NEOM's energy, water and hydrogen subsidiary, ENOWA, has established the region's first Hydrogen and Innovation Development Centre (HIDC). Located in NEOM's Advanced Manufacturing and Innovation City, the new facility is designed to accelerate the development of laboratory-to-market solutions and businesses in the fields of hydrogen, green fuel production, utilization and transportation. HIDC will be a testing ground for new technologies in the clean energy industry, as well as a collaborative learning community for research institutions focused on hydrogen and the circular carbon economy (CCE).

Through these collaborations, HIDC will seek to partner with Saudi Aramco to produce and deploy decarbonized and clean synthetic fuels. Scheduled to go live in 2023, HIDC will collect operational data from the first 20MW electrolyzer at the thyssenkrupp Nucera plant, which will be used in the world's largest green hydrogen and ammonia plant operated by the NEOM Green Hydrogen Company (NGHC). HIDC will also advance ENOWA's H2 mobility program with Air Products Qudra to test advanced hydrogen fuel cell-based mobility and logistics solutions in NEOM. “NEOM is fast becoming one of the global accelerators for the hydrogen economy. Our goal is to drive innovation and facilitate the economic implementation of future clean energy supply. While the successful activation of breakthrough technologies is important, fresh thinking and new energy solutions are equally important. Our recent MoUs with NGHC, Saudi Aramco and Air Products Qudra demonstrate the real progress we have made on this front. We look forward to attracting other global pioneers to create a new future to nurture the next generation of hydrogen technology,” ENOWA CEO Officer Peter Terium said.

Located in OXAGON's dedicated research and innovation district, HIDC will attract talent from around the world to live, work and innovate in a dynamic and modern ecosystem. The facility's unique location fosters innovation and out-of-the-box thinking that will create a blueprint for the future and serve as a catalyst for global start-ups focused on green hydrogen technologies and synthetic fuels. "The need to solve some of humanity's most pressing challenges has spurred the next wave of investment in key technologies. OXAGON's dedicated research and innovation precinct will be the new home for innovators, leading brands and the brightest minds looking to invest in next-generation solutions and Products are stress tested, accelerated and commercialized. OXAGON is the ideal location for the region's first state-of-the-art hydrogen and innovation development center, designed to foster innovations in areas such as hydrogen, green fuel production, utilization and transport, accelerating these innovations from Labs to advanced manufacturing and production facilities can then be commercialized and exported," said Vishal Wanchoo, CEO of OXAGON and Head of Manufacturing at NEOM.

HIDC's pipeline of projects will also take advantage of the rapid commercialization of hydrogen fuel cell technology to provide gas station and distribution technology for zero-emission vehicles, buses, trucks and other clean energy applications. HIDC will work with Aramco, Air Products and ACWAPower to validate hydrogen innovation, demonstrating the potential to scale up in Saudi Arabia and globally. In addition, HIDC will work closely with Aramco to develop synthetic fuels. By leveraging HIDC's capabilities in green hydrogen, Saudi Aramco will seek to rapidly develop its flagship in-house synthetic fuel project and demonstrate the commercial and technical viability of synthetic fuel production.

The collaboration will also enable HIDC to leverage Aramco's experience in engineering, energy logistics and fuel R&D, and aligns with Aramco's ongoing efforts to explore the potential of hydrogen-based low-carbon fuels to support the global energy transition. “With a new vision for the future of living, NEOM is the ideal place for Aramco to explore and test the boundaries of cutting-edge technology within us. Its enormous potential in wind and solar also provides a unique opportunity to provide renewable hydrogen to fuel the growth of low-carbon synthetic fuels. opportunities, while providing a platform to test its commercial viability,” said Ahmad Al-Khowaiter, Saudi Aramco’s chief technology officer. Keywords: engineering construction, engineering news

With NEOM's unparalleled solar, wind and water resources, ENOWA can produce large quantities of green hydrogen that can be used by multiple industries in the Kingdom. In recent years, green hydrogen has gained increasing recognition as the next wave of the energy transition, with various applications in many industries as energy, e-fuel, chemicals and fertilizers. NEOM is expected to be the first economy to use green hydrogen for power on a large scale and pave the way for a global hydrogen economy.Editor/XingWentao