BP to host first green hydrogen refuelling pod at Australian petrol station

Petrol and diesel retailer bp Australia is to build what is being touted as the first green hydrogen refuelling station to be installed at a petrol station in Australia.

The facility – featuring a 220kW electrolyser powered by a 100kW solar installation located in nearby Bulwer Island – will provide refuelling facilities for the state government's fleet of five hydrogen powered Hyundai Nexo cars.

The hydrogen refuelling station is to be built by gas and engineering company BOC, using technology developed by its parent company Linde, and located at the BP truck stop in Lytton, east of Brisbane.

John Evans, the head of BOC South Pacific, says the partnership with bp Australia is an important step forward in developing a hydrogen refuelling service station network in Queensland.

"BOC is committed to supporting the development of hydrogen as a zero emissions fuel and decarbonising the transport sector in Australia," said Evans.

"Working closely with our partner bp we will demonstrate how state-of-the-art hydrogen refuelling stations can be safely integrated into the existing service station network, paving the way for more infrastructure to facilitate hydrogen trucks and buses.

The company says that the Bulwer island facility will produce up to 2,400kg of green hydrogen a month, with up to 50kg a day made available to the refuelling station. That's enough to refuel around eight hydrogen Nexos a day.

The state government's five hydrogen Nexo cars have been refuelled with a portable facility, which takes much longer because it does not have the full pressure of a dedicated refuelling station.

There are only a handful of green hydrogen electrolyser refuelling stations in Australia – in Sydney at Hyundai's offices, in Melbourne with Toyota (for its hydrogen Mirai cars), and in the ACT, which has 22 Hyundai Nexo cars, mostly with the ACT government.

The Lytton facility has been partially funded by ARENA and the Queensland government.

Frédéric Baudry, the president of bp Australia and head of its fuels and low carbon solutions business in the Asia Pacific, says hydrogen will play an important part in the future energy and mobility mix.

"bp has extensive industrial experience with hydrogen and is now linking that with our expertise in supplying energy to the world, creating end-to-end offers and decarbonisation solutions for our customers," he said.

Minister for Energy, Renewables and Hydrogen Mick De Brenni said it was critical that locally made fuel continued to be available to power our heavy transport sector as it moved to lower its emissions and looked forward to supporting more green hydrogen initiatives from traditional fuel suppliers.

"The importance of this for our economic future cannot be overstated because this is another link in the supply chain, ensuring Queensland cements its status as a global force in the hydrogen industry," said Minister de Brenni.

"From hydrogen-powered trucks and coaches to trains and marine vessels, we are exploring every opportunity to capitalise on the opportunities of Queensland's energy transformation."

Giles Parkinson is founder and editor of The Driven, and also edits and founded the Renew Economy and One Step Off The Grid web sites. He has been a journalist for nearly 40 years, is a former business and deputy editor of the Australian Financial Review, and owns a Tesla Model 3.