Australian gas supplier Coregas was contracted to provide onsite support and equipment for the $500 million liquid hydrogen (LH2) project.
The world’s first LH2 carrier officially departed for Japan on Friday, 28 January, marking a significant milestone for the Hydrogen Energy Supply Chain (HESC) pilot project.
The Suiso Frontier docked in the Victorian port of Hastings on 20 January, on what Energy Minister Angus Taylor described as an “historic day for Japan, Australia and the global industry”.
The hydrogen tanker was then loaded with a cargo of liquid hydrogen, and within a week of arrival, set off on its inaugural mission back to Japan.
The tanker has a capacity of 1250 m3 equating to about 75 mt of liquid hydrogen.
For the purpose of the pilot, 99.9 per cent pure hydrogen has been produced from Latrobe Valley coal and biomass via gasification where it was then trucked to Hastings, cooled to -253 degrees and subsequently liquified to less than 800 times its gaseous volume to create LH2.
Coregas was contracted to provide onsite support and equipment for the gasification plant.
Coregas innovation manager Wodek Jakubik wished the Suiso Frontier crew the best on their return voyage to Japan.
“After years of preparation, Coregas completed loading of the Suiso Frontier for the first shipment of liquid hydrogen to Japan,” said Jakubik.
“Once connected to the vessel’s 1250 m3 vacuum-insulated, double-shell-structure liquefied hydrogen storage tanks, filling was completed by Coregas engineers using an on-site portable delivery vehicle.”
It will take around two weeks for the LH2 vessel to transport the LH2 to Kobe in Japan.
This $500 million project is jointly funded by the Japanese and Australian governments.
Subscribe to Oil & Gas Today for the latest industry news.