<article><p class="lead">The Australian federal environment minister has rejected an expanded plan to build a 26,000MW wind and solar project in the Pilbara region of Western Australia to produce hydrogen and ammonia for export to the Asia-Pacific region. </p><p>The $36bn project would cause too much damage to wetlands, coastal regions and critical habitat for migratory birds, minister Sussan Ley said. </p><p>The 15,000MW Asian Renewable Energy Hub (AREH) has already been approved for development, but this smaller project included an underwater transmission cable to Indonesia or Singapore rather than a hydrogen or ammonia export facility. </p><p>The larger 26,000MW AREH was <a href="https://direct.argusmedia.com/newsandanalysis/article/2153837">granted major project status by Canberra</a> in October as part of a wider policy to support the development of a hydrogen export industry in Australia. It is likely that the project will be revised again to address some of the environmental concerns raised by Ley, before being resubmitted for approval.</p><p>The AREH consortium includes Danish wind turbine manufacturer Vestas, Australian private-sector energy firm CWP Renewables and Hong Kong-based energy firm InterContinental Energy.</p><p>The AREH project partners plan to make a final investment decision (FID) on the venture by 2025 and intend to sign supply agreements with consumers before the FID.</p><p class="bylines">By Jo Clarke</p></article>
