Mid-West Hub

Overview

Within the mid-west region of Western Australia, the Western Australian Government is developing the Oakajee Strategic Industrial Area, around 25 kilometres north of the coastal city of Geraldton, as a new heavy industrial area with access to a multi-user deep-water port at Oakajee. The Industrial Area also includes a large ‘buffer’ area capable of hosting facilities to capture the region’s considerable wind and solar resources.

In 2020, the Western Australian Government undertook an Expression of Interest to obtain market interest in the development of the Oakajee Strategic Industrial Area as a multi-product renewables-based hydrogen industrial precinct.  In view of significant interest in the opportunity, the State Government’s Industrial Lands Panel has allocated land to several proponents, subject to negotiations and agreement being reached on key terms with DevelopmentWA (as the State’s central land development agency).

An international supply chain study is focussed on understanding the potential for and options for accelerating hydrogen exports from the Oakajee Strategic Industrial Area.

Funding

As of July 2023, the Western Australian State Government had committed around AUD$55 million to the activation of the Oakajee Strategic Industrial Area, including AUD$5.5 million across a number of site activation studies which are expected to be finalised by late 2024-mid 2025.

Projects

In view of its early-stage development, there are limited full chain hydrogen-related projects in the immediate vicinity of the Oakajee Strategic Industrial Area included in HyResource (as of August 2023).

 

August 2023