The Australian government’s new Hydrogen Headstart program will invest AUD2 billion across the full value chain, with select projects to receive production credits to bridge the cost gap between conventional and renewable hydrogen. The government has also initiated a review of Australia’s national hydrogen strategy.
Australia’s national research organisation CSIRO is contributing valuable R&D across the hydrogen and ammonia value chains. At Ammonia Energy APAC 2023, we’ll hear updates on some key ammonia energy projects at CSIRO: small-scale production, combustion engines, and fuel cells, as well as an ongoing partnership with Fortescue Future Industries to develop & deploy metal membrane technology for ammonia cracking systems.
The West Australian state government has allocated land to four organisations as it progresses development of the Pilbara Hydrogen Hub. Fortescue Future Industries, Yara, Hexagon and Perdaman have all been selected to participate, adding to the list of ammonia projects already underway in the region.
The pair will develop an 850,000 tonnes per year renewable ammonia production facility in Queensland, Australia. The ammonia will be used domestically by IPL, exported to Singapore for use in Keppel’s under-development power generation projects, or sold to customers in Asia for energy needs. The source of the renewable hydrogen feedstock will be the nearby Central Queensland hydrogen mega-project. In other news, H2U will collaborate with the local first nations community on its own mega-project in the area: H2-Hub™ Gladstone.
Ammonia-powered vessels could be deployed on the iron ore trade routes between West Australia and East Asia from 2028, a new consortium study suggests. More than 20 vessels could be deployed on these routes by 2030, and over 360 by 2050. While ammonia fuel supply from Australia is unlikely to be a concern, validating the safety case for ammonia fuel, policy support to close the cost gap & industry-wide collaboration must all be established in time for deployment.
The Clean Energy Precinct will develop over 1.6 GW of electrolytic hydrogen production capacity within 5 years, as well as producing renewable ammonia. Works on the project are expected to commence in 2025, with commercial operations expected in 2028.
While the opportunity for Australia to become a world-leading exporter of green molecules is well-established, State of Hydrogen 2022 suggests the best progress to date has been made on a domestic opportunity: decarbonisation of existing ammonia production within Australia. Government support for emerging hydrogen hubs, workforce training and regulatory updates are highlighted as key next steps.
Amp Energy will develop 5 GW of electrolyser capacity in Cape Hardy, South Australia. At full scale the project will produce 5 million tonnes of renewable ammonia per year for export. The precinct has ready access to renewable power, deepwater port infrastructure and undeveloped land.