Shell has joined a Norwegian initiative to generate blue hydrogen for use as a maritime fuel. Shell, Aker Clean Hydrogen company, and CapeOmega, a Norwegian energy infrastructure corporation, will build a manufacturing plant in the Aukra municipality. The hydrogen will be generated using gas from Shell’s terminal in Nyhamna, Aukra, where output from the Shell-operated offshore Ormen Lange field arrives.
According to Aker Clean Hydrogen, the hydrogen may be utilised as a maritime fuel by ships operating locally and exported to other parts of Europe. Blue hydrogen is created using fossil fuel, but the CO2 emissions are collected and stored. The method for capturing Aukra’s CO2 has yet to be determined.
Shell is a partner in the Northern Lights CO2 transit and storage joint venture, which may play a role in the storage of Aukra’s CO2 emissions. Aker Carbon Capture, Aker Clean Hydrogen’s sister firm, will be engaged in the Aukra project.
Without any carbon-capture techniques, the hydrogen would be classified as grey, resulting in considerable CO2 emissions throughout production. Green hydrogen, which emits no CO2 during its life cycle, is created by the electrolysis of water, which is powered by renewable energy. Natural gas for the project would be supplied from the Nyhamna gas processing plant and Shell serves as a technical service provider for them. Green hydrogen might be utilised in engines or to make green ammonia, another possible future transport fuel.
