Sparc inks deal with BHP-Mitsubishi alliance to test coatings on coal plant in QLD

Sparc Technologies (ASX:SPN) has inked a deal with the BHP Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA) to test out its anti-corrosive coating on coal plant infrastructure in Queensland.

Sparc’s ‘ecosparc’ coating product will be trialled at BHP’s Goonyella Riverside Mine – the fourth such trial Sparc has embarked on.

The coating is based on graphene, a hard-to-make but highly resilient form of graphite. It’s Sparc’s other big venture outside a hydrogen partnership it had struck with Fortescue.

Fortescue basically mothballed its hydrogen division Fortescue Future Industries (FFI) last year but continues to make pointedly less ambitious inroads into hydrogen production; a small reactor using Sparc’s tech is set for construction at the midpoint of this year.

Ecosparc will be tested against an un-named “market-leading anti-corrosive” to determine which product is better fitted for the coal plant assets.

According to Sparc, the Goonyella mine is perfect for the trial given the temperature and moisture levels within the plant. (Consider it has ‘Riverside’ in the name.)

Prior companies who have trialled Sparc’s products include Santos, 29Metals, and the South Australian infrastructure department.

SPN last traded at 25cps after no change through the morning.

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Note: this story has been updated to reflect Sparc’s January announcement regarding a small plant testing its hydrogen tech.

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