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| Officials of Korea Electric Power Corp., Korea Western Power, Samsung C&T, Petrolyn Chemie as well as government officials of Korea and the United Arab Emirates pose for a photo after signing a joint development agreement at the headquarters of Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (KIZAD) in the UAE, Tuesday. Courtesy of KEPCO |
By Lee Kyung-min
A consortium of three local state-run and private energy and construction firms will build a hydrogen and ammonia plant in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), in the latest of Korea's green energy initiative expansions into the Middle East, according to industry officials, Thursday.
This is Korea's first overseas green hydrogen and ammonia project, a meaningful step toward gaining a strong foothold in the lucrative global energy market expected to generate an annual market volume of about 130 trillion won ($103 billion) every year from 2050.
State-run Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) and its plant subsidiary Korea Western Power as well as Samsung C&T said Thursday that they signed a joint development agreement to build the plant with an annual production capacity of 200,000 tons in Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (KIZAD), Tuesday.
Officials of the three local firms visited KIZAD to meet with their counterparts from Petrolyn Chemie, a joint venture set up by two UAE energy firms ― Petrolyn and Chemie Tech.
The project will build the plant in order to produce 35,000 tons of green ammonia a year, the first in a two-stage project to raise the capacity to 200,000 tons. The timelines for each stage have yet to be specified.
The three local firms said the project will function as a comprehensive platform, thereby contributing to meeting the national greenhouse gas reduction goals as well as increasing energy self-sufficiency. The objectives will be advanced by a healthy and efficient business model encompassing technology development, investments, production, distribution and logistics.
According to the plan announced by the government last October, Korea will reduce carbon emissions to 40 percent of 2018 figures by 2030 and achieve full carbon neutrality by 2050.
Under this green drive, the energy industries by 2030 will need 11 million tons of ammonia every year, and 13.5 million tons of hydrogen annually by 2050. Korea relies on over 80 percent of the two key green energy sources for imports.
"It will be the first project for Korean firms to better achieve the carbon neutrality drive," KEPCO said in a statement. "We will dedicate efforts to utilize the opportunity to increase corporate competitiveness and fortify future growth drivers in the global green hydrogen market."
