By Alesha Capone
Australia’s first integrated modular commercial hydrogen and mass transit hydrogen refuelling facility will be constructed in Truganina as part of a $10 million project..
The Hydrogen Fuels Australia (H2FA) site will not be connected to the energy grid and will instead run on renewable energy.
The refuelling facility will have multiple solar panels to generate electricity (a solar array) and rainwater tanks, which will be used to create the hydrogen.
The Truganina site will also feature research and educational facilities.
H2FA is partnering with global suppliers of industrial hydrogen equipment for the operation, including Skai Energies in Australia, Nilsson Energy in Sweden and Green Hydrogen Systems in Denmark.
Plug Power, providers of clean hydrogen and zero-emission fuel cells, will provide power to the site.
All of the facility’s equipment will be located above ground.
A statement from H2FA said that all necessary capital equipment for fuel generation and storage at the Truganina facility has been ordered.
Pending permits, the site will become operational in February 2022.
The five-hectare site will initially be capable of producing 60 to 90 kilograms of green hydrogen from its 750-kilowatt solar array.
The site will be scaled up to supply approximately 3000 kilograms of hydrogen, with capacity to fuel more than 100 vehicles per day.
H2FA’s chief commercial operator, Robert Grove, said: “The modular H2FA model will also enable us to expand rapidly across Victoria and Australia to meet growing demand for hydrogen refuelling, while allocating capital and other resources with optimal efficiency.”
H2FA managing director Francesco Ceravolo said the company was proud to be launching Australia’s first modular hydrogen fuel generation and commercial refuelling business.
“We’re passionate about employing the unique attributes of hydrogen as a circular, environmentally responsible fuel source to power the next generation of commercial vehicles in Australia,” he said.
Francesco grew up in Footscray and one of his fondest childhood memories is of meeting his friends up at a local fuel station before going to watch football at the Western Oval (now Whitten Oval).
Francesco’s father, Enzo, also worked as a fuel station attendant at the family business in Calabria, Italy before immigrating to Australia.
Details: www.hydrogenfuelsaustralia.com
