“青氢一号”松原项目二期开工 总投资108.28亿元构筑全球绿氢标杆"Qinghydrogen One" Songyuan Project Phase II Commences, Total Investment of 10.828 Billion Yuan to Build a Global Green Hydrogen Benchmark

On October 20, the second phase of the 'Qing Hydrogen No.1' Zhongnengjian Songyuan Hydrogen Energy Industrial Park (green hydrogen-ammonia-methanol integration) project, invested and constructed by China Energy Construction Group Co., Ltd., commenced in Songyuan, Jilin, with a total investment of 10.828 billion yuan. After the completion of the second phase, the Songyuan project phases one and two will have an annual green ammonia production capacity of 600,000 tons, marking the first time that China's wind-solar coupled green hydrogen-to-green ammonia process has moved from demonstration verification to large-scale commercial operation.

This project is China's first large-scale wind-solar coupled green hydrogen-to-green ammonia integrated project and is currently the largest green hydrogen-ammonia-methanol integrated project in the world. The first phase of the project was put into operation on December 16, 2025, setting four world records for the largest scale, the largest hydrogen storage capacity, the broadest load-flexible process, and the largest alkaline electrolysis hydrogen production equipment. Operating for nearly a year, the synthetic ammonia unit has reached 100% production load, fully entering a phase of stable operation and mass product delivery.

On October 13 this year, green ammonia produced by the first-phase project in Zhoushan, Zhejiang, completed the world's first ship-to-ship bunkering of green ammonia fuel, achieving the full-chain first connection of "production—storage and transportation—refueling—application" for green ammonia as marine green fuel. This milestone signifies the transition of the green fuel trade channel downstream of green hydrogen from demonstration to practical operation, and also provides preliminary validation for securing overseas markets in the second phase.

Ni Zhen, Party Secretary and Chairman of China Energy Engineering Corporation, stated that China Energy Engineering, relying on the integrated advantages of planning consulting, investment, construction, and operation across the entire industry chain, has proactively deployed the strategic emerging industry of hydrogen energy, promoted clustered development of green hydrogen-ammonia-methanol projects in the "Three North" regions, and formed the integrated hydrogen energy solution "Qing Hydrogen No. 1." The commencement of the second-phase project is a scaled-up expansion based on the demonstration of the first phase, marking the shift of integrated green hydrogen-ammonia-methanol in China from engineering demonstration to large-scale commercial operation.

Compared with Phase I, Phase II of the Songyuan project has achieved a systematic leap in five dimensions: scale, equipment, technology, efficiency, and market. In terms of scale, it has doubled, with renewable energy installed capacity rising to 1,600 MW, compared with 800 MW in Phase I, adopting a "self-consumption with surplus electricity supplied to the grid" model, with green power supply capacity scaling up in sync with hydrogen production load. In terms of equipment, capacity has been expanded, with chemical construction comprising two 200,000-ton-per-year ammonia synthesis units, a 126,000-standard-cubic-meter electrolytic water hydrogen production unit, and a 42,000-standard-cubic-meter air separation nitrogen unit. The annual production capacity of green hydrogen and green ammonia reaches 90,000 tons and 400,000 tons respectively, twice that of Phase I.

In terms of technology, the operating flexibility of the ammonia synthesis unit has been further expanded to 7.5%–110%, allowing better adaptation to fluctuations in wind and solar power output while reducing energy consumption and equipment wear. In terms of benefits, through integrated overall design, intensive layout, domestic equipment iteration, and intelligent digital management, the production cost of the Phase II green ammonia unit is reduced by more than 10% compared to Phase I; by using low-energy electrolytic hydrogen production and flexible ammonia synthesis processes, along with full-process waste heat recovery and cascade utilization, the comprehensive energy efficiency exceeds the industry advanced level; an industrial internet platform covering the entire chain from ‘power generation—hydrogen production—synthesis—storage and transportation—sales’ has been established to achieve integrated smart management of 'source-grid-load-storage.'

In terms of the market, Phase II simultaneously obtained South Korean clean hydrogen certification, the products meet the EU ISCC sustainable certification standards, and long-term supply agreements have been signed with multiple international enterprises to supply ammonia-blended power generation and zero-carbon fuels for European maritime shipping, creating a complete trade channel from domestic wind and solar resources to overseas zero-carbon fuel markets.

Li Jingguang, Party Secretary and Chairman of China Energy Engineering Hydrogen Energy Company, stated that if Phase I addressed the feasibility issue of 'going from 0 to 1,' Phase II answers the commercialization question of 'going from 1 to N.' The Phase II project reduces fixed costs through scale expansion, lowers energy and material consumption through technological iteration, and locks in the market to realize a green premium, giving China's green fuels the cost competitiveness to participate in international competition.

The so-called 'green hydrogen-ammonia-methanol integration' refers to converting gaseous green hydrogen, which is difficult to store and transport, into green ammonia and green methanol that are liquid at normal temperature and pressure and can directly fit into existing storage and transportation systems. This not only solves the core bottleneck in green hydrogen storage and transport but also enables a full chain of renewable energy application from production, consumption, and transmission to decarbonization across the entire industry. The Songyuan project, through the technical route of 'direct wind and solar supply, energy storage peak regulation, high-efficiency electrolysis hydrogen production, and dynamic ammonia-methanol integrated synthesis,' solves the problem of dynamically coupling the fluctuations of renewable energy with the stable production in the chemical industry.

In the future, China will take the start of the Songyuan Phase II project as a new starting point, adhere to the integrated development of wind, solar, hydrogen, ammonia, and methanol, accelerate the expansion of derivative products such as green methanol and green aviation fuel, build a complete green fuel supply chain covering production, storage and transportation, refueling, and trade, and promote green hydrogen, ammonia, and methanol towards larger scale, lower cost, and wider applications.

[Source: China Daily]

[Editor: Xiao Neng]