Perdaman Urea Project gets $220m in federal government funding

Based in Western Australia, the US$4.2-billion project will produce about two million tonnes of urea a year and kick start a multi-billion-dollar fertiliser industry.

It is expected that just under half the urea produced the Perdaman Urea Project will be kept in Australia, with the balance shipped to the Asia-Pacific, Brazil and the USA.

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Resource Minister Madeleine King said the project would be transformational for Western Australia.

"The Perdaman project will have the capacity to reduce imported volumes and secure local farmers' access to fertiliser that is vital to ensuring food security," Ms King said.

"The Perdaman plant is expected to provide an $8.5 billion public benefit, supporting a peak of more than 2,500 construction and operations jobs over its 40-year life."

The loan was granted by the Commonwealth's Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF), and builds on two previous loans from the financier, worth $255m, towards key infrastructure servicing the project.

Last year, NAIF committed $160m to the Pilbara Ports Authority for a new multi-user wharf and facilities at the Port of Dampier and $95 million to the Western Australia Water Corporation for the expansion of the Burrup seawater supply and brine disposal scheme.

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NAIF chief executive Craig Doyle said the latest investment was another example of how the financier is supporting projects that bring economic growth to northern Australia.

"This project provides a strong strategic fit for NAIF and an opportunity to support the delivery of a transformational project which will support the diversification of the Pilbara economy," Mr Doyle said.

Ms King said the project was a good example of how NAIF-funded projects could align with the government's net zero emissions agenda, and the project had committed to net zero by 2050, with an aim to achieve a 45 per cent reduction by 2030.