Hexagon and FRV to collaborate on hydrogen

Hexagon Energy Materials Limited has signed a non-binding MoU with FRV Services Australia Pty Ltd (renewable energy company) for a hydrogen hub.

The collaboration covers a potential clean hydrogen hub at Middle Arm, Darwin in the Northern Territory, a new potential North Western Australian Hydrogen Hub development and other collaborations elsewhere in Australia.

Collaboration between FRV Australia and Hexagon under the MoU could provide Hexagon access to FRV Australia’s mix of renewable energy products to supply the power required for Hexagon’s proposed hydrogen (clean ammonia) production plant. This would see less CO2 generated from Hexagon’s blue hydrogen production facilities, requiring less CCS, therefore lowering overall production costs for Hexagon’s projects.

The next steps will be to identify and scope specific hydrogen projects to potentially move to conditional Heads of Agreement and onto binding commercial agreements.

Last November, both companies collaborated as consortium partners on an AusIndustry grant application in relation to a Middle Arm, Darwin, Hydrogen Hub Feasibility Study. The application was made under the “Activating a Regional Hydrogen Industry – Clean Hydrogen Industrial Hubs: Hub Development and Design program” and led to this MoU and further collaborations.

Both Hexagon and FRV Australia are already progressing individual clean hydrogen and renewable energy projects at or near Middle Arm, Darwin, each of which is fully funded in terms of pre-feasibility studies.

FRV Australia has also secured funding for further studies and the construction stage for its hydrogen and renewable energy project. FRV Australia is indirectly owned 51% by Fotowatio Renewable Ventures SL (FRV) and 49% by OMERS, one of Canada’s largest defined benefit pension plans.

Hexagon is currently in the final stages of a Pre-Feasibility Study (PFS) on its Northern Territory (NT) Hydrogen project (formally called Pedirka Project). The PFS is scheduled for completion by the end of February 2022. The PFS centres on decarbonised (zero net carbon emission) ammonia production (as a hydrogen carrier), through hydrocarbon-based hydrogen production with CCS. The project is targeting the production of up to 1.6 million tonnes/year of ammonia or 300,000 tonnes/year of hydrogen equivalent.

Merrill Gray, MD of Hexagon, said, “This MoU underpins a potentially important step forward for us in realising efficiencies and in improving the commercial viability for our base case decarbonised ammonia production plant.”