An $11bn green hydrogen project in Australia’s Northern Territory (NT)—which will produce the clean fuel for less than $2/kg—has been granted ‘major project status’ by the territory’s government.

The NT government awards the status to complex private sector projects that will benefit the local economy. It also ensures the project moves through the planning and regulatory approvals process as quickly as possible.

The ‘Desert Bloom’ project is being developed by Australian technology company Aqua Aerem and will produce 410,000t/yr of green hydrogen for domestic and export use from 2023. Work will commence in 2022, pending FID.

“This technology will open the door for green hydrogen projects to be located where the best renewable power sources are available” Reiter, Aqua Aerem

Desert Bloom will use a patented water-to-air capture technology to generate the required amount of water for the process. “Our air-to-water technology, which solves this previously intractable water supply problem, is a world first, invented and developed here in Australia,” says Aqua Aerem co-founder Gerard Reiter.

“This technology will open the door for green hydrogen projects to be located where the best renewable power sources are available, which is generally in the driest areas of the planet,” he says.

Looking overseas

Desert Bloom will supply hydrogen for power generation domestically by 2024, but by 2027 it will produce green hydrogen for export at less than $2/kg, Reiter adds.

The developers have signed an agreement with NT power utility Territory Generation to offtake hydrogen from the initial stages of the project. Investment group Sanguine Impact Investment and a large buyer and distributor of gas in Japan will provide capital investment for the project.

Support for the project from territory’s government is part of a wider investment push, according to NT chief minister Michael Gunner. “Desert Bloom now marks the territory’s 14th major project that’s in the works,” he says.

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Author: Tom Young