• Saudi company to work with Austria’s leading electricity company to explore joint projects on green hydrogen
• Memorandum of Understanding signed during Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2023

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates/ Riyadh, KSA – 18 January 2023: ACWA Power, a leading Saudi developer, investor, and operator of power generation, water desalination and green hydrogen plants worldwide, has finalised a partnership agreement with VERBUND, Austria’s leading electricity company, to jointly explore the potential development of green hydrogen projects in the Middle East region to produce hydrogen to be used by Verbund as a renewable energy source to Central Europe with a primary focus on Austria.

Given its positive environmental implications and capabilities to decarbonise entire industrial sectors, energy sector players around the globe are embarking on ambitious green hydrogen projects that will harness their full potential in the decades ahead. To firmly establish the co-operation between ACWA Power and VERBUND, both partners signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) during the ongoing Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW) 2023.

Produced by electrolysis of water using only renewable energy sources, green hydrogen is one of the most promising solutions for addressing climate change and accelerating carbon-free strategies, with zero carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions making it the world’s cleanest, most efficient fuel.

“We are very pleased and excited to announce the cooperation with ACWA Power to jointly explore green hydrogen projects for a sustainable, future-proof energy system.” he added.

Although the collaboration between ACWA Power and VERBUND has only just begun, the two parties are well-positioned to drive project progression quickly, partly due to ACWA Power’s ongoing green hydrogen activities and involvement.

The NEOM Green Hydrogen Company (NGHC), an equal joint-venture between ACWA Power, Air Products and NEOM, is developing the world’s first at scale green hydrogen project. Scheduled for completion in 2026, the project will produce up to 600 tonnes per day of carbon free green hydrogen in the form of green ammonia to be utilised as a cost-effective solution for transportation globally.

VERBUND’s technological capabilities and over 75 years of hydropower expertise, combined with ACWA Power’s green hydrogen knowledge, experience, and operations, will help ensure that the MoU’s objectives, terms, and aspirations are met moving forward.