EntX, an Adelaide-based renewable energy technology business, has been given permission to examine the potential for storing hydrogen at Elliston for their Western Eyre Green Hydrogen Project.
The only Australian region with a licencing system in place that permits projects involving natural hydrogen is South Australia.
EntX claims that man-made salt caverns may be created by drilling into the deposit and pouring freshwater into it. These caverns are perfect for storing hydrogen since the salt lining the chamber has a very low permeability, acting as a reliable barrier to gas leakage.
Experts think the Polda Basin, which was first explored for oil and gas in the late 1970s, holds the key to storing hydrogen because of its substantial salt reserves, which are two kilometres below.
EntX will consider several cutting-edge exploratory approaches, such as geophysical methods, to locate the salt reserves.
Water from Waterloo Bay would be used to produce the hydrogen, and EntX plans to construct its own desalination facility.