Fortescue Metals Group is supporting research into ways to manufacture cheap and plentiful green hydrogen through a quantum computing initiative as part of the Australian mining giant’s mission to become the world’s leading green energy company.
On the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Fortescue CEO Andrew Forrest told Reuters that the company is becoming a funding research partner of the Qlimate initiative, which is backed by Silicon Valley-based PsiQuantum and aims to build the world’s first utility-scale quantum computer this decade.
According to IBM’s website, quantum computing is “a fast-evolving technology that harnesses the rules of quantum physics to solve problems too complicated for classical computers.”
The biggest roadblocks to green hydrogen rivaling fossil fuels have so far been transportation and hefty costs, but Forrest, Australia’s richest man, believes quantum computing will give the answer.
In an interview, Forrest, who returned as executive chairman of the world’s fourth-largest iron ore miner last month, said, “Liquid hydrogen has the same degree of issues that the natural gas business had at this time a few decades ago.”
“We can do anything with hydrogen, unlike LNG (liquefied natural gas), which is already 95 percent methane.” “We can make steel out of it, and fertilizers out of it,” Forrest remarked.
Last year, Fortescue announced a goal to become carbon neutral by 2030, pushing the deadline ahead by ten years since it plans to begin producing green hydrogen as soon as 2023.
Professor Jeremy O’Brien, an Australian-British, and other academics launched PsiQuantum in 2016 with the goal of creating the world’s first commercially practical quantum computer.
According to O’Brien, after PsiQuantum completes the computer, it will be able to assist in the solving of some of humanity’s most difficult challenges, including chemistry.
PsiQuantum has collaborated with German manufacturer Mercedes to explore battery chemistry as the globe transitions to electric vehicles, similar to the relationship with Fortescue on hydrogen.
According to its website, PsiQuantum has attracted $665 million in funding to date, notably from fund manager BlackRock, Microsoft’s startup fund M12, and Singapore’s Temasek.
Forrest did not specify how much money Fortescue was putting into the Qlimate project.
He has previously urged competitors to accelerate their energy transformation and employ green hydrogen.
Forrest stated, “That would have to be the beginning of the end of global warming.”
“It’s a huge vision, and I haven’t gotten any pushback.” When questioned about comments from Fortescue’s rivals, he stated, “People have been responsive.”
