Devil Creek Gas Plant Power Optimisation Project

Devil Creek Gas Plant Power Optimisation Project is an industrial energy efficiency project located at the Devil Creek Gas Plant, approximately 45km southwest of the major regional hub of Karratha in Western Australia. Registered in February 2018, the project operates within the boundary of the onshore gas processing facility, which sits on the Mardie Station pastoral lease.

The project operates under the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative, Industrial Electricity and Fuel Efficiency) Methodology Determination 2015. This methodology generates carbon credits by improving the efficiency of energy-consuming equipment, thereby reducing the amount of fuel or electricity required for the same output. Specific activities for this project involve modifying, removing, or replacing electricity generation and supply equipment to lower the facility's overall fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.

The facility is situated in the Pilbara region, an area characterized by an arid-tropical climate with very hot summers and mild winters. Rainfall is low and highly variable, typically averaging between 250mm and 300mm annually, and is heavily influenced by seasonal cyclones. The local terrain consists of coastal plains with soils predominantly classified as tenosols (sandy soils) and kandosols, typical of the spinifex grasslands used for cattle grazing in the surrounding station country.

The Devil Creek Gas Plant was Western Australia's third domestic gas processing hub, designed to process natural gas from the offshore Reindeer field. While the project focuses on operational efficiency, the plant itself has been a critical piece of infrastructure for the state's domestic gas supply since its commissioning in 2011. The proponent, Santos Limited, became the operator following acquisition of the asset, which was originally developed in a joint venture with Apache Energy.