World’s largest green hydrogen project’s total investment value closes at $8.4 billion
23 May 2023
NEOM Green Hydrogen Company (NGHC) has announced that following signing financial documents with 23 local, regional, and international banks, and investment firms, it has now achieved financial close on the world’s largest green hydrogen production facility at a total investment value of $8.4 billion (£6.7bn).
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The plant is currently being built at Oxagon, in Saudi Arabia’s region of NEOM – an area in the country's northwest where a planned smart city powered completely by renewables is to be located. Developers plan to complete NEOM by 2039, however critics have said the timeline is unrealistic with the majority of the region still being desert as of mid-2022.
The $500 billion project has also been criticised for the violent, forced eviction of a local tribe and an abusive work culture. Saudi Arabia’s poor record on human rights and LGBT issues, as well as the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018, have also led to delays due to several employees, including advisers, architects, and executives, distancing themselves or leaving the project altogether.
Announcing the closure of financing for the planned green hydrogen plant, NGHC said it had also concluded the engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) agreement with Air Products as the nominated contractor and system integrator for the entire facility. NEOM Green Hydrogen Company added that it had secured an exclusive 30-year off-take agreement with Air Products for all the green ammonia produced at the facility.
An equal joint venture between ACWA Power, Air Products and NEOM, NGHC’s mega-plant will integrate up to 4GW of solar and wind energy to produce up to 600 tonnes per day of carbon-free hydrogen by the end of 2026, in the form of green-ammonia as a cost-effective solution for the transportation and industrial sectors globally.
NGHC’s financial agreements were concluded through a diverse mix of local, regional and international banks and financial institutions, along-with an Euler Hermes tranche with no fewer than 23 institutions investing in the project.
Earlier in January 2023, Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources awarded its first industrial operating license to NGHC, paving the way for the Kingdom to become one of the world’s leading hydrogen producers, while maintaining its position as a key player in the energy sector, NGHC said.
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