First local carbon refinery facility opens

Orica, an ASX-listed commercial explosive provider, has collaborated with clean technology firm MCi Carbon to open Australia's first carbon utilisation facility in Kooragang Island, New South Wales.

The facility is an initiative within Orica's global low-carbon industrial ecosystem, supporting new technologies and solutions for the energy transition.

Developed by MCi Carbon, the plant captures carbon dioxide (CO2) from Orica's ammonia production at Kooragang Island and converts it into carbon-embodied materials used in everyday products.

These include concrete, plasterboard, paint, paper, glass and adhesives - permanently locking carbon into the raw materials the global economy already relies on.

The facility can process approximately 2500 tonnes of CO2 per year, producing up to 10,000 tonnes of saleable materials, generating several tonnes of product for every tonne of CO2 processed.

Using mineral carbonation, the process combines CO2 with naturally occurring and industrial minerals to produce stable carbonates and other materials suitable for a range of applications and can support a more circular, low-carbon economy.

Orica group executive and president AUSPAC and sustainability Germán Morales said: "MCi Carbon's technology is designed to integrate with existing industrial processes, providing a scalable pathway to reduce emissions while creating new value streams for hard-to-abate sectors such as cement, steel and chemicals."

"Located within one of Australia's key industrial hubs, the project reinforces the Hunter region's role in advancing clean energy and low-emissions innovation, with strong potential for global application."

Orica has invested in MCi Carbon since 2013, and the latest opening aligns with Orica's sustainability and commercial goals of catalysing climate action and optimising resource use through circularity.