Oaky Creek 2 Waste Coal Mine Gas Power Station

Oaky Creek 2 Waste Coal Mine Gas Power Station is an industrial fugitive emissions project located at the Oaky Creek Coal Mine, approximately 17km east of Tieri and 100km northeast of Emerald in Central Queensland. Registered in July 2015, the project operates within the heart of the Bowen Basin, a region globally renowned for high-quality metallurgical coal production. While the immediate site is an active industrial mine lease, the broader surrounding region is characterized by cleared Brigalow scrub utilized extensively for cattle grazing.

This project operates under the Coal Mine Waste Gas methodology. Unlike land-based carbon projects that sequester carbon in biomass, this method involves capturing fugitive methane emissions released during underground coal mining operations. Instead of venting this potent greenhouse gas into the atmosphere, the project captures the gas and combusts it in electricity production devices. This process converts the methane into carbon dioxide (which has a significantly lower global warming potential) and generates electricity, displacing power that would otherwise be drawn from the grid.

The environment around Tieri is classified as sub-tropical and semi-arid, featuring a summer-dominant rainfall pattern with annual averages between 600mm and 700mm. The landscape is dominated by Vertosols, cracking clay soils that are fertile but prone to significant movement during wet and dry cycles. These soils are typical of the Brigalow Belt and support the region's agricultural productivity when not utilized for mining.

An interesting feature of this project is its specific configuration as an expansion of an existing facility. Operated by EDL (Energy Developments Limited) in partnership with Glencore, Oaky Creek 2 adds 15MW of generation capacity to the site, utilizing five GE Jenbacher engines. According to the proponent, the project generates approximately 100 GWh of electricity per year, enough to power roughly 18,000 homes, and avoids approximately 80,000 tonnes of CO2-equivalent emissions annually. The project successfully completed a Carbon Abatement Contract (CAC102443) with the Australian Government, delivering its contracted abatement.