Using hydrogen as a clean, affordable and sustainable source of energy is another step closer after the Australian government signed a joint statement of cooperation with Japan last week.
Hydrogen is becoming an increasingly important part of Australia’s evolving energy mix, and we’ve reported previously on the domestic and foreign opportunities inherent with such a flexible energy product. The Australian and Japanese governments also see this potential because, as long term trade and strategic partners, they have just made a commitment to cooperate on the deployment of hydrogen as a clean, secure, affordable and sustainable source of energy.
Last week in Melbourne, Minister for Resources and Northern Australia, Matt Canavan, and Japan’s Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Hiroshi Kajiyama, signed the Joint Statement on Cooperation on Hydrogen and Fuel Cells during the Australia-Japan Ministerial Economic Dialogue.
Minister Canavan said Australia and Japan are well placed to maximise the opportunities presented by hydrogen, based on a long history of successful energy and resource trade.
“Australia is building a hydrogen production base to foster domestic growth and meet future export demand in Japan and the region. The opportunities are great. Scenarios developed for the National Hydrogen Strategy indicate an Australian hydrogen industry could generate about 8,000 jobs and about $11 billion a year in GDP by 2050,” Minister Canavan said.
“Australia and Japan recognise that hydrogen is a key contributor to reducing emissions, especially when produced from renewable energy or fossil fuels combined with Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS).”
Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment Simon Birmingham added that the statement of cooperation on hydrogen reaffirms Australia’s strong and long-standing trade partnership with Japan and increases Australia’s potential as a major global exporter of hydrogen.
According to the government, Australia and Japan will continue to cooperate on the Hydrogen Energy Supply Chain (HESC) project in Victoria, which is making progress towards establishing the world’s first international liquid hydrogen supply chain, as well as shaping global hydrogen market regulations.
Australia’s National Hydrogen Strategy, released in November 2019, is available to access at industry.gov.au/hydrogen
It’s certainly an exciting time for the hydrogen industry in Australia, and this global commitment between the two countries is further evidence that hydrogen is likely to create a number of supply and development opportunities in our sector for some time to come. For more detail on hydrogen check out our recent podcast on the topic.
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