Suvo Strategic Minerals’ new low-carbon concrete joint venture with pre-cast manufacturer PERMAcast R&D has scored its first deal, signing a binding two-year memorandum of understanding (MOU) with West Australian wind farm developer Wind With Purpose (WWP).
WWP is involved in the potential construction and installation of 3 gigawatts (GW) of onshore power and 2GW of offshore capacity in WA, which would require up to 500 turbines that would each use more than 1000 cubic metres of concrete for their foundations.
The MOU will explore the use of low-carbon concrete in the foundations and towers of the wind turbines.
It gives Suvo a first right of refusal to supply low-carbon concrete subject to a pilot project proving the technology meets Australian engineering standards and is economic.
Conventional concrete is valued at about $300 per cubic metre, offering a significant market opportunity if the joint venture can pull off the deal.
Suvo and PERMAcast formed their joint venture - dubbed PERMAcast Future Industries – last October to pull together Suvo’s low-carbon “geopolymer” cement product with WA-based PERMAcast’s experience in manufacturing pre-cast concrete. Suvo’s eco-friendly cement is made from nickel slag mining waste.
The cutting-edge technology produces low-carbon cement and concrete, designed to slash the reliance on traditional Portland cement - a major carbon dioxide emitter around the world.
Suvo Strategic Minerals executive chairman Aaron Banks said: “We’ve demonstrated we can successfully create formulations and manufacture products of low-carbon concrete and now we are developing the pathway to revenue.”
The joint venture partners are actively exploring ways to incorporate precast technology into the manufacture of the wind turbines’ footings and towers rather than pouring them onsite. Management says if its pilot trials are successful it could speed up assembly of the wind farms, improve their structural integrity and drive significantly greater demand for low-carbon concrete - a view echoed by PERMAcast’s chief executive officer Darren Hedley.
Suvo, meanwhile, has been busy growing its Victorian-based hydrous kaolin business and recently locked in two significant contract renewals on increased volumes.
The first offtake agreement with Norwegian paper and pulp major Norske Skog was refreshed for three years and includes a 30 per cent volume increase to 24,000 tonnes. A second deal with Chinese distributor Chaozhou Chengcheng Industrial Co doubled sales to 8750t of hydrous kaolin across five years.
The expanded orders from existing clients come at a handy moment given Suvo recently completed an upgrade to its Pittong plant in Victoria. The plant can now handle 60,000t a year.
The MOU further strengthens Suvo’s positioning in the emerging sustainable construction materials sector, which is gaining momentum as industries transition toward low-emission alternatives. As governments worldwide push for net-zero carbon policies, the market for geopolymer and alternative cement products appears set for substantial growth.
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By James Pearson
