Houston group secures contract for major clean ammonia project in Louisiana

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Houston global engineering firm McDermott will design a Louisiana project to produce millions of tons of clean ammonia. Image via cleanhydrogenworks.com

Houston-headquartered McDermott has received a new contract on a Louisiana clean ammonia project.

Clean energy development company Clean Hydrogen Works tapped McDermott for the front-end engineering and design contract for the Ascension Clean Energy Project. ACE — located in Ascension Parish, Louisiana — is jointly developed by CHW with strategic shareholders ExxonMobil, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, and Hafnia and is expected to initially produce 2.4 million metric tons per annum of clean ammonia and expand to total 7.2 million metric tons per annum production down the road.

“We are thrilled to partner with McDermott, a company renowned for its extensive experience in mega module construction, demonstrated by a remarkable track record of on-time, on-budget execution of major energy and chemicals projects," Johnny Cook, CHW senior vice president of engineering, procurement, and construction, says in a news release. "This collaboration further strengthens key competitive advantages of our project, including being a mega module capable site with ready infrastructure access to gas, shipping and CCS, an unmatched shareholder base with expertise in CCS and maritime transport, and an experienced team with demonstrated success in executing mega module projects.”

The project has carbon capture and sequestration contracts with ExxonMobil and expects regulatory approvals by early 2025. ACE is expected to reach its final investment decision by late 2025 and start production in 2029. McDermott’s Houston office will lead the project with support from its Gurugram, India, office.

“This FEED award is testament to McDermott’s industry-leading mega-module delivery and installation expertise, and the breadth of our capabilities across the energy transition,” Rob Shaul, McDermott’s senior vice president of Low Carbon Solutions, adds. “Our integrated delivery model, with self-perform construction capabilities and portfolio of McDermott-owned, globally diversified, module fabrication yards means we can offer CHW a repeatable modular implementation solution that is expected to maximize value, reduce risk and provide quality assurance.”

Earlier this year, Houston-based Element Fuels completed the pre-construction phase of its hydrogen-powered clean fuels refinery and combined-cycle power plant in the Port of Brownsville — a project that McDermott is also providing FEED services for.

Also recently, McDermott secured an agreement to work on Canada's first commercial green hydrogen and ammonia production facility.

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The facility, once completed, will be able to produce 165 kilo tons per Annum of hydrogen and 5,000 metric tons per day of ammonia. Photo via Getty Images

Houston company scores agreement to work on Canadian green hydrogen project

contract secured

Houston-headquartered McDermott has reported that it secured an agreement to work on Canada's first commercial green hydrogen and ammonia production facility.

The Early Contractor Involvement agreement is from Abraxas Power Corp. to work on the Exploits Valley Renewable Energy Corporation (EVREC) project located in Central Newfoundland and will include developing a wind farm with up to 530 turbines that will have the ability to generate 3.5 gigawatts of electricity and 150 megawatts solar photo voltaic. Additionally, the facility, once completed, will be able to produce 165 kilo tons per Annum of hydrogen and 5,000 metric tons per day of ammonia.

"The agreement is testament to McDermott's industry-leading delivery and installation expertise, and the breadth of our capabilities across the energy transition," Rob Shaul, McDermott's senior vice president, Low Carbon Solutions, says in a news release. "Our century of experience, from concept to completion, and integrated delivery model, means we can offer Abraxas a repeatable modular implementation solution that is expected to drive cost savings, reduce risk and provide quality assurance."

Per the agreement, the company will provide front-end engineering design, engineering, procurement, and construction execution planning services, and more for the project. According to McDermott, the company's contribution to the project will be led from McDermott's Houston office with support from its office in India.

Recently, another collaboration McDermott is working on reached a new milestone. Houston-based Element Fuels has completed the pre-construction phase of its hydrogen-powered clean fuels refinery and combined-cycle power plant in the Port of Brownsville. McDermott is providing front-end engineering design services for the project.

In October, McDermott announced that it signed a lighthouse agreement with United Kingdom-based industrial software company AVEVA and Massachusetts-based product lifecycle management platform provider Aras. With the new software, McDermott plans "to develop its asset lifecycle management capability across the energy transition, oil and gas, and nuclear sectors," per the news release.

