China’s Shanxi Coking Coal and Singapore’s Sindicatum Agree to Launch China’s First International Mine Gas and Waste Utilization Technology Centre

Singapore (PRWEB) July 08, 2012

At a meeting held in Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, China, between Assaad Razzouk the Group CEO of Sindicatum and Mr Jin Zhixin the General Manager of Shanxi Coking Coal Group, plans for the founding of a ground-breaking technology centre were agreed. In addition, proposed new draft standards prepared by both companies for Ventilation Air Methane abatement and utilisation, and for Coal Mine Methane safe and efficient clean energy power plant operations, were discussed. In a partnership with Sindicatum, Shanxi Coking Coal Group intends to be a prime originator of a model for the transformation of coal mining enterprises into sustainable businesses.

The Government of China aims to promote sustainable and affordable energy solutions and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Energy is the key to economic growth and coal dominates China’s energy supply market. This heavy reliance on coal is expected to continue for the foreseeable future. Coal enterprises have an important role to play in transforming “Coal cities” into sustainable urban environments and the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of PRC are strongly supporting this initiative.

Sindicatum’s CMM and VAM business in China

Sindicatum invests and operates Coal Mine Methane and Ventilation Air Methane projects to improve the safety, efficiency and profitability of coal mining operations, and therefore their sustainability. Sindicatum’s projects:

•     Maximize gas drainage capture – by assisting coal mines to enhance methane drainage capture, flow and quality which raises safety standards in the underground environment while increasing the opportunity for increased energy utilization
•     Optimize the utilization of the drained gas and the generation of electricity and heat – including usage of waste heat from power generation which can be used for space and mine air heating in winter
•     Effect a thermal destruction of surplus drained methane by flaring – Sindicatum has taken the lead in developing and introducing integrated methane utilization and abatement technology, pioneering combinations of methane destruction through both flaring and power generation
•     Abate low concentration methane from exhausted ventilation air, which accounts for 70-80% of the methane emitted by coal mining

Sindicatum believes that its holistic approach of maximizing gas capture, optimizing utilization of drained gas, flaring of surplus methane and destruction of VAM at the surface exhaust fans will ultimately facilitate near-zero methane emissions coal mining.

Shanxi Coking Coal Group and Sindicatum have jointly developed 27MW of clean-energy projects in Shanxi Province, China, fuelled with Coal Mine Methane and abating approximately 800,000 tons of CO2 per annum. More details on these projects can be found on Sindicatum’s website.

Shanxi Coking Coal Group, a major state-owned enterprise, is China’s largest coking coal producer and the second largest coking coal producer in the world. Headquartered in Taiyuan, the capital city of Shanxi Province, among other businesses it is responsible for 99 coal mines with an annual production capacity of 136Mt.

Singapore-headquartered Sindicatum is a developer, owner and operator of clean energy projects worldwide and a producer of sustainable resources from natural products and waste. Over the past few years, Sindicatum has developed a global portfolio of projects on a principal basis and established and grown business units in Bangkok, Beijing, Jakarta, Manila, New Delhi, Singapore, Taiyuan (Shanxi Province, China) and Washington D.C. Sindicatum’s portfolio includes 18 investment projects, of which 15 have achieved operational status. Sindicatum’s portfolio also contains an additional 14 projects where Sindicatum advises on greenhouse gas abatement and sustainability. Through its local business units, Sindicatum has to date committed more than US$250m to greenhouse gas reduction and sustainability projects, 90% of which are in Asia.

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