The broad alliance attempting to quicken the port of Rotterdam-based importation of hydrogen from Australia has grown stronger.
During a visit to the port of Rotterdam on February 13 by Bettina Stark-Watzinger, the German Minister of Research and Education, the Port of Rotterdam Authority and the German Fraunhofer-Institut für Solare Energiesysteme (ISE) announced their commitment to continue working together. The Dutch and Australian Ministers for Climate and Energy signed a collaboration pact in this area earlier this year.
The partners are moving forward in their triangular cooperation to create the so-called TrHyHub, a cooperative hydrogen hub in Western Australia. Creating a new, cutting-edge port industrial complex where hydrogen is produced on a huge scale for both local use and export is a key goal. Twenty or so businesses from the three nations have expressed an interest in helping.
The Australian hydrogen hub and supply chain to the German hinterland will be developed with the use of technology, knowledge, and skills from the government, business, and German knowledge institute. For instance, they will look into the possibility of jointly realizing an offshore export terminal as part of the new port. This will enable the export of hydrogen to Northwest Europe to begin more swiftly. The desire by Rotterdam to collaborate with the Australian port fits in with the goal of becoming a hub for hydrogen in Northwest Europe.
Knowledge, technology, and expertise exchange
The following four sectors are where the governments of Australia and the Netherlands hope to collaborate. This goal is something that both Fraunhofer and the Port Authority are dedicated to achieving.
- hydrogen trade regulations, standards, and certifications;
- Innovative hydrogen technology, including but not limited to ship transportation;
- government policy for safety, training, regulations, and public support for hydrogen.
- Port infrastructure and supply chain development.
The first partners in the Oakajee project to permit imports from Western Australia will be the port of Rotterdam and Fraunhofer.
Chances for the economy and energy
The Netherlands and Germany both want to increase the sustainability and near-independence of their energy supplies from Russia. Therefore, both nations seek to hasten the substitution of green hydrogen for imported coal and oil, which are shipped via the port of Rotterdam to a considerable portion of Germany.
Due to its ideal circumstances for the production of wind and solar energy, the Oakajee Strategic Industrial Area (SIA) has the potential to become one of Australia’s and probably the world’s greatest hydrogen-producing regions. For the three concerned nations, collaboration on the construction of the hydrogen hub presents prospects for economic growth and for promoting sustainability. With the assistance of green hydrogen, the manufacturing and transportation sectors can lower their CO2 emissions. Therefore, many agreements for further collaboration have already been established by parties from the three nations. The existing arrangements are a result of the HySupply study, a cooperative feasibility analysis of the pros and cons of importing hydrogen from Australia.
