A major feasibility study commissioned by the Sultanate of Oman’s integrated logistics provider Asyad Group proposes the construction of a 1000 km dedicated pipeline to transport hydrogen from the country’s production centers in the south and north to consumer terminals.
The Oman Hydrogen Center (OHC), a division of the German University of Technology (GUtech), and Dii Desert Energy, a well-known international think tank, worked together to produce the report, which describes the potential for an approximately 1000 km-long pipeline that would run from the south to the north of Oman.
The pipeline has a diameter of 40–42 inches and a hydrogen flow rate of 2 million m3/hour, which translates to a yearly throughput of 500,000 tonnes of hydrogen, or 16.5 terawatt-hours (TWh) of low heat value.
The report also stated that depending on the route, the material to be utilized (such as green steel), compression, landscape, and elevation profile, the cost of the pipelines proposed in the report would be approximately $3 billion.
The paper emphasizes that utilising the already-existing pipeline networks, such as those owned and operated by OQ Gas Networks (OQGN), might reduce the costs of transporting hydrogen.
OQGN is investigating if it is possible to use the already-existing natural gas pipeline network to carry a natural gas and hydrogen mixture that is deemed technically feasible and secure without requiring further modification. Some end users, however, who are unable to employ a 5 percent blend with hydrogen, may face difficulties as a result of this.
Another feasible alternative from a technological standpoint is to upgrade the pipes and use hydrogen gas as a transport medium.
