The Victorian and New South Wales governments are each investing 10 million AUD to deliver the Hume Hydrogen Highway (HHH), an Australian-first renewable hydrogen refuelling network that aims to capitalise on hydrogen’s potential in the transport sector.
The programme will support the design and delivery of the HHH between Melbourne and Sydney, Australia’s busiest freight corridor.
The HHH grant programme will support the development of at least four refuelling stations along the Hume highway, as well as the purchase of approximately 25 hydrogen-powered heavy freight vehicles. These fuel cell electric vehicles have the potential to benefit the freight sector by offering faster refuelling times, increased payload and greater range than current transport options that are zero-emission at the point of use.
Hydrogen, including ‘green’ hydrogen, has potential to be cost competitive with diesel. Long term, this alternative could lead to cheaper fuel prices and fewer price shocks for the freight industry.
In addition, the Victorian and NSW governments have signed a separate memorandum of understanding with Queensland to collaborate and share knowledge on the learnings from the HHH to aid the future development of an interconnected east coast renewable hydrogen refuelling networking, focusing on key freight routes.
The transport sector is one of the nation’s largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions. Switching to renewable hydrogen therefore provides an opportunity to reduce these emissions and lower pollution for local communities.
