Australian manufacturing of hydrogen electrolysers is set to expand under up to $49 million in funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) for a commercial-scale facility at Port Kembla, New South Wales.
The $98 million project will establish a manufacturing line capable of producing 50 MW of Hysata’s Australian-developed capillary-fed electrolyser technology each year.
The facility is designed to scale to 200 MW annually through 24-hour operations as demand increases, according to ARENA.
Hysata’s electrolyser technology was developed from research at the University of Wollongong and is designed to improve the efficiency of renewable hydrogen production. The technology is intended for applications in hard-to-abate industries including steelmaking, chemicals, shipping and heavy transport.
The project will also involve the deployment of early commercial megawatt-scale electrolyser systems to demonstrate the technology in real-world applications and support its commercial development.
ARENA CEO Darren Miller said local manufacturing of renewable energy technologies would help Australia capture more value from the energy transition.
“Australia has world-class clean energy innovators, and Hysata is a great example of home-grown technology with the potential to compete globally,” Miller said.
“This project will help move Australian innovation from the lab into large-scale manufacturing, creating skilled jobs while strengthening Australia’s capability to produce critical clean energy technologies locally.”
The project is expected to create about 40 skilled jobs across manufacturing, engineering and technical roles in the Illawarra region.
Hysata will work with the University of Wollongong and TAFE NSW Illawarra on training, internships and skills development pathways aimed at building the local workforce required for the project and broader clean energy activities.
The planned facility will also manufacture core electrolyser components locally, including membranes, anodes and cathodes. ARENA said this would support Australian manufacturing capability and clean energy supply chains.
“By supporting advanced manufacturing of electrolysers here in Australia, we’re helping build the industries that can underpin a future renewable hydrogen sector and create long-term economic opportunities,” Miller said.
The project is being funded through the Future Made in Australia Innovation Fund.
