A $81.4 million bioenergy facility in New South Wales’ Horsley Park that will power one of the country’s largest brick manufacturing plants has been approved.
Austral Bricks has been manufacturing in Horsley Park since the 1960s, and this approval allows its facility to transition its operations from fossil fuels to renewable biogas.
Austral is partnering with renewable energy company Delorean Corporation to construct and operate the bioenergy facility.
The development of the plant is expected to support more than 250 jobs during the construction phase.
Diverting waste, creating energy
The site is forecasted to divert up to 150,000 tonnes of organic waste from landfill each year, converting the waste into renewable green gas using anaerobic digestion technology.
The plant will place organic waste into a sealed tank, allowing bacteria to break it down and release biogas.
This green gas will generate electricity and heat to power the bioenergy facility and be piped to the brick manufacturing kiln to replace the natural gas currently being used as a fuel.
Once complete, the development will process solid and liquid organic waste collected from commercial, industrial, agricultural and residential areas.
Bricks made from this renewable energy will be used in the construction of thousands of new homes in Sydney and beyond.
Austral Bricks says that its products are backed by an exclusive 100-year warranty, and that eight in ten new homes are built with Austral bricks.
“The bioenergy facility is diverting waste that would [have] otherwise been deposited in landfills, repurposing it to reduce our overall carbon footprint,” Minister for Planning and Public Spaces Paul Scully says.
“Bioenergy is emerging as a key player in the global energy transition. It offers reliable, renewable alternatives to fossil fuels, while supporting the circular economy.”
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