The Federal and Western Australian governments have announced an investment of A$140 million ($92 million) to build a hydrogen hub in Pilbara, Western Australia, which will produce 492,000 tons of green H2 per year.
The hub will become a major center for the production and export of hydrogen and could potentially become an "international gateway" for the production of green steel and pig iron, Kallanish reports.
The article says that the federal and state governments have allocated A$70 million each to build infrastructure for hydrogen exports and renewable energy production, including:
- a hydrogen and ammonia pipeline between the strategic industrial areas of Maitland and Burrup;
- modernization of key infrastructure at Lumsden Point (Port Hedland);
- creation of up to 5 GW of green energy capacity;
- supporting a clean energy training and research institute for the education of Pilbari residents.
It is noted that the construction of the center will begin in 2024, and will be put into operation approximately in the middle of 2028. Its production capacity will reach about 492,000 tons per year, which is enough to refuel 26,000 heavy vehicles. It is expected that about 1 thousand jobs will appear thanks to the hub.
Western Australian Premier Roger Cook highlighted the hub as a key part of the government's aim to transform Western Australia into a global clean energy hub. The project will allow the export of hydrogen to Asia, which will help strengthen and diversify the economy in the future.
"Western Australia is already a world leader in mining and exporting minerals, and now it is also poised to become the world's leading supplier of hydrogen," Australia's Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen said.
Earlier, EcoPolitic wrote, that Australia can become one of the new centers of development of green metallurgy thanks to the powerful resources of renewable energy sources, in particular hydrogen.
As EcoPolitic previously reported, the Director General of the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) Daniel Westerman stated that the country has increased its chances of becoming a hydrogen superpower.
