Snam explores hydrogen opportunities in UAE

UAE Mubadala Investment Company and Italy Snam, an energy infrastructure company, have today (22^nd March) agreed to explore hydrogen production projects for joint invest and development in the UAE and elsewhere.

Musabbeh Al Kaabi, CEO of UAE Investments, Mubadala, said, “This signing with Snam is an extension of our joint efforts to develop a hydrogen economy for the UAE, and we are committed to advancing the role hydrogen will play to meet future energy demand globally.”

Mubadala also established the Abu Dhabi Hydrogen Alliance in partnership with ADNOC and ADQ to help support the UAE hydrogen economy.

Marco Alverà, Chief Executive Officer at Snam, said: “We will work closely with Mubadala leveraging our mutual know-how and investment capabilities to identify projects of common interest in the UAE and contribute to the development of a hydrogen-fuelled economy”.

Snam claims to be Europe’s first company to test the injection of a blend of hydrogen and natural gas in its network. It is also looking for partnering with others for hydrogen applications in various industries, including steel and railways.

It has recently signed an agreement with the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia (Unimore) to promote Research & Development and training projects in the hydrogen industry to jointly investigate new technological solutions that leverage hydrogen to promote decarbonisation and energy transition.

Last month, Snam and Hera showed their intention to collaborate on developing hydrogen-related technologies. Early this year, it also signed a letter of intent with Tenaris and Edison to launch a project aimed at decarbonising Tenaris’s seamless pipe mill in Dalmine using green hydrogen in EAF steelmaking processes. The project will produce hydrogen and oxygen from a 20 MW electrolyser installed at the Dalmine plant, replacing natural gas. The project also considered building a storage site for high-pressure hydrogen.