Green hydrogen coming to Sydney transport industry

THE New South Wales transport sector is about to get its first taste of home-grown green hydrogen (made using 100 per cent renewable energy) thanks to a new agreement between energy infrastructure company Jemena and gas supplier Coregas.

Announced on Monday, the project will result in the production and storing of green hydrogen at Jemena’s $15 million Green Gas Project facility in Western Sydney, with industrial and transport customers set to be able to refuel there from early 2022.

One the gas has been produced, it will largely be up to Coregas to compress, store and distribute it along with its own stocks of grey hydrogen (made using fossil fuel) produced at its Port Kembla facility.

According to Jemena renewable gas general manager Gabrielle Sycamore, hydrogen has the “immediate potential to become a viable zero-emission alternative to many petroleum-based fossil fuels”.

“Hydrogen fuel cells are particularly well-suited to long-distance heavy haulage trucking requirements based on their comparatively light weight and fast refuelling times, which can be just a matter of minutes,” she said.

“Our partnership with Coregas is an exciting extension to the Western Sydney Green Gas

Project and will allow the New South Wales transport industry to innovate by offering cleaner energy solutions to their customers.”

Coregas executive general manager Alan Watkins was equally as enthusiastic, describing the project as not only a big step for New South Wales, but the whole of Australia as it transitions to a hydrogen economy.

“Transforming the transport sector is a critical piece of the puzzle, and we are delighted to partner with Jemena to make renewably generated green hydrogen available to the transport industry in New South Wales,” he said.

“The agreement with Jemena underpins Coregas’ commitment to developing Australia’s hydrogen economy and complements our work on the Port Kembla commercial hydrogen refuelling station, our years supporting the hydrogen fuel needs of automotive companies such as Hyundai Australia, and our own commitment to a more sustainable future demonstrated by our purchase of Australia’s first two hydrogen powered heavy trucks.”

The two trucks in question are a pair of Hyzon Hymax-450 prime movers, both due for delivery in the first half of next year, coinciding nicely with the opening of the Jemena/Coregas supply.

Both hydrogen-powered prime movers will be based out of the Port Kembla facility, which will soon have its own dedicated refuelling station courtesy of funding from the state government-backed Port Kembla Investment Fund.

Plans for hydrogen-powered commercial and transport vehicles will not stop with just two prime movers as various manufacturers from around the world are planning and developing their own heavy-duty fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEV), including Melbourne-based bus manufacturer Volgren.

Demand for hydrogen fuel looks set to soar in coming years both in the industrial and consumer senses as fuel cell technology develops and production processes become more streamlined and cost-effective.

Hyundai and Toyota have both launched FCEVs Down Under in recent months (Nexo and second-gen Mirai), albeit in fleet applications.

The South Korean brand in particular seems to see a bright future for hydrogen, with executives revealing earlier this year that its N division was exploring possible performance applications of the technology, including an innovative new blend with existing battery-electric technology.