It’s not every week we break new ground on a green energy game changer, but that’s precisely what has happened recently. Further solidifying South Australia’s reputation as the eco energy capital of Australia, Amp Energy has secured the rights to develop green hydrogen at scale in the state’s south.
The company intends to develop and build up to 5GW of electrolyser capacity over the next 10 years in the Cape Hardy precinct, on the eastern coast of Eyre Peninsula, in a project that will deliver over 5 million tons per annum of green ammonia.
The project will establish South Australia as a global leader in the production of green hydrogen and ammonia – which is hydrogen or ammonia that is produced via a renewable energy source – creating almost 5,000 direct and indirect construction jobs and 250 operations roles along the way. Green hydrogen is considered a power source that could one day replace fossil fuels, with Australian trials already underway of hydrogen-powered vehicles and buildings.
Meanwhile in Western Australia, Lynas Rare Earths began construction of a Rare Earths Processing Facility in Kalgoorlie in April. The half-billion dollar project, which will create 290 construction jobs and up to 128 operational jobs, will see the company process rare earth concentrate from its Mt Weld mine, which is one of the world's highest-grade rare earths deposits and the largest outside of China.
This is an important step in the right direction for the Australian energy sector, as critical minerals such as copper, lithium, nickel, cobalt and rare earth elements are essential components in many of today's rapidly growing clean energy technologies. With renewables from wind turbines to electric vehicles and solar batteries, these materials are increasingly in demand.
While these projects helped to reinforce our nation’s commitment to renewable energy and they’ll pay dividends in the long-term, at a day-to-day level, Australian businesses find themselves negotiating in a tough energy market. April saw around a $20 per MWH increase on February prices across future wholesale markets, on the back of the announcement of the Snowy 2.0 delay and the closure of the final unit of Liddell.
Businesses stand to save the most money by embracing energy efficiency practices and ensuring they are consuming power in the correct way with tools such as Power Factor correction and demand management, to maximise usage. Every time the network experiences a station closures or has an outage, we tend to see huge spikes in future wholesale prices, so organisations should bear this in mind when negotiating their next contract; if you see a price point you are happy with, it may be wise to lock in a longer term to avoid potential jumps in prices if negotiating in an inflated market.
.svg)
