Oman to develop green hydrogen project

Oman will develop its first green hydrogen project using solar and wind power, state-owned energy company OQ said.

The 25,000MW project will be developed by a consortium of OQ, Hong Kong-based green hydrogen firm InterContinental Energy and Kuwait's clean energy investment firm Enertech. It did not give details on a timeline for the project, which has been in a planning phase for three years with wind and solar studies conducted in Oman's central Al-Wusta governorate.

The power generated will be used for water desalination and electrolysis at a coastal facility that will produce 1.8mn t/yr of green hydrogen and up to 10mn t/yr of green ammonia. The hydrogen could be used domestically, exported directly or converted into green ammonia for export, the consortium said.

"Existing energy infrastructure in Oman provides additional future options to develop synthetic fuels for the aviation sector, which will be critical for decarbonization," it said.

InterContinental Energy works with a consortium on a similar project in Australia, using 15,000MW of wind and solar power to produce hydrogen and ammonia for export to Asia-Pacific. It plans to make a final investment decision on that by 2025, and said that the falling cost of wind and solar means it possible for hydrogen and green ammonia export projects to be developed at scale.

These lower costs and the growing importance of reducing emissions has pushed the Mideast Gulf's traditionally oil-and-gas focused economies to consider options for hydrogen and ammonia production. Saudi Arabia shipped its first blue ammonia cargo last September as a trial for use in power plants with no CO2 emissions, and the UAE is building a hydrogen business case and aims to be a major global supplier.

By Adal Mirza