Porvair, the specialist filtration and environmental technology group based in King’s Lynn, has won a major deal in South Korea that could be worth up to $15 million (£9.6m).

The project, with POSCO E&C, a division of POSCO, one of the world's largest steel makers, will generate substantial revenues over the next three years for Porvair.

The Gwangyang facility, once built, will produce 500,000 metric tons of pipeline quality SNG from the gasification of approximately 1.8 million tons of coal annually.

The plant will use Porvair's design for its char filtration package to remove fly ash during the gasification process. Porvair will supply all designs as well as filters and ancillary equipment. It will become POSCO E&C's preferred supplier for future SNG facilities.

Gasification is a fast growing industrial process, with 25 per cent capacity growth between 2009 and 2011 (source: the Gasification Technologies Council 2011), almost all of which is in Asia and the Americas.

Porvair has unmatched experience in the design and manufacture of hot gas (above 300°C) filtration systems for gasification processes, such as the process utilised at Gwangyang, and has considerable proven run-time over a period of more than 10 years.

Ben Stocks, Porvair’s CEO, said: “This is a significant contract for Porvair in a market that we have been developing steadily for several years.

“Depending on final configuration it will generate revenues of $10-15 million. We will start manufacturing early in 2012, with first deliveries due at the end of the year and subsequent deliveries stretching out through 2013.

“Order books across the business are currently healthy, and this work with POSCO will go some way to underpinning our order position over the next two years.”