Enbridge and clean hydrogen

Hydrogen gas is not just colorless and odorless—it’s also an effective tool in the shift toward sustainable, lower-carbon energy.

“Green” hydrogen is created from a low-carbon or no-carbon source of electricity, such as wind or solar. It’s generated through a process called electrolysis, which uses an electric charge to split water into hydrogen and oxygen.

“Blue” hydrogen is created from natural gas, and most commonly through a process called steam methane reforming, in which the natural gas is split into hydrogen and carbon dioxide. When Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) is added to the steam methane reforming process, the majority of the carbon dioxide emissions are permanently sequestered, resulting in a low-carbon hydrogen.

Why use clean hydrogen?

Long-term outlooks currently suggest that hydrogen will have a meaningful impact on energy decarbonization—potentially resulting in between 5% and 25% of final energy consumption coming from hydrogen.

Whether it’s green or blue hydrogen, the resulting hydrogen gas can be:

• blended into existing natural gas transmission and distribution networks;
• used for peak power generation;
• directed toward modes of transportation such as heavy-haul trucking and shipping;
• applied to industrial processes that are hard to electrify;
• or stored for future use at a scale that exceeds battery capacity.

And in all cases, the use of clean hydrogen curbs greenhouse gas emissions as society transitions toward a lower-carbon future.

So, what is Enbridge doing with clean hydrogen?

Enbridge will be a key player in the development of this lower-carbon energy solution, given the sheer size of our gas pipeline network, our prowess in building and operating pipelines and storage, and our current hydrogen production and blending expertise.

Investments in green hydrogen production align well with our growing renewable power portfolio, while production of blue hydrogen offers alignment with our vast natural gas pipeline infrastructure and our CCS aspirations.

Enbridge began building our hydrogen expertise through a project with Cummins Inc. to establish North America’s first utility-scale power-to-gas (P2G) facility in Markham, Ontario.

Launched in 2018, the 2.5-megawatt (MW) Markham P2G facility has been used by the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) to balance electricity supply and demand. At full capacity, this facility can produce nearly 400,000 kg per year of hydrogen, enough for a fuel-cell car to drive 96 million kilometers. In late 2021, our gas utility, Enbridge Gas Inc., began using some of the green hydrogen produced at the facility in a hydrogen blending project, which involved blending 2% of the gas stream that serves about 3,600 Enbridge Gas customers in Markham. 

Enbridge subsidiary Gazifere also announced in February 2021, alongside project partner Evolugen, plans to build and operate a 20-MW electrolyzer plant in Gatineau, QC and inject the green hydrogen produced by electrolysis into Gazifere’s natural gas distribution network via a new 15-kilometer pipeline connecting the plant to the Gazifere grid. This project supports the province of Quebec’s plan to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.

We will continue to expand our expertise in low-carbon innovation with disciplined investments in hydrogen transportation infrastructure—with potential value chain extension upstream into hydrogen production, as well as downstream into large-scale underground hydrogen storage.

Nearer-term opportunities will see hydrogen blended with natural gas for transportation in existing pipelines, while in the longer term, dedicated hydrogen pipelines will be required.

Enbridge's clean hydrogen projects