Sundrop Farms’ sustainable greenhouse facility at Port Augusta, South Australia, continues to take shape, with Cold Logic awarded a A$1m contract to refrigerate desalinated water for a state-of-the-art irrigation system at the site.
The sustainable tomato farm is powered by a solar-thermal desalination process using two abundant fuels, sunlight and seawater.
Computer-controlled mirrors focus sunlight onto a tower to super-heat the seawater and convert it to steam. The steam drives a turbine to generate electricity, desalinate the water and power the farm. The desalinated water is then used to irrigate the tomatoes.
Cold Logic partner Eddie Lane said his company had developed a system to chill more than 2.8m litres of water daily.
“Our component really is to make sure there is an effective water supply at the right temperature that can be sent via the pumps to the greenhouses,” Lane said.
The 20ha facility, located about 300km north of Adelaide, is expected to open in the second half of 2016.
