The Queensland Pacific Metals Ltd (AXS: QPM) share price is on the rise today, opening up more than 8% on Friday's close before settling to its current level of 9.4 cents — up 3%.
The gains have come after the miner announced its Townsville Energy Chemicals Hub (TECH) project's estimated CO2 emissions. The announcement highlighted the possibility for the project to achieve net-negative CO2 emissions.
Further, the company confirmed the project's current emissions are estimated to be 36% lower than the industry average.
What is the TECH Project?
Mining company Queensland Pacific Metals is currently advancing feasibility studies and approvals for its TECH Project.
The project is set to be an advanced, sustainable producer of nickel sulfate, cobalt sulfate, high purity alumina, and other by-products.
The company expects it to be the first producer of critical chemicals for the lithium-ion battery and electric vehicle sector to create a nearly no waste product.
Located in Townsville's Lansdown Eco-Industrial Precinct, the TECH Project is to process high quality ore imported from New Caledonia.
Is Queensland Pacific Metals entering the future of nickel production?
Today's announcement follows the release of a commissioned report that found, by using recycled gas, the TECH Project may achieve net-negative CO2 emissions.
Queensland Pacific Metals is considering powering the project with gas from nearby coal mines, which typically de-gas areas for safety reasons ahead of mining. As gas is mostly methane, releasing it into the atmosphere is worse for global warming than releasing CO2. While some coal mining productions burn the gas afterward and release it as CO2, it is still environmentally inefficient.
By using gas that would otherwise be released into the atmosphere, the project could receive carbon credits, thus neutralising its own emissions.
The data announced today comes from a Minviro report commissioned by Queensland Pacific Metals. Minviro is an international company specialising in assessments of mining and mineral processing projects.
The data has considered emissions from "cradle to gate", including those produced by mining ore in New Caledonia, processing it in Townsville at the TECH Project and transporting the final product.
Minviro will update its assessment of greenhouse gas emissions for the TECH Project when Queensland Pacific Metals finalises its gas supply.
Commentary from management
Queensland Pacific Metals' CEO Stephen Grocott said the newly announced data makes the TECH Project even more attractive to investors within the European, north Asian and North American battery supply chain.
We have been positioning the TECH Project to be a world leader in sustainable nickel production with our zero liquids discharge, potential to be zero-solids discharge and no requirements for a tailings dam. The Minviro report adds another feature in the cap for the TECH Project, positioning it as a low (greenhouse gas) emissions project with the potential to be net-negative. We are pleased that not only are we leading the way, we have further opportunities for improvement which will be pursued in our feasibility study.
Queensland Pacific share price snapshot
The Queensland Pacific share price is currently up 175% year to date and 526% over the past 12 months.
It has a market capitalisation of $84.9 million with approximately 932 million shares outstanding.
