Japanese Vessel in Australia to Load World’s First Hydrogen Shipment

Innovative development:

The world’s first liquefied hydrogen carrier, the Suiso Frontier, arrived in Victoria, Australia January 20, 2022 on the first leg of its historic maiden voyage. The vessel left Japan in December, and after avoiding bad weather delayed its arrival at Port of Hastings, is now set to load its first shipment of liquified hydrogen as part of a demonstration project undertaken by Japan’s Hydrogen Energy Supply Chain (HESC) Pilot Project.

During the pilot project, 99.999 percent pure hydrogen has been produced from Latrobe Valley coal and biomass via gasification, trucked approximately 80 miles to Hastings, cooled to negative 253 degrees Celsius, and subsequently liquified to less than 800 times its gaseous volume to create the liquefied hydrogen. The pilot project can produce up to 70 kg a day of hydrogen through a process that reacts the coal with oxygen and steam under high heat and pressure.

HESC’s vision is to produce hydrogen through this extraction process while capturing and storing CO2 via the CarbonNet Project. The goal of the Japanese-Australian partnership is to reach a commercial stage where 225,000 tons of liquefied hydrogen (LH2) is produced. According to HESC in the commercial phase, the project will contribute to reducing global CO2 emissions by some 1.8 million tons per year, while providing valuable infrastructure for other hydrogen projects in the region.

Published Jan 21, 2022 by The Maritime Executive