This week, ATN takes a deeper look into the recently announced Hydrogen Refuelling Station in Melbourne
There’ve been plenty of initiatives in the past couple of months to increase hydrogen vehicle uptake in Australia. The South Australian government has recently passed the first hydrogen and renewable energy bill. Pure Hydrogen’s Australian designed-Tauras fuel cell prime mover is set to hit Australian markets soon. Premium fuel retailer bP is even closing in on building an entirely hydrogen-based fuel station in Western Australia.
BP, Toyota and Ampol have also started to build hydrogen refuelling stations across Australia. Swinburne University’s Victorian Hydrogen Hub (VH2) and Australia’s national science agency CSIRO is building on this with its own research–based refuelling station that will become the latest part of the zero-emissions transition for the Australian transport industry
“We’re really excited about it,” VH2 director Gordan Chakaodza told ATN.
“It’s the second one in Victoria in terms of hydrogen refuelling stations, there’snot many of them around Australia and certainly not many of them in Victoria.
“We’re very delighted to be launching the second refueller in Victoria to support net zero vehicles, particularly hydrogen vehicles, as they continue to come into the market.“
Located at CSIRO’s facility in the southeast Melbourne suburb of Clayton, the refueller saw the work of the VH2 come to fruitionafter initial designs of the station were released in February 2021 along with a $10 million injection from the Victorian government to startup VH2.
Upon the announcement of VH2, the Victorian government says that it would be a place where the community can learn about hydrogen. Preparing students and the industries for the uptake in hydrogen,as well as being a precinct that explores new hydrogen technologies, were also part of its initial agenda.
The station’s launchis a key moment in the Swinburne/CSIRO’s long and established relationship, having started out with discussions over investing in this type of facility. Fifty per cent of the Victorian government’s initial funding into the VH2 also played a key role in establishingthe refueller.
For CSIRO it is another box ticked in its Hydrogen Industry Mission plan. Formally launched in May 2021, the mission’s aim is to support global decarbonisation through the Australian hydrogen industry. Under the plan it has now collaborated on this while also releasing an interactive Hydrogen Knowledge Centrein December 2021.
The first commercial hydrogen refuellerwas built inthe west Melbourne suburb of Altona North by car manufacturer Toyota. Multiple commercial stations have been built across the Australian east coast.
However, while it may not be the first in Victoria, the Swinburne–CSIRO built facility is Australia’s first research-focused refueller, which Chakaodza says will bring immense benefits to the research community, the industry and students studying at both CSIRO and Swinburne.
Chakaodza says advantages that the Clayton site brings include an inbuilt electrolysis that can develop oxygen and hydrogen that can generate up to 20 kg of green hydrogen daily plus renewable energy that goes directly to it.
“Additionally, there’s a big industrial ecosystem in Clayton with not only the research community, but businesses as well as the broader community,” Chakaodza says.
“I think over time we’ll benefit from learning more about this facility.”
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| The station is able to pump up to 20 kg of green hydrogen daily |
To go with the location within a large industrial area, Chakaodza says that with the doors being open to the broader community, people can learn more about hydrogen and hydrogen vehicles.
Chakaodza says both sets of students will gain further knowledge from it with courses and training material being developed from it. Companies can also learn from this facility given how most are starting to roll out more hydrogen vehicles and refuellers across the country.
CSIRO says there is also the benefit of other hydrogen technology demonstrations that the broader research community and companies can use to test, trial and demonstrate new and emerging hydrogen technologies. Demonstrations included production, separation and purification, storage and transportation, dispensing and utilisation of hydrogen.
With VH2 currently being Australia’s only research facility for hydrogen vehicles, Chakaodza says that once it has learned more about it, then they can expand on this facility and build one capable of housing heavy vehicles.
“It is our aspiration to expand on thisrefueller. This one doesn’t support heavy vehicles for example, it will only support passenger vehicles,” Chakaodza says.
“But with additional funding from governments or other sources we can certainly look at doing similar things with refuellers that support heavy vehicles.”
Chakaodza says that VH2 continues to ask the federal government to support the hub along with this initiative to make sure that it does the necessary research to support this growing industry.
The VH2 also continues to inform these government about the benefits as well as the imminent training and resources need to bolster the hydrogen vehicle workforce through its Hydrogen Skills Roadmap.
Released in September 2022 by Swinburne, the roadmap recommends that stakeholders such as governments, industry members and students to collaborate on different areas. Swinburne says that alongside the VH2, the roadmap is also a key part to support the development of the hydrogen uptake in Australia.
Chakoadza says that companies in the road transport industry also increasing research and trials on hydrogen/electric heavy vehicles could see them push for more of these refuellers.
“There’s no doubt hydrogen offers a really fantastic opportunity for the vehicle market in particular,” Chakaodza says.
“You can see what truck manufacturers are doing, hydrogen is certainly a part of the mix in terms of getting to net zero aspirations, which includes batteries, hydrogen is a part of that mix.“