China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation's (Sinopec) hosted an online launching ceremony on 30 November 2021 in the cities of Beijing, Urumqi and Kuqa, China, to announce that the country's first 10 000 t photovoltaic (PV) green hydrogen pilot project, the Sinopec Xinjiang Kuqa Green Hydrogen Pilot Project, has officially started construction. Upon completion, the project will have a green hydrogen output of 20 000 tpy, making it one of the world's largest PV green hydrogen production projects.
A concrete action of Sinopec's pledge to support China's dual-carbon goals and pursuance of green, low-carbon development, the project is of great significance to promote the development of a green hydrogen industry chain as well as economic and social development in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, guarantee the energy security, and carry forward the transformation and upgrading of the energy industry in China.
The project is a hydrogen production plant that directly uses large-scale PV power generation. With a total investment of US$470.77 million, it is mainly comprised of five sections: PV power generation, power transmission and transformation, hydrogen from water electrolysis, hydrogen storage, and hydrogen transport.
As part of the project, Sinopec will build a new PV power station with an installed capacity of 300 MW and annual power generation of 618 million KWh; an electrolysed water hydrogen plant with an annual capacity of 20 000 t; a spherical hydrogen storage tank with hydrogen storage capacity of 210 000 m3; and hydrogen transmission pipelines with a capacity of 28 000 m3/hr (including supporting power transmission and transformation facilities).
The project is expected to be completed and put into operation in June 2023, and the green hydrogen produced by the plant will be supplied to Sinopec Tahe Refining & Chemical to replace the existing natural gas and fossil energy used in hydrogen production. The CO2 emissions are estimated to be reduced by 485 000 tpy, and the project will contribute an average of US$20.4 million to the local GDP and generate US$2.82 million in tax revenue.
The project has four major advantages – rich in resources, green and low-carbon, large-scale application, and technological breakthroughs. It is an all-process green hydrogen production and application pilot project linking up wind and PV power generation, green electrical transmission, hydrogen production with green electricity, hydrogen storage, hydrogen transportation and green hydrogen refining. Upon completion and full operation, the project will present a new development path for green hydrogen refining and have a major effect on the large-scale application of green hydrogen to achieve carbon emission reduction.
In the meantime, all of the major equipment machineries and core materials used in the construction of the project are manufactured in China, including the PV modules, the ‘heart’ electrolyser in water-electrolytic hydrogen production, hydrogen storage tanks and hydrogen pipelines, which is momentous for the rapid development of China's hydrogen production equipment industry.
Focusing on achieving dual carbon goals, Sinopec has taken the lead in developing the green hydrogen industry and actively promotes the green and low-carbon development of the petrochemical industry. As one of the largest hydrogen producers in China, it is currently producing approximately 3.9 million tpy of hydrogen. In terms of green hydrogen technology, it has applied its first self-developed PEM water electrolysis hydrogen production station.