Australia’s leading research institutions and CSIRO have joined an international collaborative effort that would address challenges in clean energy production and storage.
The transnational effort, which involves the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom, will launch two multilateral research projects as part of the National Science Foundation Global Centers in Climate Change and Clean Energy (NSF Global Centers) program.
These countries have pledged a total of more than $118 million to back the NSF Global Centres program for five years to help tackle issues posed by climate change as the world moves towards net zero.
The two projects to be launched under the program are:
- the Electric Power Innovation for a Carbon-free Society (EPICS) Centre, which will be a global scientific leader in developing transformative computing, economic strategies, engineering solutions, and forward-thinking policies to enable a completely renewable energy power grid; and
- the Global Hydrogen Production Technologies (HyPT) Centre, which will focus on developing large-scale net-zero hydrogen production methods.
The EPICS Centre project involves the US, the UK, and Australia and will be led by CSIRO and AEMO, the University of Melbourne, and Monash University.
Meanwhile, the University of Adelaide, Flinders University, and Curtin University will represent Australia in the HyPT Centre project, working with partners from the US, Canada, the UK, Egypt, and Germany.
Institutions involved in both projects will pool resources and expertise to address the challenges of climate change and continue the charge towards net zero emissions.
“CSIRO is proud to stand alongside numerous Australian research organisations to combine our shared expertise, strengthening our national response to accelerate the transition to a cleaner, sustainable energy future,” said Kirsten Rose, acting CEO of CSIRO.
“Partnering with the NSF’s Global Centers means Australia remains at the global forefront of work to build a clean hydrogen industry, build integrated and equitable energy systems, and partnering with regions and industries for a low emissions future,” she added.
