Plans to mine Northern Territory sand for fracking in the Beetaloo Basin1 Sep 2022 09:37
A company has revealed plans to mine sand in the Northern Territory, with the aim of selling it to gas companies wanting to frack in the Beetaloo Basin.
Key points:
In addition to its frac sand mining plan, the company has also identified sand that could be used in solar panel production
An environmental group is worried about the company's water extraction plans
The DEPWS says about a third of the water allocated under existing entitlements in the area was extracted in the 2021/22 accounting year
Territory Sands says it has identified a resource of 110 million tonnes of sand near the tiny town of Larrimah, which it believes could be used for fracking gas wells.
To frack a well, a mixture of water, sand and chemicals is pushed down a well at high pressure to crack rocks deep underground, releasing the gas.
For the few wells that have been fracked in the Beetaloo Basin as part of exploration, sand has been brought in from South Australia, Saudi Arabia and the United States.
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A United Nations report is calling for urgent action to avert a sand crisis as population growth and urbanisation triple demand for the world's most exploited natural resource after water.
A sand mining tractor
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Territory Sands director Nigel Doyle said he has been in discussions with three of the four gas companies exploring in the Beetaloo with the aim of becoming the first local supplier of frac sand to the industry.
"In the early years, [the gas industry might need] 100,000 to 200,000 tonnes of sand per year," he said.
"But possibly by the end of the decade, it might need one or two million tonnes of sand per year.
"Our tenements aren't approved yet … but we're hoping by next year to be able to supply a local source of sand."
To produce frac sand, the sand will need to be washed with water Territory Sands hopes will be sourced from the Tindall Limestone Aquifer (Mataranka).
The company has applied for a licence to take up to 1,200 megalitres per year from the aquifer.
"We think in the first year or two we will only use five to 10 per cent of that application," Mr Doyle said.
continued
https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2022-09-01/territory-sands-plan-to-mine-for-beetaloo-fracking-nt/101386946
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