China builds photovoltaic green hydrogen plant in Xinjiang

In Dec 2021, the China Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec) launched China’s first 10,000-ton photovoltaic green hydrogen plant in northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on Tuesday, which is expected to produce of 20,000 tons of green hydrogen each year.

Sinopec, the largest oil refiner of China, will carry out the world-class project in Kuqa City, Aksu Prefecture in Xinjiang with an investment of nearly three billion yuan (about 470 million U.S. dollars).

The hydrogen production project contains five parts — photovoltaic power generation, power transformation, electrolytic hydrogen production, hydrogen storage, and hydrogen transportation. To supply enough electric power for the whole process, a photovoltaic power station will be established in the area with an average annual power generation capacity of 618 million kilowatt-hours.

“The supporting photovoltaic power station with an installed capacity of 300 megawatts is expected to produce 20,000 tons of hydrogen per year and to have a storing capacity of 210,000 cubic meters.

After being put into operation, the project will supply green hydrogen to Sinopec Tahe Refining and Chemical Company to replace the existing hydrogen production from natural gas, helping reduce 520,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions a year,” said Fan Linsong, general manager of Sinopec Star Co., Ltd.

The station generates electricity with renewable energy, such as wind and photovoltaic power, ensuring driving force to the green hydrogen production. During the whole process, the system will produce virtually no greenhouse gases, eliminating carbon emissions. Thus, green hydrogen production is also called “zero carbon hydrogen”.

The project is scheduled to be completed in June 2023. After being put into operation, the project will contribute 130 million yuan (over 20 million U.S. dollars) a year to the local GDP and create a tax revenue over 18 million yuan (about 2.8 million U.S. dollars).

Source: Built By China, 2 Dec 2021. https://youtu.be/G4Kgf4wpaAk