The Department of Jobs, Tourism, Science and Innovation is the lead agency responsible for the identification, planning and development of the Strategic Industrial Areas (SIAs) across WA.

SIAs are intended for use by strategic and heavy industries that generate significant investment, employment and value of production for the State. SIAs are located close to Western Australia’s abundant resources and connected to key infrastructure such as roads, rail and ports.

Many of the world’s largest resource companies, including Chevron, BP, Shell, Woodside, BHP Billiton or Yara have projects in the SIAs.

One strategic area is the Australian Marine Complex south of Perth which ensures the ongoing development and expansion of Western Australia’s heavy manufacturing industries including shipbuilding, marine, defence, oil and gas and mining machinery, plant and equipment.

With approximately 72 kilometres of new passenger rail and up to 18 new stations, METRONET is a catalyst to turn over 5,000 hectares of land around new stations to desirable places for investment in housing, jobs and services for growing communities. As one of the largest single investments in public transport that Perth has ever seen, the METRONET will create a connected Perth with more transport, housing and employment choices.

The Oakajee Strategic Industrial Area (SIA) is a designated, greenfields SIA, located 435km north of Western Australia’s capital city of Perth, and 23km north of the Mid West regional city, Geraldton. The Oakajee SIA has 4 key land uses:

• Strategic industry core – 1134ha
• Buffer area – 4070ha – with potential for wind and solar power generation
• Future port/coastal area – 1000ha
• Industry support areas – 196ha

The Western Australian Government has recently sought Expressions of Interest (EOIs) to understand industry views on what would be required to transform the Oakajee SIA into a globally competitive, sustainable industrial area, with a focus on the production of renewable hydrogen.

Input has been sought to establish the infrastructure requirements, operational frameworks and interested parties to activate Oakajee as a premium location to establish a hydrogen project. The EOI was focused on the domestic production and use of renewable hydrogen, including for industrial processes or products derived from renewable hydrogen, however the possible future export of hydrogen has not been precluded.

The Oakajee SIA’s renewable hydrogen potential is centred on its world-class and diurnally complementary wind and solar potential, which provides a consistently high renewable contribution to energy production capacity.

Initial order of magnitude assessments indicate the Oakajee SIA buffer has the potential to provide up to 270MW of wind generation or 1250MW of solar photovoltaic renewable energy. Supported by gas firming, it is estimated this generation capacity could provide a levelised cost of electricity below 10c/kWh.

The call for EOIs closed on 24 December 2020, 5pm Australian Western Standard Time. The WA Government will now assess submissions and inform stakeholders when decisions are made on next steps.

You can find updates on the Oakajee SIA here or contact our office if you’d like to arrange a time to discuss further.