Energy-poor and land-constrained Japan and South Korea are widely viewed as the greatest prizes in the low-carbon hydrogen export sweepstakes. Since 2017, they have both released roadmaps to develop hydrogen economies to counter domestic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and produce hydrogen-related technologies and equipment for export. Japan and South Korea are expected to be importing low-carbon hydrogen—the blue and green varieties—in volume by 2028 to 2030.

To date, Japanese entities have signed a number of deals with foreign governments and companies to get the low-carbon hydrogen ball rolling, whereas the South Korean government appears to be taking a more systematic approach to sourcing the fuel from abroad.

The Korean Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy is conducting a feasibility study of at least six countries—Australia, Canada, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia and the UAE have been cited in the press—as it is planning to at least initially source low-carbon hydrogen from a single country as a means to maximize economies of scale and make the fuel economically competitive with fossil fuels as quickly as possible.

That being said, Japan and South Korea both appear to be eyeing low-carbon hydrogen imports from countries in which they already have established and substantial energy relations, with

Australia, Saudi Arabia and the UAE the most likely winners based on pilot projects and cooperation agreements signed to date.

Saudi Arabia

In mid-November, Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said the Kingdom had set its sights on being the largest exporter of low-carbon hydrogen in the world, after long being the largest exporter of oil.

In September, Saudi Aramco and the Institute of Energy Economics Japan, in partnership with Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (Sabic, now wholly-owned by Aramco), in a pilot project spanning the full supply chain, produced and shipped the world’s first cargo of blue ammonia—converted from blue hydrogen, as shipping raw hydrogen by sea remains a work in progress—to Japan for low-carbon power production.

And near the end of March, Aramco announced it had signed a memorandum of understanding with Japan’s largest refiner, Eneos Corporation, to undertake a feasibility study for a low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia supply chain between the two countries.

Despite making a number of other moves since last summer to support its ambitious hydrogen goal, including laying the groundwork for strategic alliances with China and Germany—leading technological powers and potential hydrogen import markets—the Kingdom has yet to cut any deals with South Korean entities for the potential export of low-carbon hydrogen. 

UAE

Of the three front-runners, the UAE is the only one to have made hydrogen agreements with both Japan and South Korea, and it has done so since the beginning of the year as it has been playing catch-up in an increasingly net-zero emissions energy world.

On 8 April, the UAE signed a hydrogen cooperation agreement with Japan, with the goal of collaborating on low-carbon hydrogen production and to develop an international supply chain. In particular, the memorandum of cooperation between the UAE’s Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure and Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (Meti) lays the groundwork for a pilot project to ship blue ammonia between the two countries, much like Saudi Arabia’s recently completed pilot project. This agreement builds on one between Abu Dhabi’s state-owned oil company, Adnoc, and Meti to cooperate on developing blue ammonia and carbon capture and storage technology.

In early March, Adnoc announced a deal with South Korea’s GS Energy to explore collaboration opportunities for blue hydrogen production and its export as blue ammonia.

Australia

In January 2020, the trade ministers of Australia and Japan met in Melbourne and signed a joint statement of hydrogen cooperation whereby the two countries agreed the other would be a key trading partner for hydrogen. This agreement builds on the Hydrogen Energy Supply Chain, a joint world-first pilot project to economically ship blue hydrogen produced from lignite (low quality brown coal) in the southeastern state of Victoria to the port city of Kobe.

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Author: Vincent Lauerman