Australia's Ararat Bioenergy Becomes First Asia-Pacific BECCS Project to Clear Puro.earth Assessment

Valorify, an Australian utility-scale biogas developer, has completed a preliminary facility assessment with carbon removal standard Puro.earth, becoming the first organization in the Asia-Pacific region to pursue bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) credits through the platform. The milestone was announced on August 14, 2026.

The project centers on the Ararat Bioenergy Stage 1 facility in Western Victoria, a multi-stage mono-digestion system designed to convert lignocellulosic agricultural waste, primarily cereal straw, into biomethane for grid injection while capturing biogenic CO₂ for permanent geological storage. The preliminary assessment, completed under Puro.earth's Geologically Stored Carbon methodology, lists the project as a future facility on Puro's platform, giving it visibility with global corporate carbon removal buyers ahead of full certification.

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Farm Waste to Geological Storage: How the Chain Works

The Ararat project is designed as a true carbon-negative fuel pathway: agricultural residues are digested to produce biomethane, which displaces fossil gas, while the separated biogenic CO₂ is captured, transported, and injected into permanent geological storage. Valorify has partnered with CO2CRC to use its Otway International Test Centre (OITC) in South-West Victoria as the storage site. The OITC is Australia's most established CCS facility, having safely injected over 100,000 tonnes of CO₂ across more than 20 years of operations.

CO₂ separated during biogas upgrading at the Ararat site would be transported roughly one hour by truck to the OITC, where CO2CRC would manage compression, sequestration, and the monitoring required to generate verifiable carbon removal credits. The site is also being positioned to support direct air capture (DAC) coupled with geological storage, making it a multi-technology test bed for engineered carbon removal in Australia.

Where This Fits in the Global BECCS Picture

The Asia-Pacific region has been largely absent from the early BECCS credit market, which has so far been dominated by North American ethanol projects and, more recently, European biogas facilities. Puro.earth certified the world's first biogas-based BECCS project in Norway earlier this year, a collaboration between Inherit Carbon Solutions, HoopCO2, and the Northern Lights joint venture, which issued over 700 CO₂ Removal Certificates (CORCs) from its first four months of operations at the VEAS wastewater treatment plant in Oslo.

Valorify's preliminary assessment puts Australia on that same trajectory, though the Ararat project remains in early development. A successful preliminary assessment under the Puro Standard is an optional but strategically useful step: it confirms that a project meets the platform's eligibility criteria and allows it to be listed publicly before a third-party audit begins. Full certification and CORC issuance still require an independent Validation and Verification Body (VVB) audit.

Commercial Questions Still to Be Answered

The Ararat Bioenergy project has been progressing through development stages since 2023, with total project costs estimated at $350 to $400 million AUD. Valorify secured sufficient feedstock contracts to advance Stage 1 to a Front End Engineering and Design (FEED) phase, and the project has drawn support from Ararat Rural City Council, which has called on the Victorian Government for stronger renewable gas policy backing as part of its 2025 Advocacy Priorities.

The BECCS component specifically is designed to demonstrate, for the first time in Australia, that biogenic CO₂ from an agricultural waste digestion process can be permanently stored at a verified, accredited facility. Whether a commercial market for carbon-negative biomethane can develop in Australia at sufficient scale is a question this partnership is designed to answer.

Puro.earth itself has expanded significantly in recent years. It received ICVCM Core Carbon Principles (CCP) eligibility in December 2025 and integrated with the CCS+ Initiative to allow BECCS and DACCS projects to earn credits under a single governed pathway.

About Valorify

Valorify is a Melbourne-based utility-scale biogas developer focused on transforming biogenic waste into renewable energy and valuable co-products. Its flagship Ararat Bioenergy project in Western Victoria aims to convert agricultural residues into biomethane for grid injection while pioneering BECCS in Australia. The company's parent, Pacific Heat and Power, was founded in 2017. Learn more at valorify.com.au.

About CO2CRC

CO2CRC is Australia's leading carbon capture, utilisation and storage research organization. It owns and operates the Otway International Test Centre in Nirranda South, Victoria, one of the most advanced field-scale CCUS research sites in the world. The OITC has been operating since 2003 and reached the milestone of 100,000 tonnes of CO₂ injected in December 2024. Learn more at co2crc.com.au.

About Puro.earth

Puro.earth is a Helsinki-based durable carbon removal standard majority-owned by Nasdaq. Founded in 2019, it operates five carbon removal methodologies including Geologically Stored Carbon, which covers BECCS and DACCS projects. It received ICVCM CCP-Eligible status in December 2025. Learn more at puro.earth.