State and federal governments in Australia have committed A$100m (US$64m) to develop what they say will be the country’s “first large-scale hydrogen export” facility in Port Bonython, South Australia.
In an announcement today (Monday), Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese said the cash will be used to develop infrastructure at Port Bonython. Another A$40m has already been committed by industry to develop common user infrastructure at the port, including last mile pipelines, storage and access roads.
The South Australian government expects a modernised Port Bonython to help unlock the equivalent of up to $20bn of renewable energy projects in the state.
“Our state is blessed with the key ingredients the world needs to decarbonise international economies – abundant coincident wind and solar resources, critical minerals, strong renewable energy penetration, and well developed industrial hubs,” statedPeter Malinauskas, premier of South Australia state.
Export hub
Green hydrogen projects competing to develop a 250MW project at the port are unlikely to be in direct receipt of the funds.
In 2021, the South Australian government shortlisted seven companies —including mining giant Fortescue, utility Origin and oil and gas firm Santos — to develop a “multi-user” hydrogen export facility at the port, which already hosts an existing deep-water liquid hydrocarbon export terminal.
Officials accepted bids in March this year, including one from Fortescue, with the aim of getting the facility up and running by December 2025.
The project is also expected to host a 200MW hydrogen power plant, as well as a hydrogen storage facility.
Adelaide claims that the port is in line for a total of A$13bn of investment for the hydrogen hub, and has boasted that the port could be producing as much as 1.8 million tonnes of green hydrogen per year by 2030.
It has already allocated $37m from the 2020 budget to upgrade the port’s jetty.
Port Bonython is just one of six so-called “hydrogen hubs” set to benefit from A$525m investment from Australia’s federal government.
In January, Canberra announced that it would invest around A$70bn in renewable hydrogen-related projects at Townsville in Queensland, while other “hubs” in the Pilbara, Kwinana, Gladstone, the Hunter, Bell Bay and Upper Spencer Gulf are also competing for funding.
“The global shift to clean energy and decarbonised economies is a huge economic opportunity for Australia,” said Albanese. “We are determined to grasp this opportunity and are investing half a billion dollars into regional hydrogen hubs all around Australia.”
(A version of this article was originally published by Recharge's sister publication Hydrogen Insight).
