Furthering alliances
In his own words, IGEM CEO Oliver Lancaster shares details of his and Past IGEM President David Tomkin's trip the Far East District Section (FEDS) where they participated in site visits, celebrated achievements and welcomed new members.
The overseas visit to IGEM’s Far East District Section (FEDS) is always a highlight of the year. It provides a regular opportunity to engage with the FEDS Committee and members in Hong Kong and China, to understand how we can support them, and celebrate their many achievements since the last visit.
The visit also presents a convenient opportunity to meet with other significant gas sector participants while we are in the region. With progress having started in India, the focus this time was to meet hydrogen leaders in South Korea and energy innovators in Japan.
Our first port of call was Hong Kong, where we attended a President’s Reception and IGEM President 2024-2025 David Tomkin had the opportunity to give a short after-dinner address to thank and encourage colleagues based in the Special Administrative Region. This was also a chance to look ahead at the programme of meetings and technical visits we would enjoy during our stay. David gave a very warm welcome to new Individual and Company Members and presented them with their certificates.
Next up in the packed itinerary was a visit to one of Sinopec’s new hydrogen refuelling stations in Hong Kong, which is initially serving fleets of refuse and street sweeping vehicles.
After a lunch meeting with Sinopec’s leadership team, a short stop at a railway museum stoked some conversations about transport decarbonisation beyond road vehicles, such as passenger and freight trains. The transport discussion also included the challenge of eliminating emissions from flights – coinciding with Hong Kong’s 100th anniversary of aviation, which was marked by a Cathay Pacific low-pass over Victoria Harbour, between the skyscrapers of Kowloon and Hong Kong Island.
We were then given the chance see the main Towngas production plant in Tai Po and to visit the small gasworks in Ma Tau Kok, where one of the last two low pressure gasholders is still in use.
As usual, we had our annual meeting with the President, CEO and other senior leaders of the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers (HKIE), during which both parties presented introductions and discussed current challenges and innovations in the gas industry.
We then transferred across to Mainland China with a FEDS delegation and focused our activities in and around the city of Jinan, in the Shandong Province.
Our headline visit in Jinan was to Meide Group, where the sheer scale of their factory is almost too difficult to express in words. This sprawling casting works features solar panels installed on every roof surface, its own farm to grow food for the staff canteen, a staff recreation area with sports equipment, a state of the art laboratory with all the latest research and analysis equipment, and a full scale testing facility for pipes and fittings of all diameters up to 56in.
Our hosts could not have been more gracious, welcoming and friendly. Jinan also hosted the FEDS YPPC heat, where David joined the judging panel and enjoyed presentations from the last eight candidates out of over 130 who submitted entries to the Section competition.
We really enjoyed meeting all of the finalists, hearing about their extensive knowledge and witnessing the pride they took in their work. We were very grateful for them competing in English – which is a challenge enough in your own language.
Once the winner and runner-up had been announced, we then enjoyed the Mainland China New Members’ Presidential Reception, where David gave a detailed presentation covering all aspects of hydrogen research and innovation and welcomed more new members.
Given our final day in China was a national holiday and businesses were closed, we were treated to a visit and tour of the famous Baotu Spring, which is a culturally significant artesian karst spring enroute to the airport.
We then took a short hop to Seoul in South Korea, where an all-day seminar was arranged by Korea Gas Safety (KGS) for our visit, with speakers from IGEM, KGS, KOGAS, KICT, KTR, DNV, Air Liquide and Linde. Topics covered during the day included Korea’s gas industry codes, hydrogen safety, hydrogen blending into city gas networks, e-methane development, regulations for liquid hydrogen, CCUS and hydrogen policy.
The following day, we were hosted by the KGS President, Park Kyung-guk, at KGS headquarters, where IGEM and KGS signed a Memorandum of Understanding to provide a partnership for exchanging information in gas safety, standards, education, and to share best practice.
While at KGS headquarters, we were treated to a unique visit to their central control room where a state of the art ‘command centre’ was showcased. This demonstrated the advanced technology being used, including real-time monitoring of all hydrogen filling stations and tanker deliveries on the road. This control room also plays a key part in rapid incident response, should the worst occur, allowing live information to be analysed and resources deployed – a simulation of this in action was delivered very impressively.
KGS then took us on a tour of their hydrogen testing facilities, where clearly no expense had been spared in making sure it has all the capabilities necessary, and for a tour of their hydrogen museum/learning centre. The hydrogen learning centre is aimed at raising awareness and educating citizens of South Korea regarding all the opportunities the country could exploit with hydrogen.
This facility, which features interactive digital exhibitions with a host guide, doesn’t just focus on hydrogen, but aims to educate on all aspects of gas safety. We were both challenged to take part in numerous gas safety quizzes and enjoyed how competitive it was.
Touch-screen games included spotting carbon monoxide risks from both in-home and leisure equipment, LPG safety, and gas escape detection and reporting. The visit finished with a highlight – a journey through the hydrogen cycle and its potential uses across the world, which culminated in being strapped into a hydrogen ride – a 4D adventure motion simulator – as guests are transported down to the atomic level. We left wondering if we’d just visited Universal Studios rather than a gas industry venue.
The last part of the trip involved another short hop across to Japan, where we met up with Osaka Gas and its subsidiary Daigas, at their vast innovation centre, the Carbon Neutral Research Hub, which is located in the docklands area where they once used to manufacture town gas.
We met with the leadership team to share our current energy system challenges and innovations and see some exciting insights. The tour of the facilities was fascinating; this is where they take concepts to small lab-scale trials and keep increasing the size of lab trials up to the point of deploying a demonstrator scale solution in the field.
One of the interesting technologies we saw was a solid oxide electrolysis cell (reverse SOFC) with integrated solar powered direct air carbon capture (DACC) that produces
renewable natural gas (e-methane) with an energy conversion efficiency of 85-90 per cent. The site is also testing the more traditional Sabatier biomethanation process.
The other headline innovation work at the hub is the biomethane boosting process, where additional green gas is produced by injecting hydrogen into anaerobic digesters to react with some of the waste carbon dioxide to create more biomethane. This is currently being demonstrated at the six-monthlong Osaka Expo and providing all the energy the event needs for heating, cooking and power.
With new UK sustainable feedstock analysis revealing that we could have 120TWh of biomethane per year by 2050, without impacting food production or competing with other
bioresource demands, hydrogen injection and other e-methane sources have the potential to take that figure to around 200TWh – something not accounted for properly as an opportunity in UK energy policy.
Overall, the visits were a real eyeopener and help to accelerate learning around the world. We can achieve net zero more quickly and more affordably by moving forward together. Some of the examples we’ve seen can help us all to make some really positive strides in the near future.