealand to bring those emissions down significantly by moving away from coal, as Fonterra is doing. This is the largest boiler conversion project to biofuels to date, so our funding via the technology demonstration programme will help to derisk it. It also has the added benefit of establishing a more viable and large-scale wood pellet supply chain, said Andrew Caseley.
