A hydrogen-blending project that’s the first of its kind in North America is now fully operational and serving the Markham community.
Hydrogen blending refers to injecting clean hydrogen into the delivered natural gas to reduce its carbon footprint. The $5.2-million project included enhancements to the existing power-to-gas facility built here by Enbridge Gas and Cummins Inc. in 2018 to help balance Ontario’s electricity supply and demand by storing the province’s surplus electricity as pure hydrogen until it’s needed.
Through the project, clean hydrogen from the facility is now also being injected into a portion of Enbridge Gas’s existing natural gas system, which serves about 3,600 customers in Markham. Blending hydrogen with traditional natural gas reduces greenhouse gas emissions (GHG), enabling lower carbon natural gas service delivery without impacting energy costs, reliability or safety.
“Markham’s GHG’s per capita is amongst the lowest of any large municipality in Canada and Enbridge Gas’s hydrogen-blending project complements our municipal energy plan of reaching net zero emissions by 2050,” says Mayor Frank Scarpitti.
“As the first project of its kind, this pilot represents the new era for hydrogen-blending in our province and will save 117 tonnes of carbon emissions: more than the annual energy use of 14 homes,” says David Piccini, Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks. “Our government looks forward to introducing Ontario’s first ever low-carbon hydrogen strategy soon so that we can expand use of this clean fuel for families and businesses across the province.”
Enbridge Gas is Canada’s largest natural gas storage, transmission and distribution company. Cummins Inc. is a corporation of complementary business segments that design, manufacture, distribute and service a broad portfolio of power solutions.
Visit enbridgegas.com/hydrogen and/or watch the video Discover the Potential of Renewable Hydrogen to learn more about hydrogen storage and blending.
Photo of Enbridge Gas Hydrogen-Blending Facility in Markham courtesy of CNW Group/Enbridge Gas Inc.
