Japan, Australia to collaborate on green hydrogen

Japanese refiner ENEOS announced September 16 it had signed a preliminary agreement with Australian metals group Fortescue Future Industries to study green hydrogen developments.

ENEOS said it was working to develop a supply chain for green hydrogen both at home and overseas. As such, the company said it would collaborate with Fortescue on tapping into Australia’s rich renewable energy resources to power electrolysers that can split water into its elemental components.

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The Japanese company said the state of Western Australia is ideally suited for development given that its vast acreage is suitable for further large-scale development of wind and solar power. The state government, meanwhile, has expressed its support for green hydrogen production.

“Accordingly, the state is expected to serve as an export base for CO₂-free hydrogen to Japan,” ENEOS stated.

Most of the industrial-use hydrogen in Japan is consumed during the desulfurisation process at petroleum refineries. This so-called grey hydrogen, which is derived from fossil fuels in processes, emits CO₂.

In August, ENEOS and Japanese power company Jera opened a hydrogen station in Tokyo. The station produces hydrogen using city gas from Ohgishima City Gas Supply and supplies it to fuel cell passenger cars and buses being introduced by the Tokyo metropolitan government.