The Australian Hydrogen Council (AHC), industry, government and diplomatic representatives gathered in Canberra last week for the second Australian Parliamentary Friends of Hydrogen meeting, co-chaired by Member for Hunter, Dan Repacholi MP and Member for Mallee, Dr Anne Webster MP.
Minister for Climate Change and Energy, the Hon Chris Bowen MP, took the opportunity to address AHC members and reinforce the Australian Government’s commitment to key policies such as the Future Made in Australia, Hydrogen Headstart and Hydrogen Production Tax Credit.
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Minister Bowen said consultation was key to the progression of these policies, and encouraged industry to participate in what he said would be a short and sharp consultation process, including the Hydrogen Production Tax Credit consultation paper which was released on Friday and has a two-week submission process.
Australian Hydrogen Council CEO Dr Fiona Simon said she was pleased that Australia was starting to prioritise uses for hydrogen, however, stressed the importance of the Federal Government progressing its recent budget measures quickly.
“The strong industry turnout at our Parliamentary Friends of Hydrogen meeting was a positive signal to the government and friends of Parliament that the hydrogen industry is serious about achieving policy certainty with projects underway that rely on government support,” she said.
“Incentives such as Hydrogen Production Tax Credit and Hydrogen Headstart are absolutely vital. The public interest is in decarbonisation, and without very strong economy-wide price signals to value carbon—and even with them—we need to look at incentives from government to help bridge the gap and get major projects over the line for the 2030s and 2040s.”
The meeting also included a technology showcase headlined by four hydrogen fuel cell vehicles—Hyzon Refuse Truck, Hyundai NEXO, Toyota Mirai and a BMW iX5—demonstrating one of the end use applications for hydrogen.
It also included a showcase of technology from Energys (fuel cell), ENEOS (direct MCH production), Innomotics (motors and drives), Star Scientific (catalyst), Toyota (hydrogen generators and vehicles) and CarbonNet (CCS). Xodus and Coregas also showcased their projects.
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The meeting also welcomed strategic stakeholders from Australian Government agencies— ARENA, DCCEEW, DFAT, DISR, DITRDCA—and the Embassies of Japan, Republic of Korea and Federal Republic of Germany, with special guest His Excellency Kazuhiro Suzuki, Japanese Ambassador to Australia contributing valuable insights.
AHC’s focus now turns to critical industry consultations on the Hydrogen Production Tax Incentive, green metals, low carbon fuels, and broader transport decarbonisation whilst continuing to foster Australia’s trading relationships with Japan and Korea.
