Woodside, with the support of the Western Australian state government, is planning to establish a world-scale hydrogen and ammonia production facility at a site in southern metropolitan Perth.

The proposed H2Perth project will be built on 130 hectares of vacant industrial land leased from the state in the Kwinana strategic industrial area and Rockingham industry zone.

The project aims to produce low cost, low carbon hydrogen-based energy for customers; stimulate and enable increased renewable power generation in WA; and support state government priorities for strategic industry creation and local manufacturing.

Woodside chief executive officer Meg O’Neill said the production facility will be a landmark project, both for Woodside and for Western Australia.

She said: “Woodside has a proud track record as an Australian oil and gas producer and our LNG exports will continue helping Asia to reliably meet its energy needs while reducing greenhouse gas emissions for decades to come.

“Now, we intend to use our skills and financial strength to add new energy products and lower-carbon technologies and services to our portfolio, which can be scaled to meet customer demand.”

H2Perth will be a phased developed that, at full potential, will produce up to 1,500 tonnes per day of hydrogen for export, in the form of ammonia and liquid hydrogen.

Woodside aims to support state government initiatives to stimulate local hydrogen demand, particularly in the transport sector and among local heavy industry.

Local refuelling stations can be built independently of the export project timelines and could operate as early as 2023, subject to approvals and customer demand.

O’Neill continued: “The land being leased from the state government in the Kwinana and Rockingham areas is ideally located close to existing gas, power, water and port infrastructure, as well as a skilled local residential workforce.

“These advantages will make a huge difference to cost of supply and schedule and help H2Perth deliver competitively priced hydrogen to customers.

“Building in this location is not just about hydrogen.

“H2Perth will also facilitate substantial growth of renewables in Western Australia by providing to the grid a flexible and stabilising load that benefits uptake of intermittent renewable electricity by households and local industry.

“We will also be supporting local manufacturing jobs and opportunities.

“H2Perth is designed to be net-zero emissions for both Woodside and its customers, supporting Woodside’s corporate emissions reduction targets and the Paris Agreement goals of customers in the region.

“We look forward to H2Perth establishing Western Australia as a global hydrogen leader, building on our state’s existing resources and capabilities and helping lead us into a lower-carbon future.”