Decarbonising process heat in food manufacturing with ARENA funding

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has released over $12 million in funding to trial and demonstrate low emission technologies for process heat, reducing the reliance on natural gas for large manufacturers such as three of the latest recipients — McCain Foods, Sugar Australia and Blackmores.

McCain Foods is receiving $7.38 million in funding from ARENA’s Industrial Transformation Stream (ITS) to implement two interconnected heat recovery systems at its Ballarat potato processing site. The first system will recover high-temperature heat from condensate to decrease boiler demand, while the second captures lower temperature fryer exhaust heat to produce hot water, which is then upgraded to steam using an electrically driven mechanical vapour recompression (MVR) system. Collectively, these systems are expected to lower the site’s natural gas boiler load by 22% and reduce annual emissions.

Sugar Australia’s project, backed by $4.1 million in funding through ARENA’s National Industrial Transformation (NIT) Program, aims to significantly reduce emissions at its Yarraville sugar refinery by replacing traditional natural gas evaporators with an electrically driven MVR system.

Both projects will demonstrate the commercial readiness of MVR for industrial heat applications, providing proof that innovations such as hot water to steam and increased efficiencies for water evaporation can be successfully retrofitted to commercial operations. If the projects are successful, they will serve as a blueprint for how Australian industries can use the technology, de-risk future investment and decarbonise key processes.

Blackmores will also receive $723,900 through the NIT Program to undertake a project at its manufacturing facility in Braeside, Victoria to reduce emissions and energy consumption by replacing a natural gas boiler with a high-efficiency heat pump and a hot water buffer tank. The new system will use renewable electricity and the site’s refrigeration condensate water as a heat source, producing hot water for various manufacturing processes.

The project is expected to cut natural gas consumption by about 25% at Blackmores’ Braeside facility, lower annual emissions, and demonstrate how heat pumps can be integrated with process heating, HVAC and dehumidification in an operational facility. This facility is particularly significant, as it accounts for the majority of the company’s natural gas use.

The $40 million National Industrial Transformation (NIT) Program is now closed to new applications.

Round 3 of ARENA’s Industrial Transformation Stream (ITS) program is now open.

For further information and to apply, visit the funding page.

Image credit: iStock.com/Jag_cz