Masdar, Abu Dhabi’s renewable energy company, and Engie, a low-carbon energy and services player, have signed a collaboration agreement with Fertiglobe to co-develop a green hydrogen facility in the UAE.
The three companies will study the development, design, financing, procurement, construction, operation, and maintenance of an industrial-scale plant in Al Ruwais, Abu Dhabi, to be installed near Fertiglobe’s ammonia production plants, with a potential capacity up to 200 MW.
The facility is targeted to be operational in 2025, with Fertiglobe – the sole long term off-taker. Fertiglobe, the largest producers of nitrogen fertilizers and ammonia in the MENA region with a combined production capacity of 6.7 million tons of urea and merchant ammonia, will use the green hydrogen to produce green ammonia.
Green ammonia, produced from renewable energy sources such as solar and wind instead of natural gas, is an ideal carrier to store and transport hydrogen, and can help decarbonize sectors which together account for 90 per cent of current global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, the statement added. Green ammonia is also an important alternative fuel on its own.
In December, Masdar and ENGIE announced the formation of a strategic alliance to explore the co-development of a UAE-based green hydrogen hub. The two companies sought to develop projects with a capacity of at least 2 gigawatts (GW) by 2030, with a total regional investment of $5bn. By leveraging existing infrastructure, the companies will initially target local supply, with the aim of expanding capacity to create a green hydrogen hub for the GCC, with the potential to export to other markets.
