Northam Solar Farm. Image supplied
Western Australia’s first commercial-scale green hydrogen plant has moved a step closer with developer Infinite Green Energy securing land to host a refuelling station andva potential doubling of renewable hydrogen production.
The 10MW MEG HP1 project is being developed by Infinite Green – the company behind the large Arrowsmith Hydrogen Project – in the town of Northam, east of Perth, alongside the existing 11MW Northam Solar Farm.
Its first phase, when operational in 2024, is expected to be able to produce up to 4 tonnes per day of renewable hydrogen for heavy transport use.
The project serves as the initial step in a partnership between Infinite Green and Western Australian fuel distributor Refuel Australia, an Ampol distributor 50% owned by Ampol Australia that operates 24-hour fuelling stations across W.A. and the Northern Territory.
IGE and Refuel Australia are working together to build the Northam hydrogen refuelling station, before Refuel Australia takes over operations of the facility as part of its network.
On Wednesday, IGE said it had secured enough land to allow for a potential future expansion which would double the project’s production to 8 tonnes of renewable hydrogen per day.
IGE also secured a site in the Northam commercial area for IGE offices, room for the proposed hydrogen refuelling station, and storage for eight hydrogen-powered trucks, which are expected to use the facility for back-to-base operations.
Infinite Green Energy – previously known as Infinite Blue Energy, before wisely changing names in May – announced back in April that it had signed an agreement with Aboriginal-owned business Boya Energy to build the 10MW MEG HP1 green hydrogen plant.
It has also bought the 11MW Northam Solar Farm.
Green hydrogen produced at the site will be used in part by Western Australian waste management companies for use in back-to-base refuse collection vehicles along with a fleet of vehicles local to the MEG H1.
Boya Energy will maintain a 10% stake in the project.
Infinite Green Energy is also developing the Arrowsmith Hydrogen Project which will boast wind and solar capacity of up to 235MW and the capacity to produce between 23 and 42 tonnes of green hydrogen per day.
Infinite laid out its plans for the Arrowsmith project in June, in a planning document filed with the WA Environmental Protection Authority.
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