ACWA Power, a leading Saudi developer, investor, and operator of power generation, desalinated water, and green hydrogen plants worldwide, has announced that it has signed "an extensive" Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO), South Korea’s largest electric utility provider, to explore industrial-scale green hydrogen and/or ammonia production intended for utilization in KEPCO’s power plants in South Korea.
The MoU proposes a potential partnership in the development of green hydrogen and/or green ammonia projects in the Middle East and other agreed geographies to decarbonize KEPCO’s operations in South Korea.
The company intends to utilize the end product to operate its power plants in South Korea, on the proviso that KEPCO’s generation companies offtake the green ammonia from the potential project.
First-of-its-kind agreement
This is the first agreement of its kind between ACWA Power and KEPCO, though both companies have been joint investors in projects like Rabigh 1 independent power plant (IPP) in Saudi Arabia for nearly a decade.
The agreement underscores the commitment of both organizations to decarbonizing their operations.
The world is witnessing the alarming impact of climate change and as pressure rapidly mounts to take immediate, mitigating action, collaborative efforts need to be made to find the right solutions. We are honored to work with committed, long-term partners like KEPCO to accelerate the exploration of green hydrogen—a solution that can decarbonize entire industries and make a real difference in reducing global warming, said Paddy Padmanathan, CEO and Vice Chairman of ACWA Power.
While ACWA Power has a net zero emissions target for 2050, KEPCO is set to rely increasingly on green ammonia produced by green hydrogen for power generation purposes and targets the utilization of 5-10 million tonnes of green ammonia by 2030.
Scaling up project pipeline
With tangible project commitments in Saudi Arabia and Oman, ACWA Power is at the forefront of scaling up green hydrogen and ammonia opportunities in different locations globally.
With mega-scale project commitments in Saudi Arabia and Oman, ACWA Power is at the forefront of scaling up the development of green hydrogen and we look forward to applying our expertise and delivering transformative clean energy solutions that will play a significant role in decarbonizing the world, Paddy Padmanathan said.
The NEOM Green Hydrogen Company, a joint venture with ACWA Power, NEOM, and Air Products, is developing the world’s largest green hydrogen project in Saudi Arabia.
When commissioned in 2026, it will produce up to 650 tonnes per day of green hydrogen. By that date, the project will mitigate the impact of 3 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) per year.
In addition, ACWA Power, as part of a joint venture, also recently signed a Joint Development Agreement towards a multi-billion-dollar investment in a world-scale green hydrogen-based ammonia production facility powered by renewable energy in Oman; as well as a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with South Korea’s POSCO Holdings for the joint development of green hydrogen to decarbonize the Group’s power generation and steel manufacturing processes.
