SK Ecoplant Participation, Approval of Site for Canada’s ‘New Geo-Hornic Project’

Securing Wind Power Sites for a 20 Trillion Won Project
Approval Granted for Use of National Land 1.8 Times the Size of Seoul

SK ecoplant has successfully secured wind power sites necessary for the ‘Nujio’qonik’ project aimed at commercial green hydrogen production.

World Energy GH₂, the lead company of the Nujio’qonik project in Canada, announced on the 31st of last month (Korean time) that it had obtained approval from the Canadian provincial government to use public land for wind power generation.

The Nujio’qonik project is a commercial green hydrogen business that produces green hydrogen without carbon emissions by electrolyzing water using electricity generated from wind power, then converts it into green ammonia for transportation to other continents such as Europe. The project name Nujio’qonik means ‘the place where sandstorms blow’ in an indigenous language.

The project site is ‘Crown Land’ on Newfoundland Island in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador in eastern Canada. After fierce competition with a total of 24 projects bidding for the wind power site, only four projects including the Nujio’qonik project passed the final evaluation. The total land area approved for use this time is 1,077.91 km², about 1.8 times the total area of Seoul (605.24 km²).

Map showing four sites approved for use by the New Geo-Honic Project (Provided by World Energy GH₂)

With this public land use approval, the Nujio’qonik project has secured all the wind power sites needed for expansion through three phases. The possible wind power generation capacity reaches 4GW, equivalent to about 3 to 4 nuclear power plants. Earlier this year, the acquisition of the Stevenville port, one of the key assets for the production and intercontinental transport of green hydrogen and green ammonia, was also completed.

SK ecoplant holds a 20% stake in the first phase of the Nujio’qonik project through an investment agreement with World Energy GH₂ signed last May. The company plans to supply and install electrolyzers for green hydrogen production, including the project’s Front End Engineering Design (FEED). The EPC for the plant converting green hydrogen into green ammonia will be jointly handled with its subsidiary SK ecengineering.

This project will establish a total of 600MW, including about 1GW of onshore wind power for electricity production and solid oxide electrolyzers (SOEC) and polymer electrolyte membrane electrolyzers (PEMEC) for green hydrogen production at each phase. When fully operational in three phases, it is expected to produce approximately 180,000 tons of green hydrogen and 1,080,000 tons of green ammonia annually. The target is to start green hydrogen production in 2025 and green ammonia production in 2026.

Last month, World Energy GH₂ also completed the submission of the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) documents to the Newfoundland provincial government.

Park Kyung-il, CEO of SK ecoplant, said, “As we play a key role in a green hydrogen project that crosses continents, we will fulfill our role as a pioneer in realizing a global hydrogen ecosystem early,” adding, “We will do our utmost to ensure that the ‘Nujio’qonik’ project proceeds smoothly as a leading player in the commercialization of green hydrogen in 2025.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.