Australia's Woodside to set up 290 MW plant for renewable hydrogen in US

Australia's energy company Woodside Energy Ltd. will set up a 290 MW electrolysis plant in the US for production of 90 tons/day of liquid hydrogen from 2025 for the heavy transport sector, a company statement said Dec. 7.

The company is in the process of acquiring 94 acres of land in Westport Industrial Park in Ardmore in Oklahoma for the 'H2OK' project that holds the potential to expand to 550 MW to produce 180 tones/day of liquid hydrogen in the future.

"With H2OK we will be bringing Woodside's extensive liquefaction experience from LNG to deliver large-scale hydrogen production," Woodside CEO Meg O'Neill said.

The company has also signed an MOU with US's Hyzon Motors which is building heavy and commercial fuel cell vehicles that run on hydrogen, to coordinate their efforts on demand stimulation, infrastructure solutions and advocacy.

The H2OK project will be located close to national highways which is a strategic transport and supply chain corridor with potential for customers to use hydrogen in heavy-duty trucks, warehouse forklifts, heavy-duty equipment, ground handling equipment and fuel cell microgrids.

Woodside intends H2OK to be a net-zero project with power to be sourced from Oklahoma's existing network, a large portion of which is wind-powered, and renewable energy certificates that will be used to abate any remaining emissions.

Eyes more growth

The company would be looking for more land acquisition opportunities for growing in the US, according to the statement.

"Following the completion of Woodside's proposed merger with BHP's petroleum business, we would have a significant presence in the North American market and we expect new energy opportunities to be a growing component of our portfolio," O'Neill said.

In November BHP signed an agreement to merge BHP's oil and gas portfolio with Woodside which will create a global top 10 independent energy company by production and the largest on the Australian Securities Exchange. The completion of the deal is targeted for the second quarter of 2022.

The new US project would join other hydrogen projects that Woodside has announced for Australia. The company has plans to develop phased hydrogen and ammonia production projects in Perth and northern Tasmania to supply both Australian and international markets, leveraging capabilities built over decades for LNG production and supply that would help in liquefaction of large-scale hydrogen production, the statement said.

S&P Global Platts assessed New South Wales hydrogen produced via alkaline electrolysis, including CAPEX at A$4.48/kg Dec. 3, up 2.75% since Nov. 3.

New South Wales hydrogen produced via coal gasification with CCS, including CAPEX was assessed at A$3.69/kg, down 8.44% since Nov. 3.