Iron ore producer Fortescue has welcomed the news of the Hydrogen Headstart program, which was announced alongside the recent Federal Government Budget.
The Hydrogen Headstart program has been given $2 billion to scale up development of Australia’s renewable hydrogen industry by providing revenue support for large‑scale renewable hydrogen projects through competitive hydrogen production contracts.
Fortescue said the Hydrogen Headstart program demonstrates how seriously the Federal Government is taking the green hydrogen industry and the critical role it will play in the future of Australia.
Fortescue is in the middle of a transition from being one of the world’s largest and lowest cost producers of iron ore to becoming a global green energy and resources company.
As a result, the major miner has green hydrogen projects in the pipeline that will drive Australia towards using green energy, resulting in significant economic growth.
“Green hydrogen will lower emissions, create greater energy security for Australia and create new jobs. It is an important part of the decarbonisation of the Australian economy,” the company said.
“Over the years ahead the hydrogen industry in Australia will create tens of thousands of jobs according to independent modelling from Deloitte.”
Fortescue said it is proud to have helped contribute to the Federal Government’s Budget surplus, as well as previous Federal and State Budgets.
“In the 2022 financial year, Fortescue paid $4.2 billion in corporate tax and $1.6 billion in State Government royalties,” the company said.
Fortescue welcomed the Budget’s critical minerals commitment of $57.1 million, the greater definition around reforms of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 which would include the timeframe and role of the new Environmental Protection Australia, and the implementation of the Safeguard Mechanism and its incorporation into the Budget.
“Our aim is to make fossil fuels redundant across our operations by 2030 (Scope 1 and 2),” Fortescue said.