BP picks up stake in Aussie green hydrogen project
BP has agreed to acquire a 40.5% equity stake in and to become the operator of the Asian Renewable Energy Hub (AREH) in Western Australia, it said on June 15.
AREH, in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, intends to supply renewable power to local customers in the largest mining region in the world and also produce green hydrogen and green ammonia for the domestic Australian market and export to major international users.
The project has plans to develop onshore wind and solar power generation in multiple phases to a total generating capacity of up to 26 GW.
"AREH is set to be one of the largest renewable and green hydrogen energy hubs in the world and can make a significant contribution to Australia and the wider Asia Pacific region’s energy transition. It truly reflects what integrated energy is – combining solar and onshore wind power with hydrogen production and using it to help transform sectors and regions,” said Anja-Isabel Dotzenrath, BP’s executive vice president of gas and low carbon energy.
At full capacity, AREH is expected to be capable of producing around 1.6mn metric tons/year of green hydrogen or 9mn mt/yr of green ammonia. Situated on a 6,500-square kilometre site, AREH is already in a highly advantaged position with access to abundant solar and wind resources with consistent output, BP said.
At full capacity, AREH is expected to abate around 17mn mt/yr of carbon in domestic and export markets, which would equate to roughly 0.5 gigatonnes (Gt) of carbon savings over the lifetime of the project.
"We believe AREH can be a cornerstone project for us in helping our local and global customers and partners in meeting their net zero and energy commitments. It will also serve as a long-term clean energy security contributor in Asia Pacific, helping countries such as South Korea and Japan to decarbonise,” Dotzenrath said.
First proposed in 2014, the AREH project has been developed to date by partners that currently comprise InterContinental Energy, CWP Global and Macquarie Capital and Macquarie’s Green Investment Group.
In addition to BP, the other partner shareholders in AREH will continue to be InterContinental Energy (26.4%), CWP Global (17.8%) and Macquarie Capital and Macquarie’s Green Investment Group (15.3%).