Oil industry company bp take a 40.5% stake and operatorship of the AREH project in the Pilbara
bp today agreed to acquire a 40.5 percent equity stake in, and to become operator of, the Asian Renewable Energy Hub (AREH), which has the potential to be one of the largest renewables and green hydrogen hubs in the world
The Asian Renewable Energy Hub (AREH) in the Pilbara region of Western Australia intends to supply renewable power to local customers in the largest mining region in the world. Inline with the development of world-scale renewable power generation, AREH will also produce green hydrogen and green ammonia for both the domestic Australian market and for export to major international users.
AREH has plans to develop onshore wind and solar power generation in multiple phases to a total generating capacity of up to 26 gigawatts (GW) – the equivalent of producing over 90 terawatt hours per year. According to the Australian Energy Update 2021, the predicted generating capacity of the AREH is around a third of all electricity generated in Australia in 2020.
At full capacity, AREH is expected to be capable of producing around 1.6 million tonnes of green hydrogen or 9 million tonnes of green ammonia, per annum. Situated on a 6,500-square kilometre site, AREH is already in a highly advantaged position with access to abundant solar and wind resources with consistent output.
At full capacity, AREH is expected to abate around 17 million tonnes of carbon in domestic and export markets annually, which would equate to roughly 0.5 gigatonnes (Gt) of carbon savings over the lifetime of the project.
Anja-Isabel Dotzenrath, bp’s executive vice president of gas and low carbon energy, said: “We believe AREH can be a cornerstone project for us in helping our local and global customers and partners in meeting their net zero and energy commitments. It will also serve as a long-term clean energy security contributor in Asia Pacific, helping countries such as South Korea and Japan to decarbonize.”
When fully developed, AREH could provide significant net renewable generating capacity for bp as well as making a material contribution to its strategic aim to capture a 10 per cent share in core hydrogen markets globally.
Frédéric Baudry, president, bp Australia added: “This is an incredibly exciting development, and we are looking forward to working closely with our partners, InterContinental Energy, CWP Global, Macquarie Capital and Macquarie’s Green Investment Group, as well as the Nyangumarta people."
