Germany, Australia to set up hydrogen agreement
Clean Energy Wire, Reuters
The German and Australian governments have signed a letter of intent on sustainable hydrogen production, according to the German ministries of economic affairs and energy and education and research. The ‘Germany Australia Hydrogen Accord’ will commit the countries to increase cooperation in the areas of technological innovation, research and development and the introduction of technologies to build a global hydrogen industry. “The German-Australian hydrogen alliance is another important milestone in the German-Australian energy partnership,” said economy minister Peter Altmaier, who joined education and research minister Anja Karliczek in signing the letter of intent with Australian energy minister Angus Taylor. The ministry of education and research is providing 50 million euros in funding over a three-year period for the project. “Hydrogen is not only a key technology for the decarbonisation of our countries, but also a pioneer for sustainable economic growth on the way to climate neutrality,” Altmaier added. As part of the agreement, the countries will promote the production of hydrogen on an industrial scale in Australia with German-Australian “Hydrogen Hubs” using German technology and explore possibilities for cooperation using the new H2-Global international funding instrument. The agreement will make possible "the import of sustainably produced hydrogen in relevant volumes, which is an important factor to reach our tighter climate targets", the German ministries said in a statement.
In the fight against climate change, hydrogen made with renewable electricity is increasingly seen as a silver bullet for sectors with particularly stubborn emissions, such as heavy industry and aviation. Germany's 9 billion euro hydrogen strategy is based on the assumption that some 80 percent of its hydrogen requirements may have to be imported in the long term, Reuters notes, adding that Germany has also approached Saudi Arabia, Canada, Chile and Morocco for possible supplies. German energy companies RWE and Uniper are also examining at possible new trade routes for hydrogen, Reuters adds.
