The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has today announced that seven companies have been shortlisted and invited to submit a full application for the next stage of the Agency’s $70 million hydrogen funding round.
In April, ARENA opened the $70 million Renewable Hydrogen Deployment Funding Round to help fast track the development of renewable hydrogen in Australia. The funding round is expected to play a significant role in supporting commercial-scale deployments of renewable hydrogen in Australia and commence the pathway to achieving the Australian Government’s goal of ‘H2 under $2’.
The shortlisted applicants are:
- APT Management Services Pty Limited
- ATCO Australia Pty Ltd
- Australian Gas Networks Limited
- BHP Billiton Nickel West Pty Ltd
- Engie Renewables Australia Pty Ltd
- Macquarie Corporate Holdings Pty Limited
- Woodside Energy Ltd
The total grant requested across all seven is over $200 million, with a total project value of almost $500 million.
All applicants have well developed projects that involve deploying 10 MW or larger electrolysers, made up of various end uses including transport, gas injection, renewable ammonia production, power and industrial use. Among the shortlisted applicants, there are four projects based in Western Australia, and one each in Queensland, Tasmania and Victoria.
ARENA aims to support two or more of the shortlisted large scale renewable hydrogen projects. These projects will be expected to be among some of the largest electrolysers in the world. Each project will need to be powered by renewable electricity, either directly or through a contracting approach.
During the initial application stage, ARENA received 36 expressions of interest, totalling more than $3 billion of renewable hydrogen projects.
ARENA CEO Darren Miller said: “We’re excited to be able to invite these seven projects to submit full applications for ARENA funding. Our ultimate goal is to bring the price of renewable hydrogen down to be competitive with other forms of energy and be at the forefront of renewable hydrogen production. The best way to help build a hydrogen industry is to support projects that will help demonstrate the technology at scale, and share the lessons learned to help the industry as a whole reduce risk and costs as well as increase efficiency.”
“A thriving renewable hydrogen production sector will not only help our heavy industry and transport sectors to reduce emissions, but will provide the platform for Australia to export renewable energy and reduce emissions beyond our borders,” he said.
Applicants invited to the full application stage will have until January 2021 to prepare their application. ARENA expects to select the preferred projects by mid 2021.Successful projects are expected to reach financial close by late 2021 and commence construction in 2022.
All applicants may also be considered for financing from the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) under the CEFC’s $300 million Advancing Hydrogen Fund.
ARENA has already committed over $55 million for renewable hydrogen projects including $22.1 million towards R&D projects, as well as feasibility studies into large scale projects and smaller scale demonstrations looking at renewable ammonia, power to gas and hydrogen mobility. For more information, visit the ARENA funding page.
ARENA media contact:
0410 724 227 | media@arena.gov.au
Download this media release (PDF 77KB)
Renewable Hydrogen Deployment Funding Round – Full Application Applicant Details
Applicant | State and Description | ||
| APA Group | State: WA The Badgingarra Renewable Hydrogen Project is a joint venture between APA Group and Woodside Energy to be located at the Badgingarra Wind Solar Farm in Western Australia. The project will use 100% renewable power to produce hydrogen for use in power generation, transport and industrial applications. The project also provides clear longer term options for pipeline delivery of hydrogen to Perth. | ||
| ATCO Australia Pty Ltd | State: WA ATCO is seeking to build and operate a 10 MW commercial scale hydrogen production plant using electrolysis technology to produce pure ‘green’ hydrogen gas. When fully developed, the site will be referred to as the Clean Energy Innovation Park (CEIP). The CEIP will use renewable energy as the main source of electricity to the 10 MW ‘scalable’ hydrogen production plant to generate between 4.2 and 4.6 tonnes of renewable hydrogen per day. | ||
| Australian Gas Networks Limited | State: VIC Hydrogen Park Murray Valley (HyP Murray Valley) is a 10 MW electrolyser co-located with the Wodonga Waste Water Treatment facility. The renewable hydrogen gas will be blended with natural gas at volumes of up to 10% to decarbonise gas supply in the nearby twin cities of Albury (NSW) and Wodonga (Victoria), with the potential to supply industry and transport sectors. | ||
| BHP Billiton Nickel West Pty Ltd | State: WA The BHP Nickel West Green Hydrogen project involves the installation of a 10 MW hydrogen electrolyser at the Kwinana Nickel Refinery. The hydrogen and oxygen produced from the electrolyser will be used internally to allow a reduction in carbon dioxide emissions from the refinery. | ||
| Engie Renewables Australia Pty Ltd | State: WA The Yuri project in the Pilbara region of Western Australia is a collaboration between ENGIE, a global energy company committed to the energy transition, and Yara, one of the world’s leading fertiliser and ammonia companies. The Pilbara region is recognised as having global potential for renewable energy generation and export. The first step of the Yuri project comprises a renewable power to hydrogen plant that would be integrated with Yara’s existing ammonia plant in the Pilbara; one of the world’s largest. Future phases of the project aim to transform the ammonia plant so that renewable hydrogen forms an increasing share of its input. This represents a groundbreaking decarbonisation of an existing industrial facility, and the renewable ammonia produced will serve local and export markets. | ||
| Macquarie Corporate Holdings Pty Limited | State: QLD Anglo American and Macquarie Capital (“Macquarie”) are jointly developing an integrated solar-powered, green hydrogen production and mine vehicle project at the Dawson Mine in Queensland. The partnership brings together Anglo American’s expertise in pioneering the development of hydrogen power solutions for mining operations and Macquarie’s leadership in global infrastructure and renewable energy development. | ||
| Woodside Energy Ltd | State: TAS The proposed H2TAS project is a renewable hydrogen project located in Tasmania’s Bell Bay Advanced Manufacturing Zone, a heavy industrial precinct north of Launceston. The proposal involves a 10 MW pilot project producing 4.5 tpd of hydrogen for domestic use, targeting the transportation sector. The project’s participants are Woodside Energy (Operator) and Countrywide Renewable Energy (CRE). |
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