(Yicai) March 21 -- China Petroleum Engineering Corporation, the country's largest oil and gas supplier, has put into operation the initial phase of its first project using renewable energy to produce hydrogen.

The first stage, which became operational on March 16, can produce 2,100 tons of hydrogen with a purity of 99.99 percent a year, the state-owned energy giant announced yesterday.

Located in CNPC's Yumen oil field in China's northwestern Gansu province, the project includes three electrolytic hydrogen production facilities with hourly output capacity of 1,000 standard cubic feet each, according to the company. Hydrogen sales have started through pipelines, reaching over 40,000 SCF as of yesterday, it added.

The project's first phase would cost CNY211 million (USD29.3 million), local news outlet Gansu Daily reported last August when construction began. Besides the electrolytic hydrogen production facilities, the project has a 30-megawatt solar power station as its green energy source.

CNPC sees the Yumen field as a demonstration base for its clean energy transformation and the leading player in Gansu's hydrogen-based energy supply chain. 

Hydrogen is a key part of China’s future energy layout and a means to its green energy transition. According to a 15-year plan to develop the hydrogen energy industry published in March 2022, the country will prioritize hydrogen produced using renewable energy, which will require the gradual formation of a complete hydrogen energy industrial system.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Martin Kadiev