About the project

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Overview of ambreCTL

Ambre CTL Limited (a subsidiary of Ambre Energy) is proposing Australia's first commercial scale coal-to-liquids project in Queensland, 30km south west of Toowoomba and 10km south east of Pittsworth.

The project, ambreCTL, will convert local coal to unleaded petrol and LPG, which will be available for domestic use. Ambre Energy is applying for mining leases covering 2,000 hectares on the Felton North coal deposit.

Tests show this site has the most optimal coal for conversion to liquid fuels and that it is relatively close to the surface. The project will involve constructing:

  • a coal-to-liquids facility which will produce 940 million litres per year (ML/yr) of high quality unleaded petrol and 150 ML/yr of LPG
  • an adjoining open-cut coal mine to supply four million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) of feed coal to the facility

The site will also contain dams, a coal stockpile, conveyor systems and a power generation plant.

Coal from the mine will undergo a gasification process to produce a syngas for conversion to methanol. Methanol will then be converted to high quality unleaded petrol using ExxonMobil technology.

The project will have many economic benefits for Queensland and will help to provide fuel security by reducing the state’s reliance on petroleum products imported from overseas or refined from imported crude oil. By 2014, ambreCTL could meet more than 20% of Queensland’s demand for unleaded petrol.

An Initial Advice Statement (IAS) has now been publicly released, which details the nature and scope of the project. This IAS will assist the Queensland Government to prepare draft Terms of Reference for the project’s Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), initiating comprehensive stakeholder consultation.

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Environmental management

Ambre Energy aims to use the latest technology and approaches to minimise the impact of its proposed operations on the environment and residents in surrounding areas.

These will include:

  • choosing a site that has optimal coal for conversion to liquid fuels that is relatively close to the surface
  • conducting comprehensive environmental studies on water resources, climate, land management, geology and soils, air quality, greenhouse emissions, flora and fauna, transport, noise, community impacts and visual amenity
  • mining several hundred hectares at any time and progressively rehabilitating land to its pre-mining use. This approach  will contain the disturbance to the site and enable rehabilitation to commence as early as possible
  • producing cleaner emissions than a normal coal-fired power station
  • designing the facility to be a zero-liquids discharge facility which maximises the re-use of water from the coal-to-liquids process
  • minimising all air emissions from the facility
  • capturing a significant proportion of the high purity carbon dioxide produced in the gasification process and safely venting it onsite or using it for other industrial purposes
  • producing unleaded petrol which will have no sulphur and will require no additional refining prior to use.

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Project facts

  • ambreCTL will introduce new industry and new technology to Australia, reducing demand for foreign oil
  • Australia’s reliance on foreign oil is expected to increase two-thirds by 2015, while the amount of foreign oil on the market is projected to shrink within three years
  • by 2014, ambreCTL could meet more than 20% of Queensland’s demand for unleaded petrol
  • at peak construction ambreCTL will create an estimated 1,880 jobs in Queensland and sustain around 530 permanent jobs in the Darling Downs during operation. When operational, ambreCTL is projected to increase total employment Australia-wide by around 1,600 jobs per year
  • although local employment is a priority, the workforce cannot be sourced solely from local communities and a temporary accommodation camp will be required
  • several hundred hectares will be mined at any time and progressively rehabilitated to its pre-mining use. This is the most effective way to contain the disturbance onsite and enable rehabilitation to commence as early as possible 
  • ambreCTL represents an estimated $3.5billion+ investment in the Darling Downs and Queensland economies over the next three to four years, stimulating other industries and further business development and employment opportunities in and around the region
  • to date, Ambre Energy has spent more than $12 million on testing, mine planning, environmental studies, research and development and land acquisitions, including more than $1million in surrounding towns such as Pittsworth and Toowoomba
ambreCTL daily summary
Average Run Of Mine coal production (tonnes per day) 24,400
Average coal feed to the processing facility 12,200
Average unleaded petrol production (barrels per day) 18,000
Average LPG production (barrels per day) 2,850
% daily Queensland fuel consumption (2009) 20%+


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Project Benefits

  • new industry and new technology for Australia
  • reduce Australia’s reliance on foreign oil
  • convert domestic coal to unleaded petrol
  • around 1,800 jobs during peak construction, average 1,170 over two years
  • around 530 permanent jobs during operation
  • potential to supply more than 20% of Queensland’s unleaded petrol by the end of 2014
  • $24billion economic impact on the Darling Downs and Queensland economies to 2040