Hazer Group has announced the commencement of its $17 million Hazer Commercial Demonstration Project (CDP), which is a 100-tonne-per-annum low-emission hydrogen production facility that will be the first larger-scale, fully integrated deployment of the Hazer Process.
The hydrogen produced will be fuel cell grade, capable of use as a low-emission transport fuel, for power generation or in clean industrial applications.
The Hazer CDP will be located at Water Corporation’s Woodman Point Wastewater Treatment Plant at Munster in Western Australia. The CDP will use biogas produced at the treatment plant as feedstock to produce hydrogen and graphite.
Related article: Towards a clean hydrogen future: How the Hazer process works
The project will utilise approximately two million standard cubic metres of biogas that is currently being flared for environmental mitigation. A Biogas Supply Agreement and Project Collaboration Agreement have been executed with Water Corporation, providing security of feedstock supply and access to the project site.
The Board has revised the previously announced CAPEX budget of $16.65 million to $17.0 million. The Project scope has been expanded to include a stationary hydrogen fuel cell power-generation system. This will allow Hazer to use some of the hydrogen produced by the CDP to generate its own renewable power, thereby offsetting power purchased from utility providers and reducing Project operating costs. The installation of the hydrogen fuel cell will be one of the first larger-scale installations in Australia and will demonstrate the technology’s ability to be integrated with the Australian grid.
Related article: World-first project to turn biogas from sewage into hydrogen and graphite
Hazer has appointed Perth-based Primero Group as the engineering, procurement, and construction contractor for the project. Hazer has been working with Primero Group under an Early Contractor Involvement contract to develop the detailed design, procurement packages, project schedules and budgets since June 2019. Due to the CDP’s pioneering nature and the need for Hazer, as the process technology owner, to be closely involved in design and procurement decisions, the contract with Primero will be a reimbursable contract with a target budget in place against a detailed scope of work and cost estimate.
The CDP is expected to commence pre-commissioning activities in Q2 2021 and achieve practical completion in mid-2021. The Project is intended to operate for up to three years or until the end of 2023, depending on the future operational plans of the Woodman Point facility.
