Tallgrass and Equinor announced on 27 September a collaborative effort to pursue opportunities for development of large-scale, low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia projects in North America. The partners will assess the production and market potential for hydrogen and ammonia, and associated distribution infrastructure to help facilitate broad decarbonization.

Under the memorandum of understanding, Tallgrass and Equinor have agreed to initial co-development activities, including the joint funding of a front-end engineering and design (FEED) study. The study will be focused on large-scale hydrogen production, incorporating the capture of a minimum of 95% of the CO2 for permanent sequestration, coupled with ammonia for efficient transportation and storage. As part of the study, Tallgrass and Equinor are evaluating multiple regional energy centers across the US.

Recent policy developments further confirm the US commitment to decarbonized energy projects and reflect the important role that a full-scale hydrogen economy could play in providing communities with clean and reliable energy. Equinor and Tallgrass share a similar commitment and will work together towards advancing the integration of low- or zero-carbon hydrogen and ammonia into regional clean energy clusters, while taking a holistic approach to full value-chain emissions and resource conservation.

“The joint initiative with Tallgrass to launch plans for a large-scale clean ammonia value chain in the US is fully in line with the roadmap of making Equinor carbon neutral by 2050. It builds on complementary experience in both companies and the common aspiration to take a leading role in the global energy transition,” says Grete Tveit, senior vice president for Low Carbon Solutions in Equinor.

“We are pleased to announce these significant initiatives with Equinor and are excited to continue our investments in the next generation of decarbonization infrastructure,” says Dustin Bashford, Tallgrass’ Segment President. “Equinor has shown tremendous leadership in global energy development. At Tallgrass, we are equally focused on innovative solutions that propel investment in decarbonization and renewables and advance solutions that can rapidly expand North America’s clean energy supply chain.”

“The magnitude of annual emissions reductions from our potential regional energy centers equates to eliminating the CO2 emissions of over one-third of the total automobiles on the road in states as populous as Colorado, Arizona, and Massachusetts,” added Mr. Bashford. “It is this type of meaningful decarbonization that we are committed to rapidly advancing.”

Press release