The Blue Economy CRC recently announced the acquisition of infrastructure to develop an offshore hydrogen microgrid for research and training. It consists of a 700kW electrolyser, a microturbine and a microgrid.
The construction of the microgrid will take approximately one year with the final infrastructure anticipated to be co-located with the University of Tasmania in the North West.
This will be the largest hydrogen electrolyser in Tasmania and amongst the largest in Australia, and will be the first hydrogen microgrid to be installed offshore worldwide.
The project seeks to demonstrate an offshore renewable energy system, to meet off-grid, offshore demand, such as aquaculture. Hydrogen can provide reliable electricity supply and can displace diesel and other fossil fuels in aquaculture and vessels. Additionally, the oxygen produced along with hydrogen provides an added benefit to aquaculture.
The development of the offshore hydrogen microgrid builds upon the R&D currently underway in the Blue Economy CRC including: Hydrogen storage and distribution, offshore/high energy sustainable hybrid power systems, and DC microgrids for offshore applications.
You can learn more about this project here
Image: Blue Economy CRC
