Gelita Beaudesert Energy Efficiency and Carbon Reduction Project

The Gelita Beaudesert Energy Efficiency and Carbon Reduction Project is an industrial energy efficiency project located at the Gelita Australia manufacturing facility in Josephville, approximately 5 kilometers east of Beaudesert and 65 kilometers south of Brisbane, Queensland. Registered in December 2020, the project operates within the industrial sector of the Scenic Rim region. While the specific project site is a heavy industrial processing plant, the surrounding Beaudesert area is a major agricultural hub characterized by cattle grazing, dairying, and cropping activities within the Logan River valley.

The project operates under the Carbon Credits (Carbon Farming Initiative, Industrial and Commercial Emissions Reduction) Methodology Determination 2021. This methodology incentivizes businesses to reduce emissions by upgrading equipment, improving energy efficiency, or switching fuel sources. Specifically, this project involves a significant boiler upgrade, transitioning the facility's energy generation from a coal-fired power plant to a cleaner natural gas-fired system. This fuel-switching activity not only improves energy efficiency but also substantially lowers the carbon intensity of the steam and electricity required for gelatin production.

The local environment of the Scenic Rim features a sub-tropical climate with a distinct summer rainfall peak and annual precipitation averaging around 900mm. The region is known for its fertile alluvial soils and Vertosols (cracking clays), which support the area's extensive agricultural output. Although these soil and rainfall conditions do not directly influence the machinery of this industrial project, the facility's proximity to the Logan River underscores the importance of the site's water management and anaerobic digestion systems used alongside the energy upgrades.