Documents suggest B.C.'s hydrogen plans under threat as uncertainty halts 'large-scale' projects

Documents released done a state of accusation petition uncover that B.C.'s erstwhile vigor curate was told past September that astatine slightest 7 "large-scale hydrogen projects" were being cancelled oregon paused due to the fact that of issues including energy supply, precocious outgo and transportation.

The extremity of 1 of those plans — Fortescue's Project Coyote — has since been made public, but the documents database six much projects that person been quietly put connected ice, including a Prince George cleanable hydrogen task publically launched by Premier David Eby past January.

All told, the documents outline superior threats to B.C.'s dreams of becoming a starring hydrogen shaper — including deficiency of home demand, an "unprecedented" request for energy and uncertainty astir moving volatile chemicals by obstruction done First Nations land.

"Over the past six months, astatine slightest 7 large-scale hydrogen accumulation projects person paused improvement oregon been cancelled owed to a scope of issues," past vigor curate Josie Osborne was told successful a briefing enactment successful September 2024.

"The authorities of B.C. volition request stronger argumentation enactment to enactment hydrogen accumulation and usage to successfully found a hydrogen system successful B.C."

'Creating jobs and delivering cleaner air'

The briefing enactment was portion of a bundle released earlier this month in effect to a state of accusation (FOI) petition from a business.

Hydrogen's imaginable arsenic an environmentally-friendly alternate to fossil fuels has generated planetary excitement.

It tin beryllium produced from home resources including earthy gas, biomass, and upwind or solar power. And erstwhile utilized arsenic substance to powerfulness thing from cars to ships to buildings, hydrogen produces zero to negligible amounts of greenhouse gases — although it has been critiqued for the ample magnitude of vigor it takes to create. 

The B.C. authorities has embraced the relation of hydrogen in hopes of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, processing a strategy "to accelerate the accumulation and usage of renewable and low-carbon hydrogen and beryllium a satellite person successful the increasing hydrogen economy."

In pursuit of that goal, Eby travelled to Prince George past January to denote a task led by Chilliwack-based Teralta Hydrogen Solutions to powerfulness a Canfor mill with hydrogen produced arsenic a byproduct from a adjacent Chemtrade sodium chlorate accumulation facility.

"Our enactment is creating jobs and delivering cleaner aerial crossed the province. B.C.'s hydrogen strategy has paved the mode for this task to determination forward," Eby said successful a quality merchandise issued astatine the time.

"Teralta and their partners, Chemtrade and Canfor Pulp, are leaders successful warring clime alteration done originative solutions that little c emissions, make good-paying jobs for people, and physique healthier communities."

But according to the FOI documents, that task has since been paused. 

"Chemtrade ceased sodium chlorate accumulation owed to section mill closures, which means nary byproduct hydrogen is being produced connected site," the documents say.

A Teralta spokesperson told CBC News that portion the task itself was successful, the closure of the Canfor mill and Chemtrade's determination to halt producing sodium chlorate successful Prince George meant it was nary longer viable, truthful the task has been enactment connected clasp indefinitely.

'Not outgo competitory with its alternatives'

The briefing enactment to Osborne lists 5 different large task that person been paused:

• MIXT Energy (McLeod Lake Indian Band) and Mitsubishi's $5-billion greenish hydrogen and ammonia accumulation task for export connected Kerry Lake reserve adjacent Prince George.
• Shell Canada's Aurora Hydrogen greenish hydrogen accumulation task for home usage adjacent Port Moody.
• TC Energy's greenish liquid hydrogen export task for northwest B.C.
• Kanata Clean's bluish hydrogen accumulation task for export successful northwest B.C.
• NorthRiver Midstream's blue hydrogen accumulation task for home usage successful Taylor.

The documents mention circumstantial concerns for each project, including "electricity availability," "lack of home demand" and "transportation of ammonia."

A abstracted briefing enactment sent to Eby last March sounds an alarm astir the demand for energy from "numerous projected concern projects astatine assorted stages of advancement that are requesting implicit 150 megawatts" — including a bid of hydrogen projects.

"The maturation successful caller concern lawsuit interconnection requests, some successful fig and magnitude, requires a broader information of however B.C.'s cleanable energy resources are managed," the premier was told.

"New argumentation approaches are needed to equilibrium concern competitiveness with electrification successful different sectors of the economy, each portion keeping rates affordable."

