The production of Green Hydrogen is an emerging technology in Western Australia. With change comes many questions. We have developed informational resources to keep you informed regarding Murchison Green Hydrogen. We will continue to build on these resources as the project progresses.
Find out what Murchison Green Hydrogen will look like from Kalbarri by clicking on the video.
The visibility of the project has been generated from key locations in and around Kalbarri.
You can find answers to frequently asked questions and more by downloading our Fact Sheet below.
You can find read our recent project updates by clicking on the links.
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The Murchison Green Hydrogen Project is a large-scale green hydrogen project proposed for development on Murchison House Station north of Kalbarri.
The project has gained independent endorsement, including recognition as a project of State significance, one of nineteen projects to be awarded Major Project Status by the federal government and one of six hydrogen projects in Australia to be short-listed for the federal government’s $2 billion Hydrogen Headstart scheme.
Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) is the project’s parent company. CIP manages the world’s largest dedicated renewable energy fund, and the largest clean hydrogen fund. The project is completely funded by CIP and its investors.
While some global decarbonisation is being achieved through electrification, decarbonisation of hard-to-abate sectors such as refining & chemicals, fertilisers, marine fuels, steel & iron, require alternative sources of clean energy. Green hydrogen has been identified as a clean source of energy.
The market for green hydrogen is not yet established in Australia. At the same time, highly industrialised economies, especially in South East Asia, have high energy demands and need green hydrogen to decarbonise.
Due to our natural resources (combined wind and solar), land availability and proximity to large export markets, Western Australia will play an important role in Australia’s decarbonisation journey as well as that of our international trading partners’.
The Commonwealth and State Governments identify hydrogen export as a core pillar of their decarbonisation strategies to ensure Australia meets its net zero objectives.
The green hydrogen produced will reduce the carbon dioxide (CO2) being released into the global atmosphere each year by approximately 5.3 million tonnes.
The project will be ~20 km north of Kalbarri with the closest wind turbine being 16 km away and the production plant approximately ~38 km away.
The choice of location was made for several key reasons, the combination of which make the proposed site ideal. These reasons include:
• Complementary wind and solar resources – wind at night and solar during the day
• Access to a single, large parcel of land
• Proximity to the coast for water and export
The MGH project includes
• Wind farm
• Solar plant
• Desalination plant for water used in both electrolysis and cooling
• Electrolysis facility
• Ammonia plants
• Marine export facility
Potential exclusion zones within the development envelope are still being determined. The project is engaging with the Nanda Aboriginal Corporation regarding heritage sites.
Green hydrogen refers to hydrogen produced from renewable energy sources. There are no carbon emissions in the production of green hydrogen. It is an alternative clean fuel capable of displacing fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas.
Green hydrogen is produced by splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen using renewable energy sources – in our case wind and solar. There are no carbon emissions in the production of green hydrogen and green ammonia.
The project will not be connected to the grid. It will operate exclusively on renewable energy generated by the wind and solar farm. The complementary nature of wind at night and sun during the day, assisted by our battery facilities, will ensure that there is no need for grid connection.
The hydrogen will then be converted into green ammonia for export to overseas markets, where it will be used as an alternative, clean fuel.
The project was referred to the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) in April 2021 and a Public Environmental Review (PER) level of assessment set.
The Environmental Review Document (ERD) will be submitted at the end of 2024 and will be available for public comment in early 2025. It will be assessed for environmental approval by the EPA and State and Federal Ministers for Environment in 2025.
We acknowledge the Nanda People as the Traditional Owners of the land. We have been engaging directly with the Nanda Aboriginal Corporation since 2021 to develop an Indigenous Land Use Agreement (ILUA).
We have been engaging with the community of Kalbarri for the past two and a half years in order to:
• Provide information about the project and to understand community concerns
• Better understand the benefits that community would like to see from the project.
This two-way dialogue with the residents of Kalbarri and the wider region is very important to us.
The project will preferentially seek desalinated water during construction. However, sources of water are still being determined. Any ground water extraction for the project will be subject to environmental studies and environmental regulatory approvals.
The facility will use desalinated water sourced from the ocean for operational activities.
The marine export facility (MEF) comprises of a catenary anchor leg mooring (CALM) buoy located approximately 2.5 km offshore. The ammonia will be transported offshore through a pipeline. The innovative design removes the need to build extensive port facilities.
The strictest safety and design standards will be used for all hydrogen and ammonia production, storage and export infrastructure used for the project.
These facilities will be monitored at all times, incorporate risk mitigation design (including an automatic safety valve shut-off system) and be regulated by the State safety regulator.
Each year 180 million tonnes of ammonia is produced and 20 million tonnes of ammonia is shipped around the world. The technology and infrastructure used to produce and transport ammonia has proven to be safe and reliable.
Marine exclusion zones will be set and managed by the Mid West Ports Authority. The exact location and size of these exclusion zones are still to be determined.
The brine from the desalination plant, together with the cooling water blowdown, will be discharged back into the ocean and dispersed through a diffuser.
Based on the present modelling and engineering studies, given the water depths and currents present in the area, baseline salt concentrations will be achieved well within the environmental regulator guidelines.
This system will ensure that naturally occurring (baseline) salt concentrations and water temperatures are reached within a specified distance from the diffuser, as set by the environmental regulator.
There is more information being continually updated and made available on our website, on the Informational Resources page about our environmental studies.
As we are still in the design phase of this project, we are still conducting ongoing surveys and studies. As soon as we have the data and information available, we will ensure continued stakeholder and community engagement. Additionally, the EPA submission will be a public document.
Page last updated 6 August 2024.