Hydrogen: The race to produce a new source of energy

This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly, on February 20, 2023 - February 26, 2023.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries’ headquarters in Tokyo. Mitsubishi is involved in several projects to commercialise hydrogen production.

Many companies are racing to be pioneers of hydrogen production on a commercial scale, and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd is one of them.

Through its power solution brand Mitsubishi Power, the Japan-based company has inked multiple partnerships with clients in Southeast Asia, such as Keppel Infrastructure Holdings Pte Ltd through its subsidiary, Keppel Energy, to develop Singapore’s first hydrogen-ready power plant.

Takao Tsukui, Mitsubishi Power’s executive vice-president of international sales and marketing, firmly believes that Southeast Asia has an advantage to develop hydrogen as a source of energy for the rest of the world. However, the supply chain infrastructure is still in its infancy. 

“When you look into hydrogen, it’s still probably too early to determine what the hydrogen supply system in Southeast Asia [will look like.] There will be a lot of infrastructure that will need to be invested,” says Tsukui, who was recently in Kuala Lumpur for the Mitsubishi Power Malaysia Technical Seminar 2023. 

He hopes that governments in the region will be able to pave the way and expedite each country’s progress towards cleaner energy sources. 

“As a technology supplier, we will make sure that we are ready to supply the technology when the hydrogen supply chain is available. But first, we are focusing and investing very heavily to [make] that technology [ready]. We want to work together with our customers and governments to [develop] that supply chain,” he says.

The company is currently involved in many projects around the world to make commercial-scale hydrogen production possible. For instance, it is transitioning a coal plant that is about to be retired in Utah, the US, into a natural gas and hydrogen-blend power plant. It is also building the Takasago Hydrogen Park in Japan to become what it calls the world’s first centre for the validation of hydrogen-related technologies. The park is expected to commence operations this year. 

Apart from hydrogen, Mitsubishi Power also looks into other energy sources such as biomass and ammonia. According to Tsukui, ammonia is an option because it is easier to handle volume-wise. However, it is very difficult to burn.

“Another [energy] option that we can consider for Malaysia is for existing coal plants or other units to blend biomass and ammonia into the fuel [mixture]. Hence, the existing boiler turbines and conventional power plants can also be decarbonised,” he says.

Taking precautionary measures

Hydrogen is often considered as a clean energy source, but its risks are not acknowledged fully. According to the Environmental Defense Fund, hydrogen that has leaked into the atmosphere can contribute to climate change by increasing the amount of other greenhouse gases, such as methane, ozone and water vapour. 

When asked, Tsukui assures that Mitsubishi Power is vigilant in handling the gas.

“We have to understand that hydrogen is the smallest molecule. There’s always a potential of leakage, but we have stringent standards for handling hydrogen [through] piping and valves and there will be a lot stricter requirements than [when handling] natural gas or any other fuel.”