New milestone: OPAZ earmarks 793,000 sq metre site near Port of Duqm earmarked for electrolyzer, ammonia synthesis and storage facilities
MUSCAT: The Public Authority for Special Economic Zones and Free Zones (OPAZ) signed a land lease agreement with Hyport Duqm Co for the implementation of the downstream part of the Green hydrogen and Ammonia Production Facility backed by a joint venture of OQ’s Alternative Energy Unit and DEME Group of Belgium.
It follows the signing last September of a similar land lease pact for the upstream component of the project, which has since enabled the start of preliminary engineering studies and site data collection linked to the implementation of the mega green energy project at Duqm SEZ.
Saturday’s agreement was signed by Dr Ali bin Masoud al Sunaidy, Chairman — OPAZ, with Hyport Duqm represented by Najla bint Zuhair al Jamaliyah, Chairperson — Hyport Duqm (who is also CEO of OQ’s Alternative Energy Unit) and Martin D, Vice Chairman and General Manager of DEME Group (Belgium).
Based on the land lease agreement, Hyport Duqm will develop a green hydrogen production facility with a capacity of 500 MW on a 793,000 sq metre site near Port of Duqm. At the upstream end of the project, covering an area of 200 sq kilometres, a number of solar and wind farms will be developed to provide green electricity for the venture.
Hyport Duqm will consist of three distinct components: A solar and wind based renewable energy generation component; A green hydrogen production plant consisting of electrolyzers, ammonia synthesis plant and storage facilities; and a high voltage transmission line linking the upstream and downstream components.
Early last year, Hyport Duqm installed and operated four wind speed gauges and two on-site solar meteorological stations to ensure that the data needed by the company was collected as part of a detailed feasibility study for the project.
According to Yahya bin Khamis al Zadjali, Operational Head of Duqm SEZ, the agreement is an important milestone in the progress of this project, which will pave the way for various studies to be completed, including soil and topographic studies, in preparation for the detailed feasibility study.
In a statement to Oman News Agency, he said the Authority looks forward to working with the project team and help support the delivery of the first green energy projects in Duqm SEZ. Availability of green hydrogen will pave the way for investments in a number of green heavy industries, including green iron and steel and green aluminium.
DEME Group officials said the project will contribute Oman’s goal to become a global hub for green hydrogen production. Green ammonia output will be exported from Duqm to customers in multiple European destinations and other global markets where the demand for low carbon energy resources is strong. — ONA
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