Exxon planning largest hydrogen production facility in the world

Jan. 30 (UPI) -- U.S. supermajor ExxonMobil said Monday it handed over a preliminary engineering contract to build what will become the largest hydrogen production facility in the world.

For undisclosed terms, Exxon awarded French company Technip Energies with the front-end engineering and design contract for a so-called blue hydrogen hub at its Baytown complex in Texas.

Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe and a potent energy carrier. Production is described using a color spectrum. Grey hydrogen is the most common method in commercial operations today. It breaks up natural gas into its elemental components -- hydrogen and carbon.

Blue hydrogen uses similar processes but employs sequestration technology to cut carbon emissions.

Exxon is targeting production of 1 billion cubic feet of blue hydrogen per day at Baytown and could capture nearly 98% of the associated emissions of carbon.

Hydrogen is an emerging component of the so-called energy transition away from polluting fossil fuels, but it's still somewhat in the niche stage outside of grey processing methods.

Green hydrogen is the latest to attract industry and public attention. It uses an electric current powered by renewable energy to break water into its elemental components -- hydrogen and oxygen -- with few carbon emissions. It's expensive though and proponents say it would be more efficient to use those renewable resources directly on the grid.

Meanwhile, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres spent much of his time at the podium during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, scolding the fossil fuels industry for its history of pollution.

His comments followed a report in the journal Science that found Exxon in the 1970s predicted that fossil fuels would have a "dramatic" impact on the environment, though most of their public relations effort was geared to stoking doubt over climate change.

Nevertheless, Exxon stated it was already looking for consumers that would draw on the hydrogen reserves from Baytown. A final investment decision is expected next year and production could begin as early as 2027.