• Decarbonisation of offshore industries moves one step closer with the permit application lodged for Tasmania’s first commercial-scale hydrogen electrolyser.
  • Renewably-sourced electricity and water will produce compressed hydrogen gas which will be used to support the decarbonisation of offshore industries including shipping and aquaculture.
  • The proposed project site will be located at BOC Gases Australia in Lutana.

Today the Glenorchy City Council has advertised a Planning Permit Application for a Hydrogen Microgrid Project at BOC in Lutana. BOC, a Linde company, has been producing hydrogen in Australia for more than 80 years.

The proposed pilot project will develop and demonstrate Tasmania’s first fully operational, commercial-scale hydrogen electrolyser to support the decarbonisation of offshore industries including shipping and aquaculture.

The project will demonstrate the use of renewably sourced electricity (primarily certified Hydro with some solar) and pure water to produce compressed hydrogen gas (H2) as a medium for the storage of energy and electricity generation.

The electrolyser will produce about 1.8 tonne of hydrogen per week at full capacity with the stored hydrogen gas used for several purposes including:

  • Onsite in demonstration electricity generation turbine (capstone turbine)
  • Transported offsite for use by downstream users including the recently announced hydrogen fuel cell bus trial.
  • Supply for various research uses.

The project is in development by the Blue Economy CRC in partnership with BOC, Pitt and Sherry, Griffith University, University of Tasmania, Optimal, Hydro Tasmania, Macquarie Bank and the Tasmanian Government.

The Blue Economy CRC Hydrogen Microgrid Project will be one of the pilot projects under the Australian Government’s Guarantee of Origin (GO) Trial – a world-class assurance scheme designed to track and verify emissions associated with hydrogen, renewable electricity and other products made in Australia.

Find out more

The planning permit application can be found on the Glenorchy City Council website.

Further information on the Blue Economy CRC’s hydrogen microgrid can be found on the Hydrogen Microgrid project page.