Australia’s Queensland government has named Gladstone and Toowoomba as new hydrogen technology clusters and will allocate A$50,000 for each.
The two clusters are expected to work in collaboration with the already established Queensland Hydrogen Industry Group (H2Q) cluster in Brisbane, according to a statement.
According to the minister for energy, renewables and hydrogen Mick de Brenni, supporting clusters in Gladstone and Toowoomba will drive the development of Queensland’s hydrogen supply chain and provide jobs for regional Queenslanders in sectors in components and materials manufacturing for the new technology.
Queensland has partnered with the National Energy Resources Australia (NERA) to develop the hubs.
These two new clusters will be officially announced at Hydrogen Australia 2021 for joining the Hydrogen Technology Cluster Australia (H2TCA) which is a national network of 13 hydrogen clusters across Australia.
Energy expert George Varma of Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind Out-Law, said:” Developing hydrogen clusters will greatly assist with ensuring both supply and demand for hydrogen is developed in parallel. If we do not encourage the development of hydrogen ecosystems, we will be in a situation where we have ample amounts of supply but no domestic demand. Therefore, the investment in hydrogen clusters will not only assist the hydrogen market, it will also help with developing the local market as well as we can expand beyond just exporting hydrogen, but also to exporting manufactured goods and technology.”
The Queensland government’s hydrogen industry strategy focusses on supporting innovation and facilitating skills development for new technology, recognising the importance of the clusters to deliver on their policies in the hydrogen industry.
