Qld-based LINE Hydrogen has ambitious plans to build a $100m plant in Tasmania

LINE Hydrogen has partnered with Climate Capital as part of its plans to build a new hydrogen plant north of Launceston and start production early next year.

The plant is expected to produce up to 1500 kilos of hydrogen a day, enough to run 33 B-dboule semi trailers continuously.

A Queensland-based hydrogen start-up has ambitious plans to build a $100m plant in Tasmania to provide a clean fuel alternative for diesel used in the mining and heavy haulage sectors.

The inaugural “Great Southern’’ project by LINE Hydrogen will be based in George Town, north of Launceston, where it will source power from Climate Capital’s planned new Bell Bay Solar Farm nearby.

Brendan James, LINE’s chairman, said on Friday that he is confident of securing development approvals, with construction tipped to start in the middle of this year and production set to begin in February 2023.

“We’re not expecting any issues with the approvals,’’ said Mr James, a metallurgical engineer who previously worked in remote copper and gold mining operations in WA and Queensland.

“It’s a very silent, very clean operation and we’ve been fairly enthusiastically received in Tasmania for this project.’’

The plant is expected to produce up to 1500 kilos of hydrogen a day, enough to run 33 B-dboule semi trailers continuously.

The plant is expected to produce up to 1500 kilos of hydrogen per day, enough to run 33 B-double semi-trailers continuously.

Mr James said his firm, headquartered in the Brisbane suburb of Geebung, had already secured take-up commitments from a large international drill and blasting company, as well as a multinational transport planning to trial hydrogen-powered trucks.

Funding for the project will come from a mix of existing shareholders and institutional investors. Additional backing will come from a planned ASX listing later this year. LINE, which runs a technical division to help retrofit trucks, also has the lofty goal of building an even larger hydrogen plant in Queensland.

Mr James said he hoped to have a $200m facility up and running in Toowoomba by March 2024. It would be capable of churning out 3000 kilos of hydrogen per day, or twice the capacity of the Tasmanian plant. Planning work on the project has been under way for the past two years.

Mr James, who established LINE in 2019, said that replacing diesel with hydrogen would help Australia become energy self-reliant, improve the nation’s trade terms, and help move industry towards net zero goals.

“Every single day, Australians consume around 84 million litres of diesel, increasing our Co2 emissions, negatively affecting Australia’s terms of trade and making us reliant on imports,’’ Mr James said.

Climate Capital, which builds, owns and operates nearly $2bn worth of renewable energy facilities, has already developed more than 1700 megawatts of generation capacity across the country.

Climate Capital chief executive Shane Bartel described the partnership with LINE as a “significant step’’ in the goal of decarbonising the economy.

“We are extremely proud that our Bell Bay Solar Farm will support an industry-leading hydrogen production facility in Tasmania, and ultimately play a key role in facilitating a cost-competitive, emission-free transition for the heavy transport sector,’’ Mr Bartel said.