EverWind Fuels, a green hydrogen developer started by ex-Stonepeak co-founder Trent Vichie, has agreed to supply hydrogen to two German energy companies.
The German groups E.ON and Uniper said in separate statements on Tuesday (23 August) they aim to buy up to 500,000 tonnes per year of ammonia each from EverWind, starting in 2025, when the project is set to begin production.
The ammonia, a blend of nitrogen and hydrogen used for transporting hydrogen, will be produced at EverWind’s plant in Point Tupper, Nova Scotia.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz today signed a “joint declaration of intent” that calls on the two countries to invest in hydrogen, establish a “transatlantic Canada-Germany supply corridor” and start exporting hydrogen by 2025.
EverWind Fuels said in a separate release it had acquired the NuStar storage terminal in Point Tupper. The developer bought the terminal in April for USD 60m, according to a NuStar announcement at the time.
The Point Tupper site is ideally positioned to produce green hydrogen as early as 2025, supported by significant existing in-place infrastructure, according to the EverWind release.
Point Tupper has an existing ice-free, deep-water port with 27-meter depth and two berths which are capable of accommodating the largest vessels in the world. The port is the deepest in Nova Scotia and the surrounding region. In addition, the Point Tupper site has existing rail loading facilities and is adjacent to pipeline networks to support domestic and regional markets. Electricity transmission is available at the site as well as 7.7 million barrels of liquids storage and abundant freshwater, which is adjacent to the site.
The site is operated by a highly qualified, 70-person team trained to protect the surrounding environment and deliver safe operations. EverWind is also working with engineering consultancy Hatch, electrolyser supplier NEL, and ammonia technology supplier KBR.
CIBC Capital Markets and Citi are acting as EverWind’s joint financial advisors. International law firm Shearman & Sterling LLP and Canadian firm McInnes Cooper are acting as EverWind’s legal counsels.
As part of a staged development, EverWind Fuels also intends to partner with offshore wind developers to further expand production over time, which aligns with the joint announcement by the Canadian and Nova Scotia governments in April 2022 to expand the mandate of Nova Scotia’s offshore energy regime, to support the transition to a clean economy, and to create sustainable jobs.
“Onshore facilities, like Point Tupper, will be key to unlocking this important industry and we are excited to play our part,” said Vichie.
