01/30/2023
Source: Energy & Management Powernews
Germany is to obtain green hydrogen from Australia no later than 2030. This announced Federal Research Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger before journalists.
Four joint hydrogen projects are to accelerate the market ramp-up of green hydrogen in Germany and Australia. At a press conference with Australian Energy Minister Chris Bowen on January 27 in Berlin, Federal Research Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger announced. "My goal is that by 2030 at the latest, the first delivery will actually arrive in Germany," the FDP politician said. Green hydrogen is the missing piece of the puzzle in the energy transition, the minister stressed. Only with it could Germany achieve its climate goals and at the same time retain its economic strength.
However, the market ramp-up must first "move away from pure color theory," the research minister demanded, referring to electricity from different energy sources, each of which is assigned a color. The long-term goal, however, remains green hydrogen produced from renewable energy sources, both Stark-Watzinger and Bowen emphasized. The Australian minister said, "We are focusing our efforts on green hydrogen, and I am very confident that that will be the outcome."
Different focus in projects
The four German-Australian hydrogen projects were selected in the joint funding initiative "HyGate" (German-Australia Hydrogen Innovation and Technology Incubator), which aims to establish a complete supply chain for green hydrogen between Australia and Germany, he said. the projects would geographically cover a wide area from South Australia to northern Queensland and also include a wide range of technologies. Christian Bruch, CEO of Siemens Energy AG, emphasized at the press conference that the discussion in energy policy is currently changing - "from sustainability to resilience in energy supply." The industry, he said, was "on fire."
According to Stark-Watzinger, the joint projects are to start "where there are currently still obstacles": in the technical implementation and demonstration of the individual, interlocking parts of the supply chains. The projects are expected to get underway in the first half of 2023. They each take on a different focus:
- building green hydrogen production capacity in Australia with technology from Siemens Energy,
- developing green methanol production using CO2 from the air,
- improving the efficiencies of electrolysers, and
- building a green hydrogen export terminal in Australia.
Australia is, as the politician further indicated, the ideal partner country for joint hydrogen projects. Sun and wind are there in abundance and offer ideal conditions for hydrogen production based on renewable energies.
The Ministry of Research is funding the projects with up to 39.6 million euros. Australia has earmarked up to 50 million Australian dollars (32 million euros) for the projects.
According to a recently published study by Aurora Energy Research, the production costs per kilogram of green hydrogen in 2030 in Australia are 3.10 euros (we reported). Despite the additional costs for transport and, if necessary, conversion, green hydrogen would be competitive in Germany, according to another Aurora finding. By comparison, Aurora determined production costs of between 3.90 and 5.00 euros per kilogram for green hydrogen produced in Germany.
Author: Davina Spohn