The Consortium intends to install approximately 4.5 GW of wind and solar capacity
Electricité de France. and its subsidiary EDF Renewables (EDF Group), Electric Power Development Co. (J-POWER) and YamnaCo (Yamna) (the Consortium) recently announced the award of a land block by Hydrogen Oman SPC (Hydrom), state-owned company and leader of the Omani hydrogen vision.
Spanning over 341sqkm this land block located in the Governorate of Dhofar in the South of the Sultanate of Oman, will allow the development by the Consortium of a large-scale green ammonia project with a capacity of 1 million tonnes per year (the Project).
Leveraging the excellent renewable energy resources of Oman, the Consortium intends to install approximately 4.5 GW of wind and solar capacity coupled with battery storage and an approximately 2.5 GW state-of-art electrolyser. The produced hydrogen would then be supplied to an ammonia plant to be built in the Salalah Free Zone.
Hydrom and the Consortium signed the Project Development Agreement and the Sub-Usufruct Agreement (the Project Agreements), which grant the Consortium with the exclusive right to develop, build, own, operate and maintain the Project for a period of 47 years.
High-level signatories
The Project Agreements were signed by HE. Eng. Salim Bin Nasser Al Aufi, Minister of Energy and Minerals and Chairman of Hydrom; Luc Koechlin, CEO, Middle East, EDF Group; Olivier Bordes, CEO Middle East, EDF Renewables; Michihide Kita, Director General, International Business Development Department of J-POWER, Abdelaziz Yatribi, CEO, Yamna.
The award of the Project materialises the successful partnership between the different Consortium members. Once commercially operational, the Project will make the Sultanate of Oman a home to one of the world’s largest green hydrogen and derivatives plant.
“The availability of renewable natural resources in Oman coupled with the country’s favorable geopolitical positioning, investor-friendly policies and progressive energy transition strategies make it one of the most suitable countries for green hydrogen production,” asserted HE Engr. Al Aufi.
“With its Hydrogen Plan, EDF is supporting the energy transition of the sectors which emit the most CO₂. Hydrogen fuels a future where sustainability meets innovation,” observed Beatrice Buffon, EDF Renewables Chairwoman and CEO and EDF Group Vice President in charge of the International Division.
Carbon neutrality
“Considering the development of renewable energies and renewable-based hydrogen, the Project is in line with our strategy ‘Blue Mission 2050’ to accelerate the transition to carbon neutrality. It will contribute to both Oman and global net-zero-emissions goals”, noted Hiroyasu Sugiyama, J-POWER Executive Vice President.
“We are excited to embark on this journey with our partners, with a target to deliver a transformational flagship Project for both Oman and the global hydrogen industry. We at Yamna are eager to significantly contribute to the success of this project leveraging on our expertise of green hydrogen and ammonia, and our experience in Oman,” commented Yatribi.
EDF is the world’s leading low-carbon energy producer, with a score of 93% CO₂ emissions-free generation, with a long-lasting presence in the Middle East for almost 30 years where EDF Renewables secured over 7.5 GWp of solar and wind farms.
Net emissions zero
J-POWER is a leading Japanese power generation company seeking to achieve net emissions zero from Japan’s power generation operations by 2050, and Yamna is a UK-based global green hydrogen and derivatives developer and investor.
Green hydrogen and its derivatives are crucial for Oman’s energy transition and sustainability strategy, as the government aims to raise renewable energy-based hydrogen production to at least 1 Mtpa by 2030, as part of the Oman National Energy Strategy 2040.
The Consortium will now continue the development of the Project conducting detailed studies, with a view to swiftly deliver this transformational project for Oman and the energy transition, a press communique concluded.
