Enbridge, Fortis to study hydrogen in BC gas system
Canadian gas delivery companies Enbridge and FortisBC said January 17 they would each study how hydrogen could be blended into the BC natural gas pipeline system.
The two will separately examine the issue, with funding from BC’s Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation, before producing a summary report showing how hydrogen in the natural gas system can help the province achieve its climate goals.
“Hydrogen is a renewable energy source that is critical to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and helping the province transition to clean energy,” BC energy minister Josie Osborne said. “By using existing infrastructure to transport this energy, we can reduce the number of trucks on BC highways and roads.”
The study will look at the percentage of hydrogen that can be safely transported through gas pipeline infrastructure, such as Enbridge’s Westcoast natural gas transmission system and FortisBC’s gas transmission and distribution systems, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help develop a low-carbon energy economy.
If it is determined that hydrogen can safely be blended, the study will help inform codes and standards to regulate its transport and the development of a commercial hydrogen market in the province.
“At Enbridge, we are working hard to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions and the carbon intensity of the energy we transport,” said Cynthia Hansen, executive vice president at Enbridge and president of its gas transmission and midstream business. “One way we’re doing this is by using our existing energy infrastructure to transport low-carbon forms of energy such as hydrogen.
It is already operating a pilot hydrogen blending programme in Markham, Ontario, delivering a 2% blend to some 3,600 customers.
In BC, its Westcoast system consists of more than 2,900 km of pipeline delivering gas from fields in the northeast corner of the province to the US-Canada border and east to the border with Alberta. FortisBC, meanwhile, operates some 51,000 km of gas transmission and distribution pipelines, and is building a pipeline to serve the Woodfibre LNG project under construction near Squamish, in which Enbridge has a 30% ownership interest.
“FortisBC recognizes that we have a critical role to play in helping our customers reduce greenhouse gas emissions by providing new energy options that can be delivered safely and reliably through our existing gas system,” FortisBC CEO Roger Dall’Antonia said. “Our long-term vision is to have hydrogen be part of our renewable and low-carbon gas supply, and collaboration with industry and government in research such as this is a pivotal step toward finding the safest way of making that vision a reality.”