Stuart Oil Shale Project facts for kids

The Stuart Oil Shale Project is a special project in Yarwun, near Gladstone, Queensland, Australia. Its main goal is to get oil from a type of rock called oil shale. This project was Australia's first big try since the 1950s to start using oil shale for fuel again.

The project was first started by two Australian companies, Southern Pacific Petroleum NL and Central Pacific Minerals NL (SPP/CPM). Now, it is run by Queensland Energy Resources. The first facility was built in the late 1990s but was later taken apart. A new demonstration facility began working in 2011.

How the Stuart Oil Shale Project Started

In 1997, SPP/CPM teamed up with a Canadian company called Suncor Energy. They planned to work together on the Stuart oil shale deposit. Suncor was in charge of running the project.

Changes in Project Ownership

• In April 2001, Suncor Energy left the project. This meant SPP/CPM became the only owner.
• In February 2002, SPP/CPM changed how it was set up. SPP became the main company for all their projects, including the Stuart Oil Shale Project.
• By December 2003, SPP had money problems. The company was taken over by people who would sell its parts to pay off debts.
• In February 2004, the Stuart Oil Shale Project was sold to a new company called Queensland Energy Resources.
• On July 21, 2004, Queensland Energy Resources announced that the plant would close. They said it was too expensive and caused too many environmental problems.
• Greenpeace, an environmental group that had protested the project, saw this closure as a big win.

New Technology and Rebuilding

• In April 2008, Queensland Energy Resources started selling off the plant's equipment.
• On August 14, 2008, they announced a big change. They decided to stop using the Alberta Taciuk Process (ATP) for getting oil from shale. Instead, they would use a different method called Paraho II technology.
• The old ATP-based plant was taken apart between 2008 and 2009.
• A brand new demonstration plant, using the Paraho II process, opened in September 2011.

Stages of the Project Development

The Stuart Oil Shale Project was planned in different stages, each with its own goals and costs.

First Stage: Pilot Plant Operations

• The first stage cost between A$250 million and A$360 million.
• It included a mine for oil shale and a small, test plant. This plant used the ATP technology to heat the shale and get oil out.
• The plant was built from 1997 to 1999 and ran from 1999 to 2004.
• It was the first time ATP technology was used anywhere in the world to get oil from shale.
• The plant was designed to process 6,000 tonnes of oil shale each day. It aimed to produce about 4,500 barrels (720 m³) of oil.
• From 2000 to 2004, this test plant produced over 1.5 million barrels (240×10^³ m³) of shale oil.
• After it closed, the facility was taken apart.

Planned Future Stages

• The second stage was planned to cost A$600 million. It would have been a much larger plant, four times bigger than the first.
• This bigger plant was meant to produce about 19,000 barrels (3,000 m³) of oil products every day. These products included naphtha and a medium shale oil.
• It was originally planned to start working in 2006.
• The third stage was even bigger. It planned to build many more production units. These units could have produced up to 200,000 barrels of oil products per day.
• This stage was expected to start between 2010 and 2013.
• However, the environmental review for stage 2 was stopped in December 2004. This meant the bigger stages did not go ahead.

Current Demonstration Plant

• The new plant, built from 2009 to 2011, uses the Paraho II technology.
• It is a demonstration plant, meaning it's a smaller version to show how the technology works.
• It uses a special vertical oven called a kiln. Later, a unit to improve the oil will be added.
• This plant processes 60 tonnes of oil shale per day. It produces about 37–40 barrels per day (5.9–6.4 m³/d) of oil.
• Unlike the old ATP process, this plant uses larger pieces of shale instead of fine particles.
• This demonstration project is costing over $100 million.

Environmental Concerns

The first Stuart Oil Shale Project faced a lot of criticism from environmentalists.

Community and Group Opposition

• More than 20,000 people and 27 different groups were against the shale oil plant. These groups included environmental, tourism, and fishing organizations.
• Greenpeace argued that making oil from shale created almost four times more greenhouse gases than making regular oil.
• In response, SPP promised to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. They aimed to make them 5% lower than conventional oil production by stage 3.
• Greenpeace also claimed the project was a major source of very harmful chemicals called dioxins. They worried it would harm the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area during stage 3.

Health and Local Issues

• People living nearby also had worries about their health.
• They claimed that dioxins released from the plant were affecting their health.
• They also said the smell from the plant was very bad and unacceptable.