Stanwell appoint dedicated CQUniversity Research Chair to advance hydrogen and renewables

First published by CQUniversity

By Jocelyn Sticklen (CQU) and Owen Hanson (Stanwell)

Stanwell Corporation and CQUniversity Australia have jointly announced the appointment of a foundation Professorial Research Chair to advance innovation opportunities aligned with Stanwell’s hydrogen and renewable energy ambitions. 

The appointment of globally renowned clean energy expert Professor Jonathan Love was announced today at an industry event to launch the construction of the new Gladstone Hydrogen Central information centre that will be located at the University’s Gladstone Marina campus. 

As part of his new role as Stanwell Chair in Hydrogen, Professor Love will provide academic, research and strategic leadership to initiate, develop and steer a team of researchers to deliver knowledge and innovation to support the development of a thriving hydrogen and renewable energy industry, with a specific focus on the Gladstone region. 

Stanwell Chief Executive Officer Michael O’Rourke said Queensland’s energy sector is undergoing a transformational change to a clean energy future, and renewable hydrogen has the potential to play a key role in this transformation.

“Renewable hydrogen can help achieve several objectives for Queensland, Australia, and our trading partners including domestic decarbonisation, economic transition, and new clean energy export markets for Australia.

“Stanwell is committed to driving the development of Queensland’s hydrogen industry and we are delighted to deepen our partnership with CQUniversity by funding the establishment of the Stanwell Professorial Chair of Hydrogen at CQUniversity. 

“In his role, Professor Love will focus on applied research that supports advancing the hydrogen industry in Queensland, including our flagship project, the Central Queensland Hydrogen Project (CQ-H2)," Mr O'Rourke said.

CQUniversity’s Vice-Chancellor and President said he was delighted to welcome a researcher with Professor Love’s experience to CQUniversity and thanked Stanwell for their vision and ongoing commitment to regional Queensland and the development of a strong, clean energy industry. 

“The Stanwell Professorial Chair in Hydrogen is a new role that will work right across Queensland (especially right here in Central Queensland) to oversee research and development opportunities related to all aspects of the emerging hydrogen industry including technology, manufacturing processes, commercialisation, export, workforce development, and education and training. 

“As Chair, Professor Love will also be responsible for growing the University’s research capacity and talent in hydrogen and renewables. 

“As part of the role, he will work closely with CQUniversity’s Vice-President of Research and the Director of the Centre for Hydrogen and Renewable Energy, to engage with industry partners and deliver research-informed solutions to real-world challenges. 

“He will also work directly with Stanwell to help them realise their hydrogen and renewables ambitions by delivering a tailored research and workforce development program. 

“This partnership is a great example of two outstanding Queensland organisations working together to benefit the regions and create new and exciting opportunities to boost sustainability, the economy, and our communities. I thank Stanwell for their vision and investment in this new role and our regions and I welcome Professor Love to the team,” Prof Klomp said. 

Professor Jonathan Love will work with industry partners and clean energy researchers across Queensland and says he is looking forward to building strong industry partnerships and further building CQUniversity’s credentials in hydrogen and renewable energy research and development. 

“I am looking forward to working with experts from both Stanwell and CQUniversity to play a part in realising Stanwell’s ambitions and to also help drive the development and uptake of a thriving clean energy ecosystem in Gladstone and beyond.

“There are already so many exciting projects happening in the region, and I believe we have a real opportunity to establish a brand-new industry, create jobs and deliver a lasting legacy of economic growth through clean, reliable energy,” said Prof Love. 

The establishment of a Stanwell Research Chair role is the latest development in a strong partnership between Stanwell and CQUniversity that has already seen the delivery of micro-credentials in foundational hydrogen skills to Queensland secondary students, and a Memorandum of Understanding that sees the two organisations partner on skills development in the renewable energy space through Stanwell’s Future Energy Innovation and Training Hub (FEITH), located at the Stanwell Power Station near Rockhampton.

Professor Jonathan Love has a PhD in Electrochemistry with a focus on hydrogen and fuel cell research for over 30 years in industry and academia. 

Professor Love’s expertise is in developing new technologies using electrochemical and materials science principles for renewable energy systems that include fuel cells, electrolysers and energy storage. 

In industry, Professor Love was a co-developer of an award-winning RD&D project for a world-leading innovative Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) product.  Before joining CQU, Professor Love was Academic Lead at QUT in the design and construction of laboratory scale (<1kW) and pilot plant scale (50kW) solar to renewable hydrogen production testbeds. 

Professor Love was a member of the Australian Hydrogen International Collaboration delegations to UK in 2022 and Singapore in 2023, and is the lead of the hydrogen production working group in the Australian Hydrogen Research Network (AHRN). Professor Love is a subject matter expert on Standards Australia Hydrogen Technology Committee ME093 working group WG6 on fuel cells that mirror IEA TC105.