Wind and solar power generated in Western Australia's Midwest could be helping to power Europe by the end of the decade.
The state government will partner with the German government and Europe's largest port in a trilateral study to fast-track hydrogen exports from the planned Oakajee strategic industrial area (SIA).
WA is working to establish 6,000 hectares at Oakajee, north of Geraldton, as one of the largest renewable hydrogen producing areas in the world.
The plan has caught the attention of Europe's largest importer of energy, the port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands.
Often referred to as the fuel station of Europe, the port is responsible for 13 per cent of all energy consumed in the European Union.
While the majority of that energy currently comes from fossil fuels, the port's international hydrogen supply chain manager Martijn Coopman wants to see that change.
"When we had a look at the crystal ball about six years ago we realised that with increasing costs and tightening regulations related to emissions, our port was going to have a really hard time in the future," Mr Coopman said.
With predicted demand for 20 million tonnes of renewable hydrogen, Mr Coopman said there was not enough space in the Dutch North Sea to locate the amount of windmills needed to supply it.
"We can only produce about 10 per cent locally so we need to import a lot of this new green energy from overseas," he said.
"We have come to the conclusion that Australia and particularly the Geraldton area is probably one of the best locations in the world.
"It has a lot of space, it has a population willing to participate in producing large volumes of new energy, it's got fantastic sun and wind conditions and of course, being part of Australia, a great investment climate as well."
Study to investigate supply costs
The study will include a site-specific estimation of hydrogen generation, supply costs to the Port of Rotterdam, and possible port-to-customer transports to Germany.
Mr Coopman said the aim was to reduce global climate change with energy first used to de-carbonise WA.
"If then there is a surplus of green energy and green hydrogen, and we believe that it has phenomenal potential, if that surplus is allocated for exports then we would be super keen to explore and assisting making those exports to Europe a possibility," he said.
Renewable hydrogen is produced when wind or solar electricity is used to split water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen gas.
Hydrogen can then be converted to ammonia for export.
Minister for Hydrogen Industry Alannah MacTiernan said the state would move quickly to establish a supply chain to Europe.
"The European Union has set a target of importing 10 million tonnes of renewable hydrogen by 2030 to replace fossil fuels across Europe," Ms MacTiernan said.
"The Oakajee SIA is a prime example of how Western Australia, with our abundance of renewable energy resources and suitable land areas, is well placed to meet this demand."
