Oman signs green hydrogen deals worth $20bn

Hydrom Media

• Deals with countries including Germany, India, Japan, the UAE and UK
• Green hydrogen is produced CO2-neutral through water electrolysis
• Global hydrogen production market valued at $130bn last year

Hydrom, a subsidiary of Energy Development Oman, has signed six deals worth $20 billion to invest in green hydrogen projects across the sultanate.

The agreements, which span seven years, were inked with developers from Belgium, Germany, India, Japan, Kuwait, the Netherlands, Singapore, the UAE and the UK.

The production capacity of the projects will hit 15 gw of electricity, built on approximately 1,500 sq km in the southern govenornates of Al Wusta and Dhofar.

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The agreements include contracting for 47 years – seven years for developing and establishing and then 40 years for operating the projects.

They include two projects for BP Alternative Energy Investments Limited in Duqm and Dhofar. The projects combined will have an annual production capacity of 3.3 gw of electricity and 150,000 metric tonnes of hydrogen.

The agreements also include the Green Energy Oman project, the SalalaH2 project and the Hyport Duqm project, which will have an annual production capacity of 2 gw of electricity and 70,000 metric tonnes of hydrogen.

Finally, the Green Hydrogen and Chemicals SPC will produce 1 gw of electricity and 38,000 metric tonnes of hydrogen each year.

Salim Nasser Al Aufi, minister of energy and minerals and chairman of Hydrom’s board of directors, said he expects green hydrogen to be produced in Oman between 2028 and 2030, for local use and for exporting.

Green hydrogen is the term used to describe hydrogen produced on a CO2-neutral basis through the electrolysis of water.

The GCC has competitive advantages in the global green hydrogen economy, including solar and wind resources, financial capabilities and export potential.

“Not only does the region have connectivity with developed economies in Europe, but a network of ports and pipeline infrastructure provides the region access to markets in Asia and Africa,” according to a recent report by consulting firm Frost & Sullivan.

Oman has committed to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Last September OQ Gas Networks, which operates Oman’s 4,000km long gas pipeline system, announced plans to repurpose it to transport green hydrogen.

In December Oman and Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA) then said they were working on three joint green hydrogen projects in the sultanate.

The global hydrogen production market was valued at $130 billion last year, according to the World Bank, and is estimated to grow by up to 9.2 percent per year until 2030.