Two separate projects to assess the production and export of ‘green’ ammonia were announced for the Australian state of Tasmania last week. One, by power utility Origin, will examine the feasibility of a >500 MW hydrogen producing plant, likely to be powered by hydropower, that would then be used to produce up to 420,000 tonnes a year of ammonia for export. The study is to be complete by the end of 2021, and production is pencilled in to commence in the mid-2020s.

Mining company Fortescue Metals Group is to study a 250 MW hydrogen plant that would produce up to 250,000 tonnes of ammonia per year, with an investment decision to come in 2021. Both projects would be situated at Bell Bay, on the northern coast of Tasmania, and it is unclear if both could proceed together, or if one would preclude the other. However, the two early-stage projects do show what is likely to become a more common strategic battle between companies in years to come – vying for access to industrial sites enjoying large amounts of dependable , low/zero carbon energy and shipping infrastructure.