Electricité de France and its subsidiary EDF Renewables (EDF Group), Electric Power Development (J-POWER) and Yamna announce the award of a land block by Hydrogen Oman (Hydrom), state-owned company and leader of the Omani hydrogen vision.
Spanning over 341km2, this land block located in the Governorate of Dhofar will allow the development by the Consortium of a large-scale green ammonia project with a capacity of 1 million tonnes per year.
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.
The Project Agreements were signed by Salim bin Nasser Al Aufi, Minister of Energy and Minerals and Chairman of Hydrom, Luc Koechlin, CEO Middle East of EDF Group, Olivier Bordes, CEO Middle East of EDF Renewables, Michihide Kita, Director General, International Business Development Department of J-POWER, Abdelaziz Yatribi, CEO of Yamna.
This signing closes the “Hydrom Phase A Round 2” competitive green hydrogen tender procedure launched by Hydrom in June 2023, and enshrines the award of the land block to the Consortium, for the development of the Project.
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.
“Oman is strategically located between two key green hydrogen demand centers in Europe and Asia. This, in addition to, our tier-1 infrastructure and logistics capabilities have enabled us to leverage our first mover advantage in the global hydrogen industry. 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. I would like to congratulate EDF Group, J-Power and Yamna on their awarding and look forward to working together to realise our collective vision,” said Salim bin Nasser Al Aufi, Minister of Energy and Minerals and Chairman of Hydrom.
Beatrice Buffon, EDF Renewables Chairwoman and CEO and EDF Group Vice President in charge of the International Division, said: “EDF Group and its subsidiary EDF Renewables are proud to be awarded, alongside their partners in the Hydrom project. This achievement demonstrates the trust of the Sultanate of Oman in our decarbonisation solutions. 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. This is why we're not just generating power ; we're paving the way for cleaner, greener, and more innovative energy solutions for the generations to come.”
Hiroyasu Sugiyama, J-POWER Executive Vice President, said: We are honoured by this great opportunity to participate in the Project and to collaborate with Omani stakeholders as well as our partners. 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.
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.
Abdelaziz Yatribi, Yamna Chief Executive Officer, said: EDF is the world’s leading low-carbon energy producer, with a score of 93 per cent 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. 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. --OGN/TradeArabia News Service
