The Cotton Australia Board hit the road last week, meeting with growers in the Gwydir and Macintyre valleys where they had the opportunity to learn about some innovative initiatives.

In Moree, the Board joined local growers and consultants at Wathagar Gin, where they saw firsthand the progress on Sundown Pastoral Company’s groundbreaking green hydrogen and ammonia project which will fully replace the farm’s conventional fuel and fertiliser needs and has the potential to transform the wider cotton industry’s approach to energy.

Funded by the NSW Government and NAB, in association with Sundown Pastoral Company and Hiringa Energy, the Good Earth Green Hydrogen and Ammonia project will generate 36 megawatts of solar, with up to 60MW of battery storage, to power electrolysis on site, producing about 480 tonnes of green hydrogen (equivalent to displacing 1.8 million litres of diesel) and 5,000 tonnes of anhydrous ammonia annually.

The low-carbon ammonia will be used to displace high-carbon fossil fuel-based nitrogen fertilisers, removing up to 17,000t of CO₂-equivalent emissions each year – the equivalent of taking 6,500 passenger cars off the road or planting 500,000 trees. Sundown will use its ammonia fertiliser to support production of its net-zero traceable Good Earth Cotton, with excess supply available for other growers in the region.

Green hydrogen will be used on farm to displace diesel in irrigation pumping, in addition to trials of fully electric loaders and excavators, further decarbonising the agricultural supply chain from paddock to port.

All production is zero-emissions, driven entirely by renewable electricity and recycled water captured on the 70-hectare site.

Sundown Pastoral Company director David Statham said the driver of this project was to use technology to control the farm’s biggest inputs after the cost of fuel and fertiliser doubled in a year.

“I’d had enough of others dictating costs to farmers,” he said.

“The initial driver was to control your own destiny with technology and the by-product of that just happens to be clean and green, so it ticked all the boxes.”

Following their visit to Moree, the Board travelled to Goondiwindi where they looked at the latest ThryvOn trials at Brett Corish’s “Mundine” property and heard about the latest agtech solutions being developed by GoannaAg. They also had the opportunity to listen to local growers and discuss key matters during a dinner at Goondiwindi and over lunch in Moree.

Cotton Australian Chair Liz Stott said the Board’s field trips are a great opportunity to meet informally with growers to hear about what’s happening on the ground and share information about the work Cotton Australia is doing.

“We always want to hear from growers; Cotton Australia is all about delivering value for growers and delivering on issues that are important to them, so we can keep our industry strong,” she said.

“So these are really good opportunities to share communication about issues that are affecting growers.”

Liz thanked everyone who took the time to meet with them and all those involved in organising the trip.