Green hydrogen could soon be powering Western Australian mining, starting in the goldfields.
An independent start-up has been developing new technologies and supply agreements, with green hydrogen production set to begin out of Tasmania's Bell Bay near Launceston in early 2023.
Australian-owned LINE Hydrogen received $5 million in funding from Albanese government to accelerate green hydrogen as a replacement for diesel across high-polluting industries.
The Queensland-based energy company on Monday announced it had signed a memorandum of understanding with Blue Cap Mining for the Lord Byron Gold Mine in WA.
"For LINE Hydrogen, the partnership provides guaranteed offtake," founder Brendan James said.
It's also a step towards supplying the greater WA Goldfields region.
The project, slated to begin development in early 2023, will see renewable technologies developed and tested at the mining site to replace fossil fuels.
A production plant will provide power to the mining operation and make green hydrogen as a diesel fuel replacement for mining equipment, generators and vehicles.
LINE Hydrogen will be producing liquid hydrogen with 100 per cent renewable energy, using a process called electrolysis, which produces drinking water and medical-grade oxygen as by-products rather than greenhouse gases.
Blue Cap Mining said the combined renewable power, green hydrogen and mining operations were expected to add 150 full-time jobs in the region.
"The responsibility for change within our industry is with us, as participants and producers," Ashley Fraser, managing director of Blue Cap Mining, said.
With the mining sector accounting for 10 per cent of Australia's total energy use and 14.3 billion litres of diesel per year, liquid hydrogen for crushers and trucks could be a game changer when it's ready for commercial use.
Using renewable power and green hydrogen, the Lord Byron mine is expected to displace around 13.2 million litres of diesel per year.
Feasibility milestones have been set for 2023 and construction is likely to begin within 18 months.
