Australia rejects major renewables & hydrogen project
The Australian federal government has rejected plans for a renewable energy and hydrogen project in Western Australia. The decision was published on the environment ministry’s website on June 15.
The proposed Asian Renewable Energy Hub encompasses 6,500 km2 of land in the East Pilbara region of Western Australia. It will generate 26 GW of renewable energy, the bulk of which will be used for production of green hydrogen for domestic and export markets, according to the website of InterContinental Energy, which is developing the project.
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The environment minister cited the expansion plan in the rejection decision. The original plan was granted major project status by the federal government last year, and the WA government has approved the first stage of the development.
The ministry in its note said that the project will have a “clearly unacceptable” impact on migratory species and internationally recognised wetlands under Part 3 of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act.
Australia’s Clean Energy Council in a June 21 statement said it is seeking urgent clarification from the federal minister for the environment to address the perception that this decision is inconsistent with well-established processes or with the treatment of non-renewable projects.
“We expect that the Commonwealth will work in partnership with the Asian Renewable Energy Hub to provide the necessary guidance to appropriately assess and address any environmental impacts under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act,” Clean Energy Council said.
Meanwhile, Australia’s peak oil and gas industry body Appea in a separate statement said that it had joined several of the country’s leading resources sector bodies in a call supporting vital reforms to the EPBC Act.
Appea, the Chamber of Minerals and Energy, the Queensland Resources Council, NSW Minerals Council, South Australian Chamber of Mines and Energy, and Minerals Council of Australia released a joint statement urging the parliament to pass “pragmatic, targeted and reasonable” amendments to the EPBC Act that would streamline regulation, protect the environment, and support resources jobs and regional communities.