Element Fuels has designed the plant to produce and recycle hydrogen that will generate and deliver cleaner, higher-quality fuels. Photo via Getty Images

Houston clean fuels producer reaches milestone on South Texas hydrogen-powered refinery

hi to hydrogen

Houston-based Element Fuels has completed the pre-construction phase of its hydrogen-powered clean fuels refinery and combined-cycle power plant in the Port of Brownsville.

Element Fuels, which has contracted with Houston-based McDermott to provide front-end engineering design services for the project, has designed the plant to produce and recycle hydrogen that will generate and deliver cleaner, higher-quality fuels, including much-needed high-octane gasoline and electricity for commercial and consumer consumption.

“Element Fuels has received the necessary permitting to construct and operate a refinery capable of producing in excess of 160,000 barrels, or approximately 6.7 million gallons, per day of finished gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel,” Founder and Co-CEO of Element Fuels John Calce says in a news release. “A permit for a greenfield refinery of this size, scope, and functionality has not been granted in the United States since the 1970s. This speaks to the innovative approaches we are taking to address climate and sustainability concerns in cleaner, greener ways that are new to the refinery space.”

The project is expected to go online in 2027 and will produce enough low-carbon hydrogen to supply approximately 100 percent of the refinery’s fuel requirements, essentially eliminating CO2 emissions, per the news release. More than 100 megawatts of excess electricity generated from the power plant will be provided to the Energy Reliability Council of Texas for the surrounding community’s needs.

“Element Fuels is not only ushering in the next generation of clean fuels, we’re also proving that, without a doubt, there is a way to produce higher quality, cleaner, higher-octane fuels that significantly advance the energy transition," Calce continues. "This changes everything – for the industry, for consumers, and for the well-being of the planet.”

The plant is located in South Texas and built on more than 240 acres within the Port of Brownsville. Element Fuels is reportedly collaborating with local and Port officials "to advance the Justice40 initiative established by the U.S. Department of Commerce to contribute to a climate-positive environment that provides residents of the Brownsville area and Rio Grande Valley with clean energy and affordable and sustainable housing," per the release.

“Building on our successful collaboration during early project phases, we believe we are uniquely positioned to leverage our expertise and knowledge to further support Element Fuels throughout the next stages of this unique project,” adds Rob Shaul, senior vice president at Low Carbon Solutions at McDermott. “We remain focused on the delivery of low carbon pathway projects and are committed to advancing the landscape of energy production.”

Houston-based oil and gas engineering and construction services provider McDermott is making some major software changes to better operate in the ongoing energy transition. Image via mcdermott-investors.com

Houston company upgrades digital solutions with new partnerships to better address energy transition

software secured

A Houston engineering and construction solutions company serving the energy industry has announced an agreement that will introduce new software to the company's energy transition plans.

McDermott announced today that it has signed a lighthouse agreement with United Kingdom-based industrial software company AVEVA and Massachusetts-based product lifecycle management platform provider Aras. With the new software, McDermott plans "to develop its asset lifecycle management capability across the energy transition, oil and gas, and nuclear sectors," per the news release.

"McDermott is uniquely positioned to combine its extensive expertise in digital twin and industry-leading engineering procurement and construction (EPC) experience," Vaseem Khan, McDermott's senior vice president of Global Operations, says in the release. "The agreement represents our shared vision and commitment to data-centric digital deliverables management and creates an opportunity for robust digital transformation of industry processes."

The new technology should help reduce both cost and risk by improving decision-making, achieving better compliance and traceability, and enhancing performance.

"McDermott's engineering expertise forms an essential input in pioneering an industry solution that is urgently needed to improve outcomes in the energy, nuclear, marine, and other sectors," Rob McGreevy, chief product officer at AVEVA. "Together, we will provide competitive advantages for customers who join the lighthouse program."

The deal includes integrating Aras' Innovator platform with AVEVA Unified Engineering, AVEVA Asset Information Management, and other AVEVA tools and services to create, and McDermott will provide feedback and testing for its new software platforms.

