Green hydrogen produced by the Queensland sun will be exported for use on the Pacific Island archipelago of Palau, as part of a newly announced demonstration project led by Japan’s Sojitz Corporation in partnership with Queensland government-owned utility CS Energy.
Aerial view of the site. Image: Solar Pacific. The Pacific island country of Palau has welcomed the commissioning of its first large-scale solar-plus-storage project, representing the largest power plant of its kind in the Western Pacific region.
With a capacity of 15.3 MWp solar PV and 12.9 MWh BESS, the project supports Palau's goal of achieving a 45% renewable energy share by 2025. The project's total investment of USD 29 million contributes to Palau's energy independence, clean power generation, carbon emissions reduction, and local employment opportunities.
Alternergy Holdings Corp. and its subsidiary Solar Pacific Energy Corporation have inaugurated Palau's first solar PV + battery energy storage system (BESS) project, marking a significant milestone in the region.
Namely, the hydrogen tank, an electrolyser and a fuel cell. The hydrogen tank was optimised at 25 000 kilogrammes (kg), the electrolyser at 25 MW and the fuel cell at 50 MW. In this scenario, one thing to note is that green hydrogen production significantly increases Palau’s total load, to approximately 120 GWh/year.
A key recommendation for the government, if it is to achieve its proposed target of a 100% share for renewables by 2050, is to accelerate deployment of solar PV and battery storage systems through a combination of Palau Public Utilities Corporation (PPUC) investments and power purchase agreements (PPAs).