Western Australia’s (WA) Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) says the proposed Western Green Energy Hub (WGEH) will be subject to a “robust” public environmental review (PER) which, as the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) progresses, will include opportunities for public and stakeholder input.
The WGEH, a joint venture proposal of Hong Kong-based developer InterContinental Energy, Europe-headquartered CWP Global, and WA’s Mirning Green Energy, is to comprise 70 GW of solar and wind generation, developed in stages to power electrolysers to produce green hydrogen for both domestic consumption and export.
The project would include more than 60 million PV panels and up to 3,000 wind turbines spread across a 2.2 million-hectare site in WA’s southeast, about 440 kilometres east of Kalgoorlie and to the northwest of Eucla near the South Australian border.
The EPA said the project is a “complex case” and that “detailed assessment is required to determine the extent of the proposal’s direct and indirect impacts, and whether the EPA environmental factor objectives can be met.”
It highlighted the potential impacts that the clearing of about 27,000 ha, and the construction and operation of the project could have on areas of cultural significance, water-based communities and habitat, inland waters, and subterranean landforms in the Nullarbor Plains limestone karst system.
The proponents said although the project has a large perimeter, about 95% of the land would remain untouched and the proposal’s conceptual design has focused on mitigating direct environmental impacts.
WGEH Chief Executive Officer Ray Macdonald said the developer is “very clear” about its responsibilities and about meeting the standards prescribed by the EPA.
“We are fully aligned with the EPA prescribed level of assessment, and the related assessment requirements,” he said.
“We have already spent considerable time on country, with traditional owners, environmental and cultural heritage team and we will now move into more targeted and advanced studies.”
“The resulting information will continue to inform WGEH on species, ecosystems and other values that are protected or particularly sensitive.”
“This in turn will guide our primary avoidance strategy, meaning related areas can be totally avoided and buffer zones introduced to ensure we have no physical overlay nor impact.”
It is anticipated the WGEH will be constructed in seven stages with the first phase to be developed near Eucla. This is to comprise about 6 GW of wind and solar PV power, alongside 330,000 tonnes per annum of green hydrogen production.
When fully complete, the project could generate more than 200 TWh of renewable energy annually and produce about 3.5 million tonnes of green hydrogen per year.
Macdonald said the company hopes to reach financial close on the first stage in 2029, adding that project has been bolstered by the Australian government’s proposed $2 per kg renewable Hydrogen Production Tax Incentive which was tabled in Parliament this week.
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