Documents regarding Denham hydrogen microgrid to help advance renewable technology

The State Government has released a public document on the findings from the hydrogen microgrid in the Gascoyne, which it hopes will advance technology going forward.

The Denham renewable hydrogen microgrid was the first of its kind in Australia, using solar to power an electrolyser which splits water into hydrogen and oxygen.

The hydrogen is then passed through a fuel cell and combined with oxygen to produce electricity and water vapour.

The microgrid is expected to offset 140,000 litres of diesel per year.

Premier Roger Cook said it was an exciting project and hoped they could continue to learn from it.

““I want to see WA become a renewable energy powerhouse, and hydrogen will have an important role to play in our clean energy future,” he said.

“This innovative project helps to reduce our reliance on diesel in remote areas, delivering cleaner, affordable, and reliable power for Denham.

“The knowledge we’ve gained through this pilot project will help to guide future remote uses of renewable hydrogen across WA and the rest of the nation.”

The project involved a 704kW solar farm, 348kW hydrogen electrolyser, and a 100kW fuel cell.

The public documents state there is potential for future grids to increase capacity of electrolysis, but that testing would need to be done to make sure it was suitable.

It also suggested costs could be brought down through a number of factors, including optimising renewable resources, and using a variety of sources including wind and solar to make the facility operational over 24 hours.

According to the State Government, the renewable energy and hydrogen components makes the project the first of its kind across the country.

The report is set to help determine how hydrogen can be used for other microgrids.