Woodside’s H2Perth project a jumpstart for Australia’s hydrogen ambitions

This week Woodside announced the launch of its H2Perth hydrogen and ammonia project in Kwinana, Western Australia, launching the next chapter in Australia’s hydrogen journey. 

The $1bn production hub is set to produce up to 1500 tonnes of hydrogen per day using a mix of blue hydrogen, produced using natural gas and with a carbon management component, as well as green hydrogen, produced using electrolysis with renewables. 

H2Perth will provide grid stability to support the local uptake of intermittent renewable electricity, and it’s designed to be net-zero emissions for both Woodside and its customers. 

Natural gas is helping to kickstart the project, which in its first stage will mostly focus on the production of more affordable blue hydrogen, with the green hydrogen component to increase over time. 

Hydrogen production is a potentially transformative way to bring cleaner energy to markets, and natural gas represents a pathway to accelerating its development. 

Australia’s oil and gas industry can leverage our infrastructure and expertise as one of the world’s largest LNG exporters to produce and export low-emissions hydrogen.  

In April, the Federal Government announced nearly $540 million in funding for new hydrogen hubs and carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects. In addition, $566 million was allocated for strategic international partnerships on low-emissions technologies.   

As we head into the COP26 Climate Conference in Glasgow next week, the development of a commercial, industrial-scale hydrogen industry will become increasingly attractive to governments across the world as a cleaner source of energy with the potential to reduce emissions in line with Paris Agreement targets. 

Australia, with its existing gas expertise and infrastructure, has outstanding potential to lead the way for this emerging industry.