Fueling a Cleaner Future: ACWA Power and Green Hydrogen

In January 2020, Paddy Padmanathan, president and CEO of ACWA Power, was reflecting on the company’s sixteen-year record of success and thinking about its future growth plans. Founded in 2004, ACWA Power was a Saudi Arabian developer, owner, and operator of power and water desalination plants, was thinking about the company’s future. Over the past 16 years, ACWA Power had grown its footprint with 56 assets across 11 countries, with a combined value of over $45 billion. ACWA Power had been studying the prospects of a non-carbon fuel, green hydrogen. To date, no large-scale green hydrogen plant had been attempted, predominantly because it was too costly to produce. However, with green hydrogen production costs declining and increasing commitment from countries and companies to decarbonization, projections for the hydrogen market were optimistic though highly varied. Padmanathan believed that ACWA Power with its low-cost business model and track record would be able to deliver green hydrogen at a competitive price and was keen to embark on the world’s first large-scale green hydrogen project. He saw several challenges, including ACWA Power’s lack of experience working with industrial gases and finding an attractive project site. The project would require partners with complementary expertise, and ACWA Power would need to determine how to structure the relationships. Padmanathan was excited about the possibilities, but was the timing right? Would being a first mover outweigh the pioneering costs? If so, what would be the best way forward?