Iberdrola and ABEL Energy are jointly delivering a renewable hydrogen and methanol production facility in Bell Bay, northern Tasmania. The facility is expected to produce over 300,000 tonnes of green methanol a year once completed.
The project will be delivered in two stages, with Stage One to deliver an initial 200,000 tonnes of methanol, and Stage Two the remainder.
The project would deploy biomass gasification of plantation forestry residues in conjunction with water electrolysis to produce green methanol.
Key Dates
| Dec 2022 | Project Announcement |
| Dec 2024 | Expected Final Investment Decision |
| Dec 2024 | ROIs Open |
| Feb 2025 | ROIs Close |
| Jan 2026 | Expected Construction Commencement |
| Sep 2027 | Expected Construction Completion |
| Dec 2027 | Expected Operations/Service Commencement |
Funding contributions
| Federal Government | |
| Tasmanian Government | |
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The project has been awarded up to $70 million in grant funding from the Federal Government under the Regional Hydrogen Hubs program. |
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Procurement
| Procuring Agency: | Iberdrola and ABEL Energy |
PROJECT HISTORY
| Nov 2020 | The Tasmanian Government announced that ABEL Energy was one of three applicants awarded grant funding under the Tasmanian Renewable Hydrogen Industry Development Funding Program. The grant of $555,000 contributed to a 1.3 million feasibility study by ABEL Energy into the use of green hydrogen to make methanol at Bell Bay. |
| Jun 2022 | ABEL Energy Knowledge Sharing Report released – this report investigated the feasibility of a 100 MW electrolyser plant to produce renewables-based green hydrogen and methanol at Bell Bay for domestic and export use. |
| Dec 2022 | Iberdrola and ABEL Energy announce a partnership for the joint delivery of the green hydrogen and green methanol production facility. The project's total estimated cost was announced as $1.7 billion. |
| Jun 2023 | Hydro Tasmania announced the signing of a term sheet with Iberdrola and ABEL Energy for the sale of the decommissioned Bell Bay Power Station. ABEL Energy announced the project's total estimated cost had been revised down from $1.7 billion to $1.2 billion. |
| Dec 2024 | The Tasmanian Government has commenced a Registrations of Interest process for delivery partners for the project, closing on 14 February. |
Estimated Total Cost
(2023)
Sector
Energy
Procurement approach
Other |
Location
Tasmania |
Resources
