Danish renewable fund Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) has acquired a majority stake in German developer ABO Energy's hydrogen project in Newfoundland, Canada.
CIP bought a 90pc stake in ABO's Toqlukuti'k project, which is expected to use wind to produce hydrogen and ammonia, the companies said on Tuesday. ABO will hold the remaining 10pc. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
The multiphased project would produce hydrogen to decarbonize production at the nearby Braya Renewable Fuels refinery in Come-by-Chance as well as ammonia for export, ABO has said. Construction was to begin in 2026, the company said in March.
However, Braya announced 9 December that it is weighing whether to idle its 18,000 b/d biorefinery before the end of year because of poor margins and uncertainty about US biofuels policy. ABO and CIP did not comment on Toqlukuti'k project plans, other than noting the site has the capacity to develop up to 5GW of onshore wind.
Capitalizing on ample wind and its proximity to northern Europe, Newfoundland has been at the center of Canadian ambitions to build hydrogen capacity and export derivative products. In 2022, Canada signed an agreement to supply Germany with clean hydrogen and foresaw exports by 2025. However, exports are unlikely by next year as project timelines have slipped and northern European demand has failed to takeoff.
Last month, another would-be Newfoundland hydrogen developer said it was exploring options to co-locate its project with a data center or steel manufacturing because export markets were taking longer than expected to develop.
