Bank on hydrogen boom

Japanese ambassador sees a rosy future in shipments from Australia

HYDROGEN shipments from Australia to Japan could eventually rival the post-war boom in coal trade between the two countries, according to new Japanese ambassador Shingo Yamagami.

Mr Yamagami said Australia was set to become a major source of hydrogen for Japan as it moved to a carbon-neutral economy by 2050.

“All the big trading houses in Japan are interested in developing hydrogen,” he said. “Australia is well placed as a source of hydrogen because of its long tradition of shipping energy and raw minerals to Japan.”

Japan’s move to shore up Australia as a secure source of renewable energy comes amid warnings from Mr Yamagami about the threats posed by an increasingly “assertive” China in the Asia Pacific.

Japan’s energy supply has become less certain following the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster that made it more reliant on imports of fossil fuels such as oil, gas and coal.

Mr Yamagami said the first big shipment of hydrogen to Japan from Australia was set to occur later this year. Japan is planning to build a “hydrogen economy” that by 2030 will require it to procure 300,000 tonnes of the gas each year.

Australia meanwhile is increasingly looking to allies such as Japan for support as it remains locked in an acrimonious trade war with China.

Australia and Japan are cooperating on the Hydrogen Energy Supply Chain (HESC) project in Victoria, which is making progress towards establishing the world’s first international liquid hydrogen supply chain.

The project aims to safely produce and transport clean liquid hydrogen from the Latrobe Valley in Victoria to Kobe in Japan. As part of the project, liquid hydrogen will be transported by a hydrogen marine carrier ship to Japan.

The federal government last year outlined plans to build an Australian hydrogen industry that could generate about 8000 jobs and about $11bn a year in GDP by 2050.

Separately, the Queensland government has established a $15m industry fund to support hydrogen projects in the state as it moves to take advantage of export opportunities.

Mr Yamagami said that as well as forging tighter energy links, the two nations were set to establish closer security ties in the coming years to meet challenges in the Asia Pacific region, including an increasingly assertive China.

“Australia is an indispensable part of Asia,” he said. “I would consider Australia to not just be a middle power but a global power with an agile defence force and intelligence apparatuses.”

He said the rise of China as an economic superpower presented both “challenges and opportunities” for the wider region.