"AVEVA's robust industry asset lifecycle management solutions, built on the Aras platform, will enable McDermott to leverage a fully connected digital thread of the asset's engineering and operations information," Roque Martin, CEO of Aras, says in the release. "We will create useful, usable, and powerful software for our joint customer base."

Houston-based oil and gas engineering and construction services provider McDermott outlines company's progress toward sustainability with new report. Image via mcdermott-investors.com

Houston O&G services company lays out 2022 wins in new report

report card

People. Planet. Progress. These are the first three words on the homepage for the a new report on sustainability from a Houston company.

Published this month, the 2022 Sustainability Report from McDermott — a global leader in engineering, procurement, and construction solutions for the energy industry — showcases the organization's dedication to developing sustainable solutions and innovative technologies.

"As our customers set ESG targets and work to meet and exceed their stakeholder expectations, they increasingly rely on McDermott for innovative methods and low-carbon solutions leveraging our more than 100 years of complex project experience," says Michael McKelvy, McDermott's president and CEO, in the news release. "With our customers, we are advancing global decarbonization through low-emissions options across our engineering, procurement and construction operations."

In the third annual report of its kind, McDermott highlights key climate and sustainability accomplishments achieved in 2022 in each of the three aforementioned focus areas.

People

Joining the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Energy Initiative to further ingrain McDermott with academic institutions collaborating to achieve net-zero targets
Launch of the RISE Female Development Program as part of the commitment to diversity and inclusion, and specifically, gender equality, across the organization

Planet

Voluntary, inaugural submission of ESG metrics to the Carbon Disclosure Project platform
Introduction of a new Carbon Footprint Dashboard that established a baseline against which 2023 KPIs and targets will be assessed to measure project-related emissions
62 percent increase in project water reuse compared to 2020
Elimination of the need for plastic water bottles on all maritime fleet vessels with the introduction of onboard filtration systems

Progress

Awarding of Borwin6, the largest renewables energy project for McDermott to-date
Application of modular solution delivery practiced for over 50 years to construct and deliver Green and Blue hydrogen facilities
Scaling up technology for liquefied hydrogen spheres and development of fully integrated renewable and low-carbon hydrogen demonstration and framework in Texas
Completion of Phase 1 rollout of a vehicle utilization AI platform that measures emissions and provides fleet management teams with actionable insights

"McDermott is committed to sustainable, positive improvement in the communities where we operate, for our customers, and for our employees and the world," states Rachel Clingman, McDermott's executive vice president, sustainability, and governance in the announcement. "We matured our strategy and focus in 2022. We are aligned and working hand-in-hand with customers and stakeholders on specific plans and goals."

The 74-page report offers additional details on these initiatives, as well as commentary on the task force on climate-related financial disclosures compliance and environmental performance data for the year ended on December 31, 2022.

McDermott outlined its sustainability wins from 2022. Image via mcdermott-investors.com

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8 Houston energy companies land on Time's top greentech list for 2025

top honor

The accolades keep rolling in for Houston-based Fervo Energy, a producer of geothermal power.

Fervo lands at No. 6 on Time magazine and Statista’s new list of America’s Top GreenTech Companies of 2025. The ranking recognizes sustainability-focused companies based on factors such as impact, financial strength, and innovation.

Time notes that Fervo broke ground in 2023 in Utah on what the company claims will be the world’s largest geothermal plant. The plant is scheduled to start supplying carbon-free electricity to the grid next year and to reach its 400-megawatt capacity in three years.

“Technologies like this only make a difference if we deploy them at large-scale in a way that can reduce carbon emissions and increase the reliability of the grid,” Fervo CEO Tim Latimer told Time in 2023.

The startup was named North American Company of the Year by research and consulting firm Cleantech Group for 2025. Fervo topped the Global Cleantech 100, Cleantech Group’s annual list of the world’s most innovative and promising cleantech companies.

Last year, Fervo also made Time’s list of the 200 Best Inventions of 2024. Fervo was recognized in the green energy category for its FervoFlex geothermal power system.

Founded in 2017, Fervo is now a unicorn, meaning its valuation as a private company exceeds $1 billion. The startup’s valuation is estimated at $1.4 billion. According to PitchBook data, the company raised $634 million in the fourth quarter of 2024.

