Page 17 - AsianOil Week 39

AsianOil NRG AsianOil

kingdom’s efforts to use hydrogen to diversify making about 3mn tpy using steam methane
its economy following the summer announce- reformation of natural gas. However, it is now
ment of a deal to construct the world’s largest planning to target low- or zero-carbon hydro-
hydrogen facility at the new $500bn NEOM gen. Alberta considers itself well-positioned to
smart city. This is being built by a collabora- lead the way on blue hydrogen development,
tion of NEOM, ACWA Power and Air Prod- given that it already uses CCS to sequester CO2
ucts and will leverage 4 GW of solar and wind emissions from the oil sands through Royal
power to create 650 tonnes per day of green Dutch Shell’s Quest project. It is hoped that as
hydrogen, which will be converted into 1.2mn more CCS infrastructure is developed, the costs
tonnes per year (tpy) of green ammonia. will come down.
Elsewhere in the Middle East this week, Preliminary reports on the federal plan sug-
independent operators Genel Energy and Gulf gests that it envisions several Canadian prov-
Keystone Petroleum both reported receiving inces producing blue and green hydrogen, with
payment for August crude sales from the this industry generating significant jobs and rev-
Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), enue at the same time as it reduces GHG emis-
while Sweden’s Maha Energy was belatedly sions. However, concerns remain about the costs
awarded an EPSA for Oman’s Block 70. involved, as well as the cost-competitiveness of
low-carbon hydrogen.
If you’d like to read more about the key events shaping Despite these hurdles, however, Canada
the Middle East’s oil and gas sector then please click appears to be advancing more rapidly than
here for NewsBase’s MEOG Monitor. neighbouring US as far as its low-carbon hydro-
gen industry is concerned. This is not to say that
Canada leads the US nothing is being done in the US, though. Rather,
In North America, Canada is leading the way on smaller-scale initiatives are quietly being pro-
integrating hydrogen into its energy mix, while gressed, and could ultimately help underpin a
little is being done in the US. Indeed, in Canada, broader national hydrogen strategy.
hydrogen could play a key role in the future of The US Department of Energy’s (DoE) H2@
its oil sands – a region that has been battling Scale programme, described as a “multi-year ini-
to shake off its image as a major polluter. And tiative to fully realise hydrogen’s benefits across
efforts to formulate a strategy are underway on the economy,” has now been underway for four
both the federal and provincial levels. years, and is beginning to show results. Over the
Alberta Associate Minister of Natural Gas past year, the DoE is reported to have channelled
Dale Nally was reported in early September as more than $100mn in grants to around 50 pro-
saying that his province would unveil a strat- jects to further the H2@Scale initiative.
egy for developing blue hydrogen no later than The Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Associ-
October. This blue hydrogen would be used as ation’s (FCHEA) president, Morry Markowitz,
a cleaner alternative to natural gas for produc- described in August the programme as “crucial
ing heavy crude from Alberta’s steam-driven oil to enabling broader commercialisation of trans-
sands projects. formational hydrogen and fuel cell technologies”.
The plan is aimed at allowing Alberta to The FCHEA has published its own roadmap
produce more crude from the oil sands without towards a hydrogen economy for the US, which
exceeding the province’s cap of 100mn tonnes could be used to inform a national strategy if the
per year (tpy) on carbon emissions, according to US government decides to pursue one.
Nally’s comments. Thus far, the US has not prioritised decar-
“Hydrogen will allow us to continue to move bonisation nearly as much as Canada or various
the bar and reduce the carbon intensity of the oil other countries on the federal level, and it has
sands until you get to a point where there is no been up to the private sector to advance initia-
difference in [greenhouse gases] in conventional tives, including those involving hydrogen. With
oil and oil sands,” he told Reuters earlier this a particularly tense presidential election loom-
month. “Reducing the carbon intensity of the oil ing, much is currently uncertain about how
sands would, of course, allow more expansion.” much this will change beyond 2020.
Alberta’s strategy is being developed at the
same time as – and in line with – a federal hydro- If you’d like to read more about the key events shaping
gen plan that is being prepared by Ottawa. Can- the North American oil and gas sector then please click
ada is already a leading producer of hydrogen, here for NewsBase’s NorthAmOil Monitor.

Week 39 01•October•2020 www. NEWSBASE .com P17