Premier Mark McGowan has called for federal support to get a new research centre for hydrogen and LNG exports off the ground, while there’s work under way to attract investment in new industries using domestic gas.
Premier Mark McGowan has called for federal support to get a new research centre for hydrogen and LNG exports off the ground, while there’s work under way to attract investment in new industries using domestic gas.
Speaking at the Australasian Oil and Gas Exhibition & Conference this morning, Mr McGowan said the state had asked the federal government for $40 million for the centre, which would include a micro-scale LNG facility in Kwinana.
The Future Energy Exports Cooperative Research Centre bid had been supported by 18 organisations, he said, pledging $34 million in cash and $45 million in-kind.
Cooperative Research Centres are led by industry and education consortiums, with funding granted through the federal Department of Industry after a competitive bid process.
The most recent CRC established in WA was the Future Battery Industry CRC, which launched last year.
Mr McGowan said the state government had chipped in $10 million plus land in the Kwinana industrial precinct for the latest CRC pitch.
“The LNG Futures Facility (part of the CRC) will be a world-first microscale LNG facility that can test technologies at an affordable scale,” Mr McGowan said.
“LNG projects are large, costly and need to be planned so far out.
“It limits the ability to test and experiment new ideas.
“To conduct that kind of practical research and development in an environment that doesn’t risk billions of dollars of investment.
“LNG companies, contractors, service providers and small to medium size enterprises will be able to test and refine new processes in a live plant environment that’s expected to have the capacity to produce 10 tonnes of LNG per day.
“We’re looking for $40 million which I think is eminently reasonable when considering something as essential as the future competitiveness and longevity of our nation’s energy export industry.
“We believe we put up a worthy bid.”
The facility also appeared on a list of priority infrastructure initiatives published by Infrastructure Australia last month, with a near term timeframe.
The government also announced major project proponents would publish two year forward work schedules to give contractors a medium term look at potential jobs on the horizon.
Taskforce
The LNG Jobs Taskforce has been working on a project to encourage new industries into Western Australia using domestic gas, according to Department of Jobs, Science, Tourism and Innovation director general Rebecca Brown.
That will involve research into data on costs, and determining the biggest impediments to developing downstream processing, Ms Brown said.
Manufacturing of petrochemicals and production of hydrogen would be two potential examples, she said.
Ms Brown added that the taskforce, which includes representatives from government and industry, was working on initiatives to streamline prequalification rules for contractors, to ensure consistency across proponents.
Similarly, $400,000 was being spent by gas majors to streamline training of workers, she said.
