ARENA allocates USD 80m for three Aussie green hydrogen projects

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) announced on Wednesday that it will grant a total of AUD 103.3 million (USD 79.8m/EUR 66.5m) to three projects with the objective of helping kickstart renewable hydrogen production in Australia at a large scale.

The three commercial-scale projects have a combined value of AUD 161 million and each involves the installation of a 10-MW electrolyser. They are being developed by Engie Renewables Australia Pty Ltd, ATCO Australia Pty Ltd and Australian Gas Networks Ltd (AGIG), respectively, and will receive awards under the Renewable Hydrogen Deployment Funding Round.

The table below includes more detailed information about the awards.

The agency pointed out that Engie will use green hydrogen for the production of ammonia at the Yara Pilbara Fertilisers site, while ATCO and AGIG will rely on power generated from renewable sources to produce hydrogen for gas blending into existing natural gas pipelines.

“Our hydrogen industry in Australia is in its infancy, so the lessons learned from these three projects – and the entire funding round – will be important in driving our future hydrogen economy,” commented Darren Miller, CEO of ARENA.

The agency received 36 expressions of interest to participate in the funding round that was launched last year. It shortlisted seven projects following an initial assessment and eventually selected Engie, ATCO and AGIG. To do so, ARENA had to increase the AUD-70-million funding envelope by AUD 33.3 million, it noted.

The three awardees will obtain the funding only after satisfying several development conditions and achieving financial close for their respective projects.

(AUD 1.0 = USD 0.772/EUR 0.644)

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