Five Singaporean and two Japanese companies on Monday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to explore the use of as a low-carbon alternative for Singapore, according to a joint statement.
The Singaporean companies, PSA Corporation, Jurong Port, City Gas, Sembcorp Industries, and Singapore LNG Corporation along with Japanese Chiyoda Corporation and Mitsubishi Corporation will develop ways to utilize hydrogen as a green energy source in the country.
“This involves the research and development of technologies related to the importation, transportation and storage of hydrogen,” the statement said.
Hydrogen is a zero-emission fuel when burned with oxygen. It can be used in fuel cells or internal combustion engines to power electric vehicles or electric devices. Its use has begun in commercial fuel cell vehicles such as passenger cars, and has been used for fuel cell buses for many years. However, high costs blocked the wide spread use across the globe.
The companies will identify and demonstrate Chiyoda’s SPERA Hydrogen, a system for storing and transporting hydrogen which utilizes the organic chemical hydride (OCH) method.
The technology will enable hydrogen to be safely transported in chemical tankers at normal atmospheric temperature and pressure.
According to the statement, Chiyoda’s main shareholder will be Mitsubishi which will evaluate the technical and commercial feasibility of hydrogen usage, to develop a business case for hydrogen import and utilisation in Singapore.
“Powering our horizontal transport with hydrogen is just the beginning, and we will see its application expanding in the future, playing a part in our Smart Grid systems with EMA, and augmenting business adjacencies in our future Tuas Ecosystem,” said Ong Kim Pong, PSA International South-east Asia chief executive officer.
“This MOU marks an important first step towards making another sustainable energy option, namely hydrogen, available for Singapore,” said SLNG Chief Executive Officer Tan Soo Koong.
The Singapore National Research Foundation (NRF) will also collaborate with the Singapore Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) to address the problem of maritime decarbonisation through the advancement of science and technology.
The NRF Chief Executive Officer Teck Seng said their researchers and the MOU companies will work together to look at how technologies in this area – such as catalysis and membrane technologies – can be further developed for the production and distribution of hydrogen.
“This effort will be supported by public sector agencies, to accelerate the potential use of hydrogen as a low-carbon solution that will reduce Singapore’s carbon footprint,” he added.
By Sibel Morrow
Anadolu Agency
energy@aa.com.tr