North America
9 April 2026
Green ammonium nitrate for Canada's mines moves closer to reality
Written by Natalie Noor-Drugan
Hy2gen AG has contracted Plug Power to supply a 275 MW proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyser system for Project COURANT, its renewable ammonium nitrate development in Québec, Canada, marking a significant milestone in the project’s Front-End Engineering and Design (FEED) phase ahead of a planned Final Investment Decision (FID) in 2027.
Project COURANT is designed to produce 530,000 tonnes of ammonium nitrate per year based on renewable hydrogen. The facility will supply mining explosives formulators, targeting a reduction in local emissions and a strengthening of the supply chain for Canada’s strategically important mining sector.
Decarbonising a hard-to-abate sector
Hy2gen CEO Cyril Dufau-Sansot said: “This collaboration combines Hy2gen’s project development expertise with Plug’s electrolyser technology to enable a green chemical project producing low-carbon ammonium nitrate for Canada’s mining industry. By supporting this strategic sector, we are accelerating practical, large-scale decarbonisation.”
Dufau-Sansot also pointed to the broader policy context: “Canada has shown a strong commitment to advancing reindustrialisation and building its own strategic supply chains for local industry. This is exactly the right environment in which renewable hydrogen derivatives like ammonium nitrate can thrive, as they make supply chains less dependent on imported fossil fuels.”
About Hy2gen
Hy2gen AG, based in Wiesbaden, Germany, develops, finances, builds and operates plants for the production of renewable hydrogen and hydrogen derivatives — classified as RFNBO (renewable fuels of non-biological origin). The company has been active in the sector since 2017 and currently operates in five countries. Its project pipeline comprises 3.4 GW of electrolysis capacity in planning or construction, with a further 15 GW in development. Hy2gen raised €200 million ($218 million) from investors in early 2022 and a further €47 million ($51 million) in 2025.
