Australian hydrogen research and development company, Star Scientific Limited, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Philippines Department of Energy to help drive the country’s energy self-sufficiency and development of green hydrogen as a fuel source.
For the Philippines, which is largely reliant on imported fossil fuels, this agreement heralds a shift to hydrogen and provides an opportunity for energy security and self-sufficiency in an environmentally sustainable way.
At the heart of the MOU is Star Scientific Limited’s technology, the Hydrogen Energy Release Optimizer or HERO®. The technology is a catalyst that converts hydrogen and oxygen into heat and water, without degrading the catalyst. There is no combustion, and the only outputs are heat and pure water. The HERO® can generate temperatures beyond 700 degrees Celsius in just over three minutes, and it is being used as the heat source in the heat exchanger system.
The objectives of the MoU include:
- Studying the retrofitting of existing coal-fired power plants to run on the HERO® system powered by green hydrogen;
- Exploring the utilisation of green hydrogen production in the Philippines using offshore wind resources;
- Investigating decentralised scalable power systems for all of the Philippines’ inhabited islands utilising green hydrogen, HERO® and the new breed of supercritical CO2 turbines;
- Using the HERO® system for decentralised desalination of ocean water.
As part of the MoU, the Star Group will assist the Philippine Department of Energy with the development and implementation of funding models to attract global financing for the different aspects of all the projects as they develop.
Global Group Chairman of Star Scientific Limited, Andrew Horvath, said he was proud that an Australian innovation had captured the attention of a national government.
“This agreement with the Department of Energy of the Republic of the Philippines represents a significant milestone in the development of the global hydrogen economy. Thanks to this bold and visionary step by the Philippines, we can begin to see the reality of whole economies turning over to hydrogen and a rapid acceleration to sustainable energy on a global scale. This is just the start,” said Horvath said.
“This will represent the largest single boost to Australia’s role in developing the global hydrogen economy, heralding a new era of research, development and deployment in the manufacture and installation of all parts of the hydrogen supply chain. We are particularly grateful and excited to be part of the next phase of the Philippines’ economic growth.”
Originally published by Power Engineering International.
