Following positive outcomes from a feasibility study supported by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) and the Australian Government, ENGIE is financially backing a project to convert an existing ammonia facility to renewable hydrogen created through a solar and battery powered electrolyser.
The $87 million Yuri project involves the building of a renewable energy powered 10MW electrolyser with the capacity to deliver 640 tonnes of renewable hydrogen annually. Australia, like other countries around the world, is looking for innovative ways to cut CO2 emissions. In the Netherlands, there are plans to build Europe’s largest 200 MW electrolyser that is expected to deliver 60,000 kg of green hydrogen per day by 2025.
An electrolyser utilises an energy-intensive process where electricity is used to split water into hydrogen and oxygen. When the electricity supplied is sourced from renewable resources rather than fossil fuels, CO2 emissions can be vastly reduced. Ammonia production using fossil fuels creates about 500 million tonnes of carbon dioxide globally each year.
In 2019 ammonia was amongst the top chemical compounds produced worldwide at 235 million tonnes. About 90 percent of ammonia produced globally is used as the basis of nitrate fertiliser for farming to assist in the growing of crops. With the rapidly growing population and greater food demands, it is expected that the need for fertilisers and ammonia is likely to increase. Greening the production chain for this building block chemical will be essential to reducing emissions and improve its long-term sustainability.
“The Yuri project is exciting because fertiliser production is a significant existing end use for hydrogen and one where we can make an immediate difference because we are replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy to make hydrogen,” said Darren Miller CEO ARENA.
The project will be the first renewable hydrogen and ammonia production facility in Australia. It will deliver key insights for future projects like that at Brisbane’s Gibson Island where the building of a 500MW electrolyser able to deliver 70,000 tonnes of renewable hydrogen annually is being investigated. The Pilbara project is expected to be completed by 2024.
Steps like these to reduce emissions in fertiliser production and methane from livestock are promising signs of progression towards a greener future for the agriculture industry.
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