Rio Tinto, Japan's Sumitomo to build hydrogen plant in Queensland

(Reuters) - Rio Tinto said on Wednesday it would build a hydrogen plant in Gladstone, Queensland along with Japan's Sumitomo Corporation as the miner seeks to minimise carbon emissions at its Yarwun alumina refinery in the region.

The hydrogen plant, which will test low-carbon alumina refining and cut Yarwun's carbon dioxide emissions by about 3,000 tonnes per year, is expected to produce about 6,000 tonnes of alumina annually, Rio said.

The project will include construction of a 2.5-megawatt on-site electrolyser to supply hydrogen to the Yarwun refinery.

Sumitomo will own and operate the electrolyser at Yarwun and directly supply hydrogen to the miner. The electrolyser will have an annual hydrogen production capacity of more than 250 tonnes.

"This pilot plant is an important step in testing whether hydrogen can replace natural gas in Queensland alumina refineries," Rio Tinto Aluminium Pacific Operations Managing Director Armando Torres said.

Construction of the plant will start in 2024 and it is expected to be operational by 2025.

($1 = 1.4954 Australian dollars)

(Reporting by Rishav Chatterjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi)