Gold Hydrogen plans helium plant near Port Vincent
The Yorke Peninsula project could restart Australian helium production, with further testing and approvals needed before commercial operations begin.
Gold Hydrogen has outlined plans to produce helium commercially on the Yorke Peninsula, with a plant expected to begin operating within 18 months. The proposal follows its initial extraction at Ramsay 1, near Port Vincent, three months earlier.
Commercial production still requires more testing and approvals. The planned modular facility would cover an area comparable to two tennis courts within the company's 75,000-square-kilometre tenement.
Australia has had no helium production since supplies were exhausted at Santos's Darwin LNG plant in 2023. A worldwide shortage has since emerged after Iranian missile strikes on Qatar's Ras Laffan gas plant in March removed about a third of global supply.
Managing director Neil McDonald said Gold Hydrogen intended to increase output with an initial focus on domestic customers. He said Australian and international markets had expressed interest, and believed the site could supply both for decades.
McDonald said the development would generate jobs, but the roles available would become clearer as feasibility work advanced.
