Western Green Energy Hub mega-project proceeds to next phase
By on December 11, 2024
Green light for official environmental impact assessment
Click to learn more. Location of the Western Green Energy Hub, including the stage one hub near Eucla on WA’s southern coastline. Source: WGEH.
The Western Green Energy Hub (WGEH), an Australian mega-project being developed by InterContinental Energy, CWP Global and Mirning Green Energy, will proceed to the official environmental approvals stage after receiving the green light from state authorities. Western Australia’s Environmental Protection Authority has directed WGEH to undertake a Public Environmental Review, which will include opportunities for public and stakeholder input. Some of the technical work has already been started by WGEH, which indicates that its approach and project development to date is fully aligned with the state EPA’s impact assessment requirements.
Located across a large area of the Hampton Tablelands, the WGEH project is complex and requires great care to progress; we are fully aligned with the EPA prescribed level of assessment, and the related assessment requirements. To ensure our investigations are thorough, we have already spent considerable time on-country, with traditional owners, environmental and cultural heritage team and we will now move into more targeted and advanced studies. The resulting information will continue to inform WGEH on species, ecosystems and other values that are protected or particularly sensitive. This in turn will guide our primary avoidance strategy, meaning related areas can be totally avoided and buffer zones introduced to ensure we have no physical overlay nor impact.
Western Green Energy Hub CEO Ray Macdonald in his organisation’s official press release, 25 Nov 2024
Stage one of the project will have a hub near Eucla on the southern coast of WA, generating up to 6GW of wind and solar power, producing around 330,000 tons of electrolytic hydrogen each year. At full size, around 3.5 million tons of electrolytic hydrogen per year will be produced, and subsequently derivatives like ammonia for use in power generation, marine fuel, minerals processing and heavy transport.WGEH is targeting local, national and international export markets for its products. FID for the first stage is due in 2029. South Korea-based KEPCO came on board as a development partner in July 2023.