FortisBC, partners collaborate on zero-carbon hydrogen for British Columbia

FortisBC Energy Inc, Suncor Energy Inc. and Hazer Group Ltd. will work together on a new technology to produce hydrogen from natural gas for British Columbia.

A pilot project in Port Moody will produce zero-carbon hydrogen using methane pyrolysis technology. The companies would produce hydrogen at Suncor's Burrard fuels terminal and store the carbon byproduct as solid synthetic graphite that could be sold for manufacturing or industrial use, FortisBC said in a July 4 news release.

The pilot project is in its first phase, which includes front-end engineering, design studies and permitting applications. The companies expect a prototype version of the Hazer hydrogen reactor to be built at Burrard for testing by the end of 2023.

If the project is fully built out, it could produce up to 2,500 tonnes of hydrogen per year, equivalent to roughly 300,000 gigajoules of clean-burning gas energy that could replace the annual natural gas usage of about 3,300 households, FortisBC said in the release.

"Renewable and low carbon gases, like hydrogen, are instrumental in reducing greenhouse gas emissions effectively and affordably while ensuring we have a resilient and diversified energy system for British Columbians," FortisBC President and CEO Roger Dall'Antonia said.

The project is funded by the partner companies and by the provincial government's CleanBC Industry Fund, which supports projects to reduce or mitigate industry greenhouse gas emissions.

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