Port Anthony lines up second hydrogen plant in new deal with Patriot Hydrogen

The green hydrogen deals are coming thick and fast for Port Anthony Renewables, which has inked its second agreement, this time with Patriot Hydrogen, to build a new hydrogen production facility in Victoria.

The two companies will form a joint venture to develop and build a facility capable of eventually producing up to 60 tonnes of green hydrogen per day.

The Patriot hydrogen project will be located at Port Anthony, which is linked to major road routes and located less than 200km east of Melbourne in South Gippsland.

The port has continuously been used commercially since 1966 to service the Bass Strait offshore oil and gas field with project cargo, and support services to exploration, construction and production.

It is the only Victorian shipping terminal east of Melbourne that caters for handling dry-bulk cargoes.

This latest partnership comes less than a month after Port Anthony Renewables signed a term sheet with Pure Hydrogen, the fully owned hydrogen division of Real Energy (ASX:RLE), to build and develop a large-scale hydrogen production plant at Port Anthony.

The Patriot hydrogen project will have an initial production target of 2 tonnes per day with an anticipated scale up in production to 60 tonnes per day within five years.

“This deal is a significant step forward for Australia’s ambitions to position itself as a major player in the global hydrogen market by 2030 and builds on the country’s push to decarbonise a large energy-based industry by engaging in activities that substantially reduce carbon emissions,” Port Anthony Renewables executive director Ben Anthony said.

“Port Anthony, and the greater surrounding area has a long-established history of supporting Australia’s energy needs and has actively participated decade after decade in the industry. It has proven itself to be a cornerstone in the energy sector.

“This deal with Patriot Hydrogen is yet another opportunity to show Port Anthony can manoeuvre itself to continue to provide that service to Australia through a greener way of operating.”

What is unique about the proposed new Patriot hydrogen plant is it will utilise biomass to produce hydrogen.

The gas produced during the process can be used a variety of ways including to fuel a thermal oxidiser for the production of steam, for heat or for combined heat and electricity, or to fuel internal combustion technology for the production of combined heat and electricity.

The hydrogen-rich gas can be further processed to recover the hydrogen for domestic and export sales.

A secondary product from this process is biochar, which can be sold and used for various industrial or agricultural applications.

The Patriot hydrogen project will produce liquid hydrogen for export and domestic markets and to fuel large vehicles, buses, boats, trains and cars, as well as biochar to supply domestic markets.

Massive demand for renewable hydrogen

Major economies around the world are rapidly shifting to renewable energy sources as they strive to meet their zero-emissions targets.

The growing demand for hydrogen in particular is evident with global oil majors like BP and Woodside announcing their hydrogen aspirations.

The Australian Renewable Energy Agency estimates global demand for hydrogen exported from Australia could be over 3 million tonnes each year by 2040, which could be worth up to $10 billion annually to the economy by that time.

This article was developed in collaboration with Port Anthony Renewables, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.