After a successful first edition in Toulon, HyPorts, the themed conference on hydrogen in ports, is to be held in Canada. It will take place in Trois-Rivières, Quebec, on 5 and 6 November.
A workshop was held on the morning of March 28th to introduce the city of Trois-Rivières in Quebec. The city was visited by Jacques Cartier and was once the paper capital of the world. It is now a university town focused on sustainable development. It will be hosting a Hyports Canada 2024 edition. In his presentation, David Berthelot, Director of Development at IED (Innovation and Economic Development) Trois-Rivières, took the opportunity to describe the assets of the location, which is also a port city.
A strategic location
Trois-Rivières is located in the Great Lakes region, with access to the United States. It is home to ships of all types, from cargo ships to bulk carriers, roll-on/roll-off vessels and container ships. With a touch of humour, the speaker pointed out that it can be very cold (minus 30, even minus 40 degrees in winter) and that this makes it possible to test the resilience of fuels and engines. He used the term “laboratory port”.
And what does this have to do with hydrogen? Quite simply, the city is home to The UQTR, which is working on hydrogen. And on March 12th, it hosted a day organised by Hydrogène Québec. Furthermore, Trois-Rivières is only 22 km from Bécancour, where Air Liquide operates one of the largest electrolysers in the world (20 MW). The region is also home to a mega-project, spearheaded by TES group in the Mauricie province, with a 500 MW electrolyser.
Locally, Trois-Rivières is home to industries that could potentially be hydrogen consumers. The city has also been designated an innovation zone within the Energy Transition Valley being promoted by the Quebec government. And hydrogen is part of the scope, along with batteries and the decarbonisation of industry and the port sector.
Hyvolution will also be holding an edition in Trois-Rivières in 2025.
Article written by Laurent Meillaud and translated by Mariem Ben Tili
