Canadian province Newfoundland picks 4 wind farm projects to power hydrogen plants

ABO Energy GmbH & Co KgaA

30/08/2023 17:52

By Rod Nickel
       WINNIPEG, Manitoba, Aug 30 (Reuters) - 
    Canada's gusty Atlantic province of Newfoundland and
Labrador selected four companies on Wednesday to develop wind
farms to supply power for new hydrogen plants, conditional on
further approvals.
    If the projects proceed, they would help Canada fulfill a
pledge last year to supply green hydrogen to Germany by 2025,
trying to overcome obstacles such as equipment shortages and
local opposition. It was unclear however how much demand may
materialize for green hydrogen and some experts have questioned
the efficiency of using Canadian renewable power to produce
hydrogen and ship it to Europe.
    Canada faces competition from the U.S. Gulf Coast region and
other parts of the world that want to dominate future hydrogen
trade.
    The Newfoundland government said EverWind NL Company,
Exploits Valley Renewable Energy Corp, ABO Wind and World Energy
GH2 can apply for approval to use government land, subject to
environmental assessment.
    Newfoundland had received 24 bids in total and in July
narrowed the list down to nine projects, which it did not
identify, to advance to a further evaluation stage.
    Hydrogen is a low-emissions fuel made by electrolyzing water
that can help decarbonize heavy-emitting industries and
transportation. It is considered "green" if produced with
renewable energy and "gray" if the process is fueled with
carbon-emitting natural gas.
    World Energy GH2 submitted its environmental impact
statement for its project to the provincial government this
month and hopes to start producing hydrogen in 2025. Some
residents have raised concerns about wind farms marring
Newfoundland's pristine landscape. 
    Once the federal government finalizes tax credits for green
hydrogen plants, World Energy GH2 will look to negotiate
off-take agreements with hydrogen buyers and raise additional
equity, CEO Sean Leet said in an interview. 
    "Our view is that the market will be under-supplied for the
foreseeable future," he said.

 (Reporting by Rod Nickel in Winnipeg, Manitoba; Editing by
David Gregorio)
 ((rod.nickel@tr.com; Twitter: @RodNickel_Rtrs;))