據原油新聞6月24日消息稱，今天，阿爾伯塔省的大部分經濟來源于其豐富的自然資源，從油砂到煤炭和巨大的天然氣田。

　　但隨著世界遠離化石燃料，一些省級領導和聯邦政府希望阿爾伯塔能用氫來發展經濟。氫是一種豐富的元素和多種形式的能源，幾十年來一直處于成功的邊緣，但從未完全達到預期。

　　阿爾伯塔投資公司首席執行官David Legg 告訴《金融郵報》：“氫氣所發生的一切令人著迷。這有點像70年代的電動汽車或80年代的人工智能——你聽說過這些東西，但似乎什么都沒發生，所以每個人都有點翻白眼，但現在它只是家具的一部分。”

　　他補充說，“這就是現在對氫的感覺。”

　　聯邦政府正在考慮如何撥付擬議中的80億美元“凈零”基金。目前的問題是，投資氫氣生產是否有意義，作為阿爾伯塔化石燃料行業未來幾年過渡到脫碳經濟的一種方式。長期以來，氫被譽為一種新能源，但它以前曾遭遇過挫折，因為它的生產效率可能很低，會導致一些溫室氣體排放，需要大量基礎設施投資，而且極易燃燒。但支持者表示，技術進步已經解決了這些問題。

　　本月早些時候，聯邦政府和阿爾伯塔投資公司（該省于2020年成立的經濟發展公司，旨在幫助振興該省的經濟）宣布，他們已分別與美國空氣產品和化學品公司的子公司就在埃德蒙頓城外新建一座價值13億美元的氫氣生產設施簽署了一份諒解備忘錄。

　　朱佳妮 摘譯自 原油新聞

　　原文如下：

　　Alberta Bets Hydrogen will Breathe New Life into Province’s Natural Gas Sector

　　Today, much of Alberta’s economy stems from its vast natural resources, from the oilsands to coal and vast natural gas fields.

　　But as the world moves away from fossil fuels, some provincial leaders, along with the federal government, are hoping Alberta can build an economy out of hydrogen, an abundant element and versatile form of energy that has been on the brink of success for decades, but has never quite lived up to expectations.

　　“It’s just so fascinating what’s happening with hydrogen,” David Legg, chief executive of Invest Alberta told the Financial Post. “It’s sort of like electric vehicles back in the 70s or A.I. in the 80s — you heard about those things and nothing seemed to happen, so everyone sort of rolled their eyes but now it’s just part of the furniture.”

　　He added, “and that’s what it feels like is happening with hydrogen right now.”

　　At issue, as the federal government contemplates how to dole out a proposed $8 billion ‘net zero’ fund, is whether investing in hydrogen production makes sense as a way for Alberta’s fossil fuel industry to bridge the transition to a decarbonized economy in the coming years. Long hailed as a new energy, hydrogen has fallen flat before because it can be inefficient to produce, results in some greenhouse gas emissions, requires significant infrastructure investment and is also highly combustible. But proponents say advances in technology have solved these problems.

　　Earlier this month, both the federal government and Invest Alberta, the economic development corporation that the province set up in 2020 to help rejuvenate its economy, announced they have each signed a memorandum of understanding with a subsidiary of U.S.-based Air Products and Chemicals about building a new $1.3 billion hydrogen production facility outside Edmonton.