BURNABY,
BC, July 9, 2024 /CNW/ - As
nations globally move to reduce carbon emissions and shift to
non-emitting forms of energy, investing in clean technologies
will help ensure Canada remains a
global energy leader. Ultra-low carbon sources of energy such as
wind, solar, hydro and nuclear power are key to seizing the
enormous economic opportunities that are available to Canadians in
all regions of the country.
Today, the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Energy and
Natural Resources, announced a new investment of $1 million from the Energy Innovation Program's
Clean Fuels and Industrial Fuel Switching initiative to Ekona
Power Inc. This funding will support Ekona in advancing its methane
pyrolysis solution for clean hydrogen production from natural gas.
Building on the success of a prior program to develop and test
Ekona's xCaliber™ reactor, which was previously supported by
Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) through its Breakthrough Energy
Solutions Canada Program, this project will support further
development of the reactor and expand Ekona's Burnaby test facility.
Ekona's solution converts natural gas into hydrogen and solid
carbon, which reduces greenhouse gas emissions when compared with
other conventional processes used to produce hydrogen. Ekona's
unique pyrolysis reactor uses the principles of combustion and
high-speed gas dynamics to dissociate feedstock methane. It is
low-cost, scalable and easy to integrate, and it leverages existing
natural gas infrastructure to deliver a practical solution that
meets the growing demand for clean hydrogen and the needs of
Canadian industry.
Ekona's novel solution has the potential to produce low-cost
clean hydrogen while reducing greenhouse gas emissions by up
to 90 percent. More broadly, it could enable cost-effective,
ultra-low-carbon hydrogen gas production from natural gas within
the need to capture and sequester carbon dioxide. This project will
also help Ekona build and test its pilot plant, validate
performance against commercial targets and explore how this
technology can be utilized in British
Columbia for decarbonizing the natural gas network.
While we continue to foster economic growth and build
Canada's clean economy,
significant investments — such as the one announced today — are
being made to accelerate the production, distribution and use of
clean fuels, including clean hydrogen. These advancements are
guided by Canada's Hydrogen
Strategy, which introduced a framework in 2020 to help position
Canada as a global supplier and
producer of clean hydrogen on our path to net zero by 2050.
Quotes
"Canada is taking important
steps to keep being a clean energy supplier of choice as we drive
progress toward a net-zero world. Investing in innovations such as
Ekona's provides opportunities to advance Canada's hydrogen value chain, create jobs and
seize the economic opportunity of growing global demand for
hydrogen."
The Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson
Minister of
Energy and Natural Resources
"Ekona is a key player in the clean technology ecosystem within
B.C. and Burnaby. Local leaders
like Ekona are helping to drive us toward a sustainable economy and
supporting our net-zero emission goals. We look forward to the
continued partnership."
The Honourable Terry Beech
Minister of Citizens'
Services
Member of Parliament for Burnaby
North–Seymour
"Canada's natural gas resources
and infrastructure are critical for meeting tomorrow's net-zero
targets. Ekona's methane pyrolysis platform unlocks natural gas's
potential for clean hydrogen production without the need for
carbon-dioxide sequestration. This made-in-Canada technology offers a viable and
near-term solution for using hydrocarbons in cleaner, better ways.
NRCan has been an active supporter of Ekona and our technology
vision since 2020, and we are grateful for its support."
Chris Reid
CEO,
Ekona Power Inc.
Quick Facts
- Ekona's clean hydrogen production plants operate without the
need for water, or carbon-dioxide sequestration and use a minimal
amount of electricity including renewable sources. These features
allow the solution to be placed anywhere on the natural gas network
and to leverage existing infrastructure.
- Ekona's pulsed methane pyrolysis (PMP) reactor is integrated
with industry-standard equipment for carbon separation and hydrogen
purification to deliver a low-cost system. It is also
catalyst-free, minimizing electricity consumption and mitigating
carbon fouling.
- Ekona will deploy its first field unit next year. Ekona Gold
Creek is a 1-tonne-per-day (1TPD) Customer Demonstration Plant. It
will be deployed at Arc Resources' Gold Creek gas plant to
demonstrate how methane pyrolysis technology can decarbonize
upstream oil and gas operations. The plant will be built,
commissioned and tested in 2025 for operations in 2026.
- NRCan's Energy Innovation Program advances clean energy
technologies that will help Canada
meet its climate change targets while supporting the transition to
a low-carbon economy. It funds research, development and
demonstration projects, and other related scientific
activities.
- Interest in low-carbon hydrogen in Canada has increased significantly since 2020,
with over 80 low-carbon hydrogen production projects announced,
representing over five million tonnes of hydrogen production
capacity and an economic expression of interest of over
$100 billion in potential investment
in domestic clean energy opportunities and jobs.
- Since 2020, British Columbia,
Alberta, Ontario, Quebec, Nova
Scotia, and New Brunswick
have published hydrogen strategies, identifying hydrogen as a
provincial clean energy priority and describing provincial actions
and objectives to realize regional low-carbon hydrogen
objectives.
- Hydrogen has been identified as a key opportunity area under
the British Columbia Regional Energy and Resource Table and
features prominently in the recently released British Columbia
Regional Energy and Resource Table – Framework for Collaboration on
the Path to Net-Zero. The Regional Energy and Resource Tables are
joint partnerships between the federal government and individual
provincial and territorial governments in collaboration with
Indigenous partners — and with input from key stakeholders — to
identify and accelerate shared economic priorities for a low-carbon
future in the energy and resource sectors.
- There are now 13 low-carbon hydrogen production facilities in
operation across Canada, able to
produce over 3,000 tonnes of low-carbon hydrogen per year.
Related Information
Hydrogen Strategy for Canada
and Progress Report
2030 Emissions Reduction Plan: Clean Air, Strong Economy
Net-zero emissions by 2050
Budget 2024 – Attracting Investment for a Net-Zero Economy
Backgrounder: Economic Growth and Productivity
Clean Hydrogen Investment Tax Credit
Energy Innovation Program
Breakthrough Energy Solutions Canada
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SOURCE Natural Resources Canada