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Written by Daniel Graeber for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The provincial government in oil-rich Alberta said it was making a multi-million dollar down payment on establishing a hydrogen center, a commitment that comes at a time when the so-called energy transition is seemingly on hold.
The devastating impact on consumer demand during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic created an economic opening of sorts to pivot to greener shoots. Demand, after all, had cratered so much that crude oil prices traded in negative territory for a brief time in April 2020. According to Investopedia, "green shoots" is a term used to describe signs of economic recovery or positive data during an economic downturn.
That economic opening was closed when Russian military forces entered Ukraine in late February. Russia is in the top three in the world when it comes to crude oil and natural gas production and the resultant Western-backed sanctions means world economies, mainly in Europe, may be starved of essential fuels.
From the U.S., Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said the domestic energy sector should be on a war footing, given that U.S production rivals that of Russia's.
The U.S., meanwhile, gets the vast majority of its foreign oil from Canada and most of that comes from Alberta, which sits on one of the largest oil deposits in the world. The provincial oil sector accounts for about 7% of total Canadian GDP, though the type of oil produced there is arguably among the most-polluting in the world.
Indeed, Canada also has presented itself as a substitute for missing Russian barrels--it too has vast oil and gas supplies. Canadian Energy Minister Sonya Savage echoed the sentiment of her U.S. counterpart, telling the Reuters news service from the sidelines of the CERAWeek energy conference in Houston last month that "we are the solution" to global supply-side woes.
But Alberta has continued with its theme of embracing the energy transition more vocally than other major fossil-fuel producers.
"Alberta has a real opportunity to become a leader in the hydrogen space," said Doug Schweitzer, the provincial minister of jobs, economy and innovation. "Not only do we have abundant natural gas resources, we have the talent, ingenuity and entrepreneurship to make hydrogen another Alberta success story."
Hydrogen production is described using a color spectrum. The most common form of production now is dubbed "grey" hydrogen, which is derived from a steam reformation process that draws hydrogen out of natural gas. That can be polluting, however, as the resultant greenhouse gases are not captured.
"Blue" hydrogen uses a similar process, but includes carbon sequestration.
"Our natural gas reserves, when combined with carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS), provide a way to quickly scale hydrogen production," a provincial roadmap stated.
Hydrogen developments, like carbon sequestration and other clean technologies, are expensive and still in their nascent stage. The provincial government said it was investing around US$40 million to establish a "center of excellence" to promote research and demonstration projects for hydrogen.
Alberta estimates hydrogen could become an $8 trillion industry by 2050. Its roadmap envisions an eventual 14 million-ton reduction in total greenhouse gas emissions by incorporating hydrogen into existing facilities.
In Edmonton, Air Products (NYSE:APD) (Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania) plans to build a blue hydrogen complex that would produce 1,500 tons per day of hydrogen from natural gas. The US$1 billion project is planned to kick off construction in 2023. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Chemical Processing Project Database can click here for a detailed project report. For more information, see June 14, 2021, article - Canada's Alberta Province is Feeling Blue -- for Hydrogen.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the world's leading provider of market intelligence across the upstream, midstream and downstream energy markets and all other major industrial markets. IIR's Global Market Intelligence Platform (GMI) supports our end-users across their core businesses, and helps them connect trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated project opportunities. Follow IIR on: LinkedIn.
The devastating impact on consumer demand during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic created an economic opening of sorts to pivot to greener shoots. Demand, after all, had cratered so much that crude oil prices traded in negative territory for a brief time in April 2020. According to Investopedia, "green shoots" is a term used to describe signs of economic recovery or positive data during an economic downturn.
That economic opening was closed when Russian military forces entered Ukraine in late February. Russia is in the top three in the world when it comes to crude oil and natural gas production and the resultant Western-backed sanctions means world economies, mainly in Europe, may be starved of essential fuels.
From the U.S., Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said the domestic energy sector should be on a war footing, given that U.S production rivals that of Russia's.
The U.S., meanwhile, gets the vast majority of its foreign oil from Canada and most of that comes from Alberta, which sits on one of the largest oil deposits in the world. The provincial oil sector accounts for about 7% of total Canadian GDP, though the type of oil produced there is arguably among the most-polluting in the world.
Indeed, Canada also has presented itself as a substitute for missing Russian barrels--it too has vast oil and gas supplies. Canadian Energy Minister Sonya Savage echoed the sentiment of her U.S. counterpart, telling the Reuters news service from the sidelines of the CERAWeek energy conference in Houston last month that "we are the solution" to global supply-side woes.
But Alberta has continued with its theme of embracing the energy transition more vocally than other major fossil-fuel producers.
"Alberta has a real opportunity to become a leader in the hydrogen space," said Doug Schweitzer, the provincial minister of jobs, economy and innovation. "Not only do we have abundant natural gas resources, we have the talent, ingenuity and entrepreneurship to make hydrogen another Alberta success story."
Hydrogen production is described using a color spectrum. The most common form of production now is dubbed "grey" hydrogen, which is derived from a steam reformation process that draws hydrogen out of natural gas. That can be polluting, however, as the resultant greenhouse gases are not captured.
"Blue" hydrogen uses a similar process, but includes carbon sequestration.
"Our natural gas reserves, when combined with carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS), provide a way to quickly scale hydrogen production," a provincial roadmap stated.
Hydrogen developments, like carbon sequestration and other clean technologies, are expensive and still in their nascent stage. The provincial government said it was investing around US$40 million to establish a "center of excellence" to promote research and demonstration projects for hydrogen.
Alberta estimates hydrogen could become an $8 trillion industry by 2050. Its roadmap envisions an eventual 14 million-ton reduction in total greenhouse gas emissions by incorporating hydrogen into existing facilities.
In Edmonton, Air Products (NYSE:APD) (Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania) plans to build a blue hydrogen complex that would produce 1,500 tons per day of hydrogen from natural gas. The US$1 billion project is planned to kick off construction in 2023. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Chemical Processing Project Database can click here for a detailed project report. For more information, see June 14, 2021, article - Canada's Alberta Province is Feeling Blue -- for Hydrogen.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the world's leading provider of market intelligence across the upstream, midstream and downstream energy markets and all other major industrial markets. IIR's Global Market Intelligence Platform (GMI) supports our end-users across their core businesses, and helps them connect trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated project opportunities. Follow IIR on: LinkedIn.