The briefing enactment to Osborne says portion a requirement for ample load customers to lend costs for incremental procreation and transmission infrastructure "is considered indispensable to support ratepayers from outgo increases, it renders galore large-scale hydrogen projects uneconomical." 

Osborne was besides told that B.C. "has not developed a unchangeable home marketplace for greenish hydrogen, chiefly owed to the precocious outgo of adoption of some hydrogen substance and hydrogen technologies."

The papers lists examples of "funding programs and incentives" for would-be producers, but concludes that "even erstwhile presently disposable incentives are stacked, greenish hydrogen accumulation is not outgo competitory with its alternatives, some successful home and planetary markets."

'Significant hazard to quality wellness and the environment'

The situation of transporting hydrogen is simply a changeless taxable successful the documents included successful the FOI release.

One of the astir businesslike ways of moving hydrogen is by chemically combining it with nitrogen to marque ammonia, which tin beryllium shipped by obstruction oregon vessel and past "cracked" backmost into its abstracted components astatine a last destination.

"The usage of ammonia arsenic a hydrogen vigor bearer is considered much vigor businesslike and uses globally established infrastructure," Eby was told successful an accusation papers written past July.

"However, erstwhile not handled properly, oregon spilled, ammonia tin airs important hazard to quality wellness and the situation owed to its flammability, acute toxicity and antagonistic impacts to aquatic ecosystems."

The aforesaid papers says the governments of B.C. and Alberta person been successful trilateral discussions with Ottawa — which has jurisdiction implicit interprovincial obstruction lines — implicit issues similar safety, liability and engagement with Indigenous communities.

"Transporting ammonia by obstruction crossed B.C., volition necessitate consultation with communities and 26 First Nations on the projected corridor," Eby was told.

"However, obstruction operations successful Canada person a analyzable and challenging past. Often enlargement of the railway web crossed the state meant onshore dispossession and undue hardship for First Nations communities on its corridors."

'What's indispensable is an vigor corridor'

CBC reached retired to representatives of the projects listed arsenic "paused" successful the briefing note.

In a statement, TC Energy confirmed the extremity of its plans.

"In 2023/2024, we conducted a pre-feasibility survey connected liquid hydrogen production," the institution told CBC.

"The appraisal revealed that accumulation costs exceeded marketplace terms targets, starring to the determination to not determination guardant with the opportunity."

In an email exchange, Kanata Clean confirmed that its task is paused — arsenic opposed to cancelled — citing some the deficiency of earthy state capableness successful Prince Rupert and the proscription of ammonia arsenic issues.

"Ultimately what's indispensable is an vigor corridor done the province that ends astatine Prince Rupert, which would see an LNG pipeline and a hydrogen/ammonia pipeline," spokesperson Mark Marissen said successful an email.

"To marque hydrogen projects similar this 1 a world successful B.C., this vigor corridor needs to beryllium included successful the database of the province's apical priorities for expediting, fixed that this would assistance america to diversify our markets from the American market successful a large way."

Kanata Clean CEO Robert Delamar suggested that challenges facing hydrogen projects should beryllium a federal election issue.

"We'd similar to spot an Indigenous Energy Corridor moving from Northwest BC to Eastern (and Northern) Canada, with pipelines a halfway diagnostic of the corridor," Delamar wrote successful an email.

"Just saying successful a national predetermination that Canada should diversify its trade, obfuscates the world that this is simply a multi-generational, multi-party argumentation failure. We request real, factual solutions, quickly."

Former Liberal situation curate Barry Penner reviewed the FOI documents; helium says they amusement the NDP government's enthusiasm for hydrogen projects is astatine likelihood with reality.

"If you conscionable instrumentality a look astatine this briefing note, it reveals that the program is not moving retired arsenic expected truthful far," said Penner, who present leads the Energy Futures Initiative, an enactment calling for energy argumentation considerations to see reliability and affordability.

"I didn't spot immoderate denotation of immoderate projects determination that are truly moving ahead. At best, immoderate person been paused, others person been cancelled outright. It's rather a list, truthful yes, it's disappointing, but it is not surprising."

In a connection to CBC, a spokesperson for the state noted that hydrogen "is a caller industry, and galore proponents and governments globally are inactive figuring retired however to champion make the sector."

"Despite the actions that person been taken by the Province, immoderate proponents person had to marque hard commercialized decisions, based connected a fig of interior and outer factors," the connection said. 

The state says it is inactive committed to its hydrogen strategy and is bringing successful caller hydrogen installation regulations adjacent week to "streamline permitting and operational requirements for hydrogen manufacturing facilities."