$900M hydrogen production project coming to B.C.

The British Columbia government says a $900 million project to create a network of hydrogen production plants and refuelling stations will create nearly 300 jobs and cut greenhouse gas emissions in the province.

The Canada Infrastructure Bank is providing a $337 million loan to support the project by hydrogen company HTEC, which involves plans to build up to 20 hydrogen refuelling stations, with 18 of them in B.C. and the others in Alberta.

The federal Crown corporation and the B.C. government say the refuelling stations will be supplied by three new hydrogen production plants in Burnaby, Nanaimo and Prince George.

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They say a facility to liquefy 15 tonnes of byproduct hydrogen will also be built in North Vancouver, and the project, called H2 Gateway, will create more than 280 jobs.

The project is designed to support hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles that the government says can travel long distances and have short refuelling times, and 14 of the new stations will be able to refuel up to 300 heavy vehicles per day.

Premier David Eby, who was attending the project announcement with federal Natural Resources Jonathan Wilkinson and other officials, says H2 Gateway represents an economic and job-creation opportunity and a way to reduce pollution.

The B.C. government says H2 Gateway could reduce emissions by about 133,000 tonnes a year.