The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will finance a pilot hydrogen generation facility in Uzbekistan to support the decarbonisation of fertiliser production.
Up to $65m has been offered to ACWA Power UKS Green H2 for the development, design, construction and operation of the facility. The package consists of a $55m loan provided by the EBRD and concessional finance of up to $10m from Canada.
H2 View understands that the plant will help replace grey hydrogen used in ammonia fertiliser production in Uzbekistan. Once operational, the facility is expected to produce up to 3,000 tonnes of renewable hydrogen annually to reduce CO2 emissions by around 22,000 tonnes.
LONGI Hydrogen will help deliver the first stage of the large-scale project in Uzbekistan, by supplying its LONGI ALK electrolyser stacks in the initial phase.
Read more: LONGI to provide electrolysers to ACWA Power’s 3,000 tonne hydrogen project
“EBRD is proud to finance this landmark renewable hydrogen facility in Uzbekistan with our long-standing partner ACWA Power and their partner Uzkimyosanoat (UKS),” explained Nandita Parshad, EBRD Managing Director.
“This is the first-of-its-kind across Central Asia, a region with some of the most carbon-intensive and hard-to-abate industries.”
The Uzbekistan plant represents the second hydrogen production project financed by the EBRD, following the Bank’s support for a renewable hydrogen facility in Egypt back in 2022.
In November (2023), the Saudi-based ACWA Power announced it had broken ground on its 3,000-tonne hydrogen project in Uzbekistan.
The pilot project will is anticipated to produce 3,000 tonnes in its first phase before the second stage introduces 2.5GW of wind energy to power the production of 500,000 tonnes per year.
Read more:ACWA Power makes progress on Uzbekistan green hydrogen project
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