Wind creating clean energy

Windlab, uses atmospheric science to find ideal locations for the construction of wind farms, and eventual generation of clean energy.

The company has about 50 wind farms under development, with fully developed projects throughout Australia, Canada, the United States and South Africa.

All of these projects produce electricity that is fed into the grid. In some cases the electricity is used by the public and in other cases it is used by governments in water desalination plants.

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In the past, Windlab merely assisted other clients in locating and developing wind farms.

“We noted early in the commercialisation of our WindScape technology that simply assisting other companies was not the optimal business model and moving to being a full developer was a logical step,” said Operations Manger Luke Osborne.

“We had proven to our investors and ourselves that we had the necessary skills to be successful.”

AusIndustry has been a long-term partner for Windlab since the company was founded by CSIRO in 2003.

An initial AusIndustry grant helped Windlab to advance its ability to model wind in complex terrain. In 2007 the company received a $5 million investment, led by a venture capital fund operating under AusIndustry’s Venture Capital Limited Partnership program.

“The venture capital funding helped us at a critical time,” Mr Osborne said.

Using waste to produce energy

A goal to produce a green product from 100 per cent renewable energy has led to Western Australian cereal manufacturer Morton’s Specialist Seed and Grain turning its waste product into energy.

The company recently used a $115,000 Re-Tooling for Climate Change grant to replace its LPG-fuelled boiler with a biomass boiler fuelled by waste oat hulls.

“We produce about 60,000 tonnes of oats each year to make our instant, quick and rolled oats cereal products,” said Managing Director Jonnie Morton.

The biomass boiler system feeds oat husks into a boiler via a moving grate. The feed is controlled with the husks piled about 15 centimetres high. The husks burn and create the energy required to heat the water used in the production of the cereals. The ash created during the burning process is high in potassium and is used as fertiliser.

“Before we installed the system we had 20,000 tonnes of waste hulls each year,” Mr Morton said.

“Now we have a competitive advantage through reduced production costs and we are heading toward our ultimate goal of self-sufficiency in energy used in production.”

For more information on AusIndustry’s products and services visit www.ausindustry.gov.au, call 13 28 46 or email hotline@ausindustry.gov.au.

Sari Mattila is a writer for AusIndustry.