The statement, released overnight by energy and emission reduction minister Angus Taylor adds ultra-low cost solar to the list of priority technologies the government has flagged, including hydrogen and CCS.

While the statement is adamant it will support all forms of hydrogen production and let the market decide which is the best bet, the government's analysis is beginning to show that green hydrogen, produced via renewable-powered electrolysis of water will quickly become the cheapest form of hydrogen production. 

It also notes it would avoid carbon counting programs that its alternatives would need to ensure they are truly zero-emissions.

The government's stretch target of getting solar electricity generation down to A$15 per megawatt hour by 2030, with a 30% module efficiency rate at 30 cents per installed watt, and announced in the government's net-zero plan last week, is a key part of this solution. 

The target compares to the current solar efficiency rate of around 22%, it also aims to reduce the balance of plant costs by around 70%. 

The statement notes Australia's annual solar irradiation is the highest per-square-metre in the world and the country has geographic space required for large-scale solar developments. 

It said getting the cost of solar down to its new target would help get hydrogen production costs down to $2 per kilogram, increasing Australia's competitiveness in hydrogen exports. 

The government expects to meet this goal for steam-methane hydrogen paired with CCS, known as blue hydrogen by 2025, but has said green hydrogen could become the cheapest option just three years later by 2028. 

The assessment notes the cost of hydrogen paired with CCS depends on a number of factors, including the cost of natural gas prices, the distance between hydrogen production sites and CCS reservoirs and the adoption of a Hydrogen Guarantee of Origin scheme, which aims to certify how much CO2 emissions are associated with the production of each tonne of hydrogen.

The statement said it is spending A$9.7 million to trial a Guarantee of Origin scheme in Australia. 

The government assumes a A$5 per gigajoule cost of gas, noting for every additional $1/GJ in gas costs, hydrogen costs rise by around 13c/kg. 

Meanwhile, it notes the steep reductions in the cost of renewable electricity and electrolysers could make green hydrogen the cheapest way to produce hydrogen by 2028, saying that its solar stretch goal would expedite this price reduction. 

It expects the cost of gas and CCS to remain fairly consistent between now and 2050, while it estimates the cost of installed solar to fall from A$1/watt in 2020 to just 30c/w in 2030. 

Despite this, the statement said it would "support all forms of clean hydrogen production and leave it up to customers whether domestic or international, to choose their preferred production source". 

"Practically, clean hydrogen produced from coal or gas will support the development of early demand opportunities and position Australia to be an early global leader in hydrogen production," it reads. 

Grattan Institute energy director Tony Wood told Energy News that while he was supportive of government investment in hydrogen technology development, and the Low Emissions Technology Statement in general, companies and shareholders, not the taxpayer, should wear the cost of new technology investment. 

"The government helping to fund some of the technology at an early stage is fine, they just need to be careful that it doesn't invest in something that, by their own numbers, could become a stranded asset and owned by the taxpayer," he said. 

The full technology statement can be read here.