Ontario Power Generation subsidiary Atura Power has taken a final investment decision on its hydro-powered Niagara Hydrogen Center, a 20 MW green hydrogen project in Niagara Falls, Ontario.
Construction on the 2,000-tonnes-per-year project is slated to commence early this year, with operations expected for 2025, company spokesperson Darius Sokal confirmed in an email.
The Ontario provincial government provided CAD 4.1m to support blending of the project’s hydrogen with natural gas to produce electricity at the Halton Hills Generating Station. The total cost of the blending demonstration effort is CAD 12.6m, according to documentation.
The province also supported the project by providing an exemption from the Gross Revenue Charge from 2024 to 2033 for electricity generated at the Sir Adam Beck Generating Station used specifically for hydrogen production under prescribed conditions.
Additional financial terms were not immediately available.
In addition to natural gas blending, hydrogen from the project will go into Ontario’s wider fuels ecosystem. “We are looking forward to being able to provide alternative energy for vehicles such as Class-A trucks, regional transit authorities, forklifts, medium duty vehicles, etc.,” Kelly Grieves, director of hydrogen business, told The Niagara Independent.
Cummins is supplying four 5 MW electrolyzers to the project, built at the OEM’s Mississauga, Ontario facility.
CEM Engineering and Sacré-Davey Engineering were selected as Owner’s Engineering Representative for the design, permitting, and equipment selection of the project.
