Hydrogen Fuels Australia and Clara Energy have agreed to plan and build a green hydrogen distribution network along the Hume Highway corridor.
Both companies assert that the first hydrogen refuelling station is scheduled to open in 2025.
Clara Energy is a developer of a large-scale green hydrogen production facility in the New South Wales area of Tarcutta, with the group now planning to build a corridor worth $600 million that fuels the freight route with green hydrogen.
Hydrogen Fuels Australia and Clara Energy have both signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to fast-track the development of up to five hydrogen refuelling stations between Melbourne and Sydney.
The CLARA Energy project, located on the Hume Highway at Tarcutta in NSW, will have the capacity in stage one to produce 25,000 kg per day of green hydrogen at a price competitive with diesel.
Additionally, stage one will provide adequate green hydrogen supply for 200 heavy haulage trucks running between Sydney and Melbourne daily.
The project’s two subsequent stages should bring total daily production to at least 100,000 kg per day, enough green hydrogen to support 800 heavy haulage trucks and abating more than 57,000 tonnes of CO2 produced by diesel engines.
The cost of the first stage of the Tarcutta project, which includes a major solar PV installation and the use of electrolysers to convert water into hydrogen and oxygen, will be approximately $500 million.
CLARA Energy and Hydrogen Fuels Australia are already in discussions with truck fleet operators regarding their plans to transition their diesel fleets to new green hydrogen powered trucks. Having new hydrogen refuelling infrastructure completed in time for their arrival is critical for Australia’s decarbonisation pledges.
CLARA Energy CEO, Nick Cleary, said that creating a green hydrogen production and distribution network along the Hume can aid in the development and viability of the entire Australian hydrogen industry.
“We know the Hume is the busiest truck route in Australia and once the major logistics companies know there will be guaranteed supply of hydrogen at a commercially viable price, it will provide even greater confidence to accelerate the transition of their fleets,” said Cleary.
Likewise Francesco Ceravolo, Director of Hydrogen Fuels Australia, said that the partnership aims to create, for the first time in Australian history, green hydrogen production and distribution at a greater scale.
“We believe green hydrogen is necessary to decarbonise heavy freight and ultimately lead to the complete displacement of diesel for green hydrogen,” Ceravolo said.
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