Province's resource potential for renewable blue and green hydrogen has the attention of international markets; government 'cautiously optimistic', but keen to explore
ST. JOHN'S, N.L. — Anyone paying attention to the plans for renewable energy in the province is probably quite familiar with the potential for hydrogen in Newfoundland and Labrador.
It was mentioned dozens of times in the province’s renewable-energy plan and appears to be an integral part of its energy future.
With a growing demand for clean hydrogen worldwide, most notably by the European Union, which has plans to be climate-neutral by 2050, companies from around the world have shown up on the doorstep of the province, hoping to set up shop.
Hydrogen as a fuel is nothing new, having been produced from fossil fuels for more than a century. Known as grey hydrogen, it’s the least renewable form of hydrogen, but in recent years other forms have popped up, known as blue or green hydrogen.
Larry Hughes, a professor at Dalhousie University who specializes in energy systems and a founding fellow of MacEachen Institute for Public Policy and Governance, said the main current sources of hydrogen are coal and natural gas, with about 75 per cent of the hydrogen produced in the world coming from natural gas, in large part from Russia.
“The trouble with hydrogen from natural gas and coal is the process that’s used, the feedstock itself, coal or natural gas, makes it carbon dioxide intensive,” Hughes said. “It’s the carbon dioxide that’s the issue when making hydrogen fossil fuels.”
Blue hydrogen still uses natural gas, combined with carbon-capture technology, and green hydrogen, which is what has been mostly bandied about in Newfoundland and Labrador, can be created using renewable forms of energy such as wind or hydroelectricity.
Essentially, Hughes said, for green hydrogen, electricity would be run through a device known as an electrolyzer, which breaks water down into hydrogen and oxygen molecules.
Dr. Larry Hughes, a professor at Dalhousie University who specializes in energy systems. CONTRIBUTED - Contributed
“What you wind up with then is a source of hydrogen and then the question is, where does the electricity come from? If the electricity comes from a coal-fired power station, you’re not really gaining that much. If it comes from a hydroelectric station or a nuclear power station, for that matter, you’re getting zero-emission electricity, which means you’re getting a clean source of hydrogen.”
Hughes said with the hydroelectric capacity of the province, combined with the potential for wind energy, on paper Newfoundland and Labrador may be one of the most attractive places in the world for hydrogen production. That being said, he doesn’t believe that jumping right in would be the most prudent move for the province.
“My argument has been for Newfoundland and Labrador to go to hydrogen would be to set up a small project first, to demonstrate that it was possible and get people to buy into it, rather than building the world’s largest green hydrogen project,” he said.