Stanwell Corporation has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Traditional Owners to continue working on realising shared benefits from  Queensland’s global-scale renewable hydrogen project. 

The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) establishes a framework for Stanwell, a Queensland Government-owned corporation, to engage with the First Nations Bailai, Gurang, Gooreng Gooreng, Taribelang Bunda (BGGGTB) People to ensure they benefit from the construction and operation of the Central Queensland Hydrogen (CQ-H2) Project, and their cultural heritage is protected.  The MOU sets out the key principles by which Stanwell and the BGGGTB People will engage during the development and operation of the project, ensuring a strong relationship built on trust, transparency and a common vision from the start. 

What is the Central Queensland Hydrogen Project?  

Stanwell is working with domestic and international partners from across the hydrogen supply chain – including Japan’s Iwatani Corporation, Kansai Electric Power Company and Marubeni Corporation, and Singapore’s Keppel Infrastructure – to develop the Central Queensland Hydrogen (CQ-H2) Project in the Gladstone region. The CQ-H2 Project includes the development of a large-scale renewable hydrogen production facility at Aldoga, as well as a hydrogen transport facility (pipeline), and a liquefaction and shipping facility at the Port of Gladstone. The project will also supply renewable hydrogen to an ammonia production facility. 

Commercial operations are planned to commence from 2029. Once operational, the project aims to deliver renewable hydrogen to Japan and Singapore, as well as supplying industrial customers in Central Queensland.  A feasibility study for the project was successfully completed in 2022, and a Front End Engineering Design (FEED) study has been concluded to enable a Final Investment Decision (FID).  The FEED study is the largest investment in an Australian renewable hydrogen project of its kind to date, with a commitment of $117 million from government and consortium partners, including $15 million from the Queensland Renewable Energy and Hydrogen Jobs Fund, and $20 million from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency. 

A foundation for a bright future 

The CQ-H2 Project is being developed with the Traditional Owners of the land upon which CQ-H2 Project infrastructure is to be developed, in accordance with Native Title – the recognition in Australian law that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples continue to hold rights and interests to their lands and waters, according to their traditional laws and customs. 

Activities that have the potential to impact on these interests must be undertaken in accordance with the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth) and the mirroring Native Title (Queensland) Act 1993.  For the CQ-H2 Project area, the Native Title party is the First Nations Bailai, Gurang, Gooreng Gooreng, Taribelang Bunda Peoples Aboriginal Corporation Registered Native Title Body Corporate, referred to as the Prescribed Body Corporate (PBC). 

Stanwell, as the lead partner on the ground for the project, has been engaged in conversations with the PBC since 2022, during the initial CQ-H2 Project Feasibility Study. This engagement has continued throughout the FEED study in 2023 and 2024, and has included listening to the feedback of First Nations people with regard to their desire for shared prosperity, and drawing on their knowledge of the types of models that have worked – and haven’t worked – in the past.

Since early 2024, Stantwell has been meeting regularly with the PBC Board to commence formal discussions. This early and ongoing engagement, during which Stanwell has shared information about the project and discussed detailed benefits-sharing proposals, has meant that these proposals can be incorporated into the design at the FEED stage. 

After two years of engagement, an MOU has now been signed on behalf of Stanwell Corporation by Michael O’Rourke, Stanwell Chief Executive Officer, and the PBC Board.  This MOU charts the steps to formalise an Indigenous Land Use Agreement (ILUA), which provides consent for the CQ-H2 Project’s impacts to Native Title. The ILUA will clearly set out how land and waters can be used, and the economic, social and cultural benefits the project will provide.

Working together with our First Nations groups, Stanwell will be seeking to achieve the following outcomes through the ILUA: 

Developing and implementing strategies to engage Traditional Owners and First Nations’ people’s participation in the development and operation of the project. 

Building and maintaining relationships between Traditional Owners and project team leads in ways that build acceptance and inclusion of cultural values, knowledge and priorities, facilitating multi-generational benefits in each stage of the project’s life cycle. 

Creating business opportunities and jobs for Traditional Owners through building knowledge and capacity to take advantage of the energy transition.

Creating a pathway to shared prosperity. 

The MOU also lays the foundation for negotiating a Cultural Heritage Agreement (CHA), which will establish processes for the identification, protection and management of Aboriginal cultural heritage, in accordance with the Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Act 2003 (ACHA). CHAs are crucial to the preservation of Indigenous knowledge and cultural practices, and the mitigation of potential impacts on cultural heritage from energy and resource projects. 

The CHA will be in place for the project’s whole lifecycle – from construction to operation and the site’s eventual rehabilitation – to ensure Aboriginal cultural heritage and values are protected.

Once these agreements have been successfully negotiated and signed by all parties, the next  step is for them to be lodged with the National Native Title Tribunal (NNTT) for registration. Once registered, they’ll operate as legal contracts, formalising Stanwell’s commitment to ensuring First Nations groups benefit from Queensland’s clean energy transformation. 

Supporting long-term benefits for the Central Queensland region 

The CQ-H2 Project is committed to working with the Gladstone community to ensure the project creates long-term benefits for the region, and will continue stakeholder and community engagement activities in Gladstone.

If you have any questions about the project, please visit www.cqh2.energy or email cqh2project@stanwell.com, or call our Stakeholder team on 1800 300 351 (toll free in Australia) or +61 (7) 3228 4333.