Queensland company Gold Hydrogen officially commenced drilling for natural hydrogen on southern Yorke Peninsula on Tuesday, October 11.

The company is seeking to prove a large natural hydrogen field exists in the area, after geologists discovered nearly 100-year-old records from oil and gas drilling tests in the area.

International companies Savanna Energy and SLB are leading the drill program, which began at Ramsay 1 well, near Minlaton, and adjacent the site where tests alluded to the presence of hydrogen more than 90 years ago.

Gold Hydrogen managing director Neil McDonald said the company was grateful for the support it has received from stakeholders and the pace at which the government had moved to enable exploration.

“South Australians have moved faster on hydrogen than anyone.

“As you can imagine, there is huge excitement in our team as we try to be the first in this country to discover natural hydrogen,” Mr McDonald said.

“We believe hydrogen is continuously produced from the interaction underground of certain rock formations and water.

“Independent estimates have shown the South Australian field could hold enough gas to power the city of Adelaide for 40 years.

“Getting natural hydrogen from the sub-surface could come at a major cost discount to man-made hydrogen, such as green hydrogen made with renewable energy or blue hydrogen from natural gas.”

Mr McDonald said Australia needed projects like this to achieve its net zero goals.

“We hope to be part of the solution, and we’ll know in weeks how big an opportunity this is for us, and the country,” he said.

Minister for Energy and Mining Tom Koutsantonis said South Australia was the only state in the country which currently has a well dedicated to hydrogen exploration.

“It has been fantastic to see recent high levels of interest in exploration for naturally occurring hydrogen in South Australia — I’m confident it will have a place in our emerging hydrogen industry,” he said.

“Combining natural hydrogen prospects, our HRE Bill and our Hydrogen Jobs Plan, South Australia is quick becoming recognised as a global hub for all things hydrogen.

“Considering this and coupled with our favourable geology for natural hydrogen generation, it’s little wonder why a Queensland company is looking to explore here.

“It’s good to see Gold Hydrogen intend to use local civil contractors to construct access tracks and I understand they’ve even had to book out the nearby Port Vincent Motel to accommodate the drilling crew.”

This article appeared in Yorke Peninsula Country Times, 24 October 2023.