This story has been updated since its original publication to include ICE’s comments.
Intercontinental Energy (ICE) has scaled back expansion plans for its mammoth Western Australia (WA) green hydrogen and ammonia project.
The developer recently requested a termination of its Environmental Impact Assessment on its Australian Renewable Energy Hub (AREH) and will now pursue building up to 15GW of renewables capacity instead of the original 26GW.
The firm told H2 View that the withdrawal was a “purely administrative” step relating to a project configuration it had stopped pursuing “several years” ago.
ICE said the project is “well progressed” with environmental approval for the construction of 15GW of energy assets and will launch an initial 1GW phase using energy supplied via the proposed Pilbara Green Link power transmission line.
It claimed the phase “creates the opportunity” for developing the originally planned 26GW.
Located in the Pilbara region, ICE had planned for AREH to eventually produce 1.6 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) of green hydrogen and 9 mtpa.
Plans for the 26GW build-out were backed in February by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA), which granted $21m (€18m) for its development.
The scale-back follows British oil and gas firm BP pulling out of the development in July 2025, leaving the WA government scouring for alternative majority stakeholders in Japan.
It comprises a block for ICE’s ambitions in WA, which also involve the Western Green Energy Hub (WGEH), a 70GW plant in the Goldfields region slated to produce 5 mtpa of green hydrogen.
Asian majors came on board with WGEH in February, lining up a final investment decision for 2029.
While near-term outlook for green hydrogen in the region remains cautious as projects face commercial and offtake challenges, it retains long-term potential underpinned by abundant renewable resources, land and export infrastructure.
Recently, a 700MW green hydrogen-to-fertiliser project shortlisted for federal government subsidies lined up US electrolyser maker Electric Hydrogen as a key technology partner.
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