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Current status of coal gasification 195

using different gasifiers. Based on the success of the OPTIMASH seventh FP project,
Turkey is considering funding a 10-MWth IGCC pilot plant (Ersoy, 2016).

7.2.4 Australia
Although Australian coal resources are abundant, the use of coal gasification technol-
ogy is strongly discussed due to environmental aspects. As far as these authors’ knowl-
edge, the news from Australia about coal gasification projects are mainly related to the
development of underground coal gasification pilot plants by several companies such
as Carbon Energy Ltd., Ergo Exergy, or Linc Energy. Some examples of UCG facil-
ities are the Bloodwood Creek UCG pilot plant in Queensland (Mallett, 2016, 2017;
Mallett and Haines, 2015) or the Chinchilla Demonstration Facility (Blinderman,
2016; Perkins et al., 2016).
Because of environmental problems associated with two of the three trail projects,
on April 2016, the Queensland Government announced the decision of prohibition of
all underground coal gasification activities and the in situ gasification of oil shale, and
on 24 August 2017, the Queensland Parliament passed legislation, which places a
moratorium on all activities relating to UCG (Queensland Government, 2017a,
2017b).

7.2.5 Africa

7.2.5.1 South Africa
7.2.5.1.1 Sasol plants
Among the different CTL plants and projects operating all around the world, the Sasol
Synfuels plants in South Africa (Sasol I in Sasolburg and Sasol II and Sasol III in
Secunda) have been the most significant example of commercialized FischereTropsch
synthesis in the world since their beginnings.
Sasol I, built and started in 1955, operated 17 Sasol-Lurgi FBDB TM gasifiers to
convert the syngas produced from subbituminous coal into a wide variety of liquid
chemicals. In 2004, this facility retired the gasifiers in favor of natural gas autothermal
reformers (Mills, 2016; NETL, n.d.-a). On the other hand, Sasol II and Sasol III, started
up in 1974 and in operation since 1979, are currently known as Secunda CTL, and they
operated 80 gasifiers using the Sasol-Lurgi gasification technology to convert the syn-
gas produced into a wide variety of chemical products and liquid fuels (gasoline and
light olefins) (Venter, 2005).
Sasol Limited continues sustaining and expanding their operations in South Africa
with Project 2050. Several strategies are involved in this project, among which con-
struction of new coal mines is crucial to ensure the supply of coal to CTL plants until
the middle of the century. Besides, the company has set carbon reduction targets of
15% at existing CTL operations by 2020 and 30% at any new CTL operations by
2030 and is working as a member of South Africa’s Centre for Carbon Capture and
Storage in the building of an operational CCS demonstration plant by 2020 (Creamer,
2013; Mills, 2016).