After 22 months of deliberation, Project Nujio’qonik just got the go ahead. The plant is set to be built between the west coast of Newfoundland and Labrador and is aiming to produce 250,000 tonnes of green hydrogen per year. This production won’t all serve to power the region – the plan is to ensure the first phase of the project will be able to produce 400,000 tonnes of green ammonia for export.
The project’s base will be a commercial-scale wind farm. Through this farm, they will be able to harvest clean energy and distribute it to other parts of the country or perhaps the world. The lead developer behind the project, World Energy GH2, recently acquired the Port of Stephenville, located on the west coast of Newfoundland. The port is now set to become the future home of the wind farm.
Horizon Maritime Services, a management company with operations in St. John’s, will operate the port on behalf of World Energy GH2 as of Thursday. Sean Leet, Managing Director and CEO of World Energy GH2, says port staff will continue in their current roles.
Most of the needed infrastructure is already in place, he added, and enhancements will be made over time as the project develops.
A 27-member Environmental Assessment Committee, representing 18 provincial and federal government departments, took part in the evaluation process. Although the project has essentially gotten the green light, the evaluation will continue to oversee it. There are more hurdles for the development team to overcome on the horizon. Some of these could still derail the project, even though it’s been in evaluation for almost two years.
“Our next steps are to update our plans, as may be required, to meet specific conditions outlined by the province and to finalize the initial permits required to begin early works construction,” said Sean Leet, Managing Director and CEO of World Energy GH2. “In parallel with our early work activities, we will continue to progress FEED (front-end engineering design) activities, confirm orders for additional long-lead items, and advance and execute offtake agreements as we work toward a final investment decision in early 2025.”
The lease on the property has been signed, so if the wind farm is set to be built, it will be done so within the Port. At this point, though, there are still studies being conducted to address the environmental impact within the area as well as the project’s overall financial viability.
Part of the reason why the province of Newfoundland and Labrador is so keen to complete this project is the green hydrogen subsidies offered by the U.S. government. To qualify for these subsidies, energy needs to be generated by zero-emissions sources like solar, wind, and nuclear, among others.
This could mean that much of the energy produced by the facility will be sold outside of Canada, which could attract some opposition from within the country.
Correction made on April 18, 2024 – The article originally stated that locals would be affected by the The Port of Stephenville’s closure. The port is not due to be closed – it is currently operating and will continue to operate once the project is in operation.
