SHANGHAI, April 20 /PRNewswire-Asia/ -- China is a country that is largely dependent on its coal resources not only for power generation but also for the production of chemicals like nitrogenous fertilizers. According to experts some 94% of China's nitrogenous fertilizer comes from costlier coals like anthracite. Producers have been hesitant to switch to lower cost and lower quality coals due to the high capital costs associated with changing technologies and the lack of available technologies that can burn low quality coal.
Recently the Shandong Provincial Fertilizer Association in China together with Synthesis Energy Systems, Inc. hosted an Ammonia and Methanol Industry Technology Promotion Seminar, in order to promote supporting technologies solutions for these various issues. One of the main concerns during this year's session was how to utilize lower cost lower quality coals in order to lower production costs in the nitrogenous fertilizer industry. More than 60 enterprises with 160 representatives participated in the seminar including the Chairmen of China National, Anhui, Henan and Jianshou Provincial Fertilizer Associations.
The seminar promoted US based Synthesis Energy Systems and its' U-GAS(R) gasification technology. SES, a NASDAQ listed company, has the worldwide exclusive rights to the U-GAS(R) gasification technology, originally developed by the Chicago based Gas Technology Institute "GTI". The U-GAS(R) technology, with the support from the US Department of Energy, has had continuous research and development for over three decades. The spotlight was put on the U-GAS(R) gasification technology because it has the unique ability of being able to gasify low rank "waste" coals while also having a much lower capital cost than its competitors. U-GAS(R) is considered a "green coal" technology and is able to gasify low rank coals without producing harmful effluents like tars or sulfur dioxide.
Over 100 representatives from the Ammonia and Methanol conference visited SES (Zaozhuang) New Gas Company Ltd in Zaozhuang City, Shandong Province, China. The visitors were deeply impressed as the Shandong Province Fertilizer Association Chairman Yang Chunsheng told the SES origination group "Shandong Fertilizer Association will list SES' technology as the supported provincial fertilizer industry technology." He further suggested SES keep good communications with the China Fertilizer Association since they participated in the conference and could help U-GAS(R) attain a listing as a nationally supported fertilizer industry technology.
The SES Zaozhuang operating plant conducted a lignite test in last October, which made coal chemical headlines when the U-GAS(R) gasification plant was able to seamlessly transition from the coal it was designed for to an Inner Mongolian lignite from Baiyinhua Coal Mine. The 10-day test attained a carbon conversion rate of 95.6%. Following the lignite test, in 2009, an expert panel organized by the Shandong Science and Technology Bureau evaluated the test results and positively concluded that the SES gasification system features noticeable innovations and is hence forth accepted to have reached an advanced level globally in the fluidized-bed gasification of lignite and is therefore worth extensive promotion in related industries. Consequently, Shandong Fertilizer Association has recommended U-GAS(R) technology as a low carbon green coal technology that can help the fertilizer industry reach environmentally sustainable growth.
The successful operation of SES's Zaozhuang plant has attracted the attention of industry and governmental figures alike. Companies in countries like India, Australia, and South Korea are currently seeking U-GAS(R) technology in order to sustainably develop their vast reserves of low quality coal.