In all, eight Houston-area companies appear among the top 250 greentech companies ranked by Time and Statista. Other than Fervo, they are:

No. 43 Lancium Technologies, an energy storage and distribution company
No. 50 Solugen, a producer of sustainable chemicals.
No. 56 Quaise Energy, which specializes in terawatt-scale geothermal power.
No. 129 Plus Power, a developer, owner and operator of battery storage projects.
No. 218 Dream Harvest, which promotes sustainable vertical farming.
No. 225 Cemvita, which uses synthetic biology to convert carbon emissions into bio-based chemicals.
No. 226 Syzygy Plasmonics, which decarbonizes chemical production.

Vermont-based BETA Technologies claimed the No. 1 spot. The company manufactures electric aircraft.

Top takeaways from CERAWeek and more energy transition news to know

Trending News

Editor's note: As we approach the end of March, it's time to look back at the hottest energy transition news from the second half of the month. Here are the top five trending EnergyCapital stories from March 14-28, from CERAWeek key takeaways to a look at the Texas grid vs. extreme weather.

1. Houston energy expert shares key takeaways from CERAWeek 2025

Environmental services firm names Houston energy leader to board

Barbara Burger shares her CERAWEEK takeaways with EnergyCapital. Courtesy photo

What a difference a year makes. I have been coming to CERAWeek for as long as I can remember and the Agora track within CERAWeek since it originated. Although freshness likely distorts my thinking, I cannot remember a CERAWeek that seemed so different from the previous year's than this one.

This certainly isn’t a comprehensive summary of the conference, but some of my key take forwards from last week's events. Continue reading Barbara J. Burger's takeaways.

2. Houston-led project earns $1 million in federal funding for flood research

A team of Texas researchers has landed a nearly $1 million NSF grant to address rural flood management challenges with community input. Photo via Getty Images.

A team from Rice University, the University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M University has been awarded a National Science Foundation grant under the CHIRRP—or Confronting Hazards, Impacts and Risks for a Resilient Planet—program to combat flooding hazards in rural Texas.

The grant totals just under $1 million, according to a CHIRRP abstract. The proposal includes work that introduces a “stakeholder-centered framework” to help address rural flood management challenges with community input. Continue reading.

3. Can the Texas grid handle extreme weather conditions across regions?

Texans are facing extreme weather at every turn — can the grid withstand these events? Photo via heimdallpower.com

From raging wildfires to dangerous dust storms and fierce tornadoes, Texans are facing extreme weather conditions at every turn across the state. Recently, thousands in the Texas Panhandle-South Plains lost power as strong winds ranging from 35 to 45 mph with gusts upwards of 65 mph blew through. Meanwhile, many North Texas communities are still reeling from tornadoes, thunderstorms, and damaging winds that occurred earlier this month.

With the extreme weather conditions increasing in Texas and nationally, recovering from these disasters will only become harder and costlier. When it comes to examining the grid’s capacity to withstand these volatile changes, we’re past due. As of now, the grid likely isn’t resilient enough to make do, but there is hope. Continue reading Sam Luna's column here.

4. CERAWeek announces winners of annual clean tech pitch competition

The teams at this year's Energy Venture Day and Pitch Competition have collectively raised $435 million in funding. Photo courtesy of CERAWeek

Teams from around the world and right here in Houston took home prizes at the fourth annual Energy Venture Day and Pitch Competition at CERAWeek on March 12. The fast-paced event, put on by Rice Alliance, Houston Energy Transition Initiative and TEX-E, invited 36 industry startups and five Texas-based student teams focused on driving efficiency and advancements toward the energy transition to present at 3.5-minute pitch before investors and industry partners during CERAWeek's Agora program. The competition is a qualifying event for the Startup World Cup, powered by Pegasus Venture, where teams compete for a $1 million investment prize.

The teams at this year's Energy Venture Day have collectively raised $435 million in funding. Rice University student teams took home two of the three top prizes in the competition.Continue reading.

5. New report shows Texas led nation in solar and battery growth in 2024

Texas outpaced all other states in various categories of power generation in 2024, according to a new report from Ember, an energy think tank. File photo

The winds of change in power generation are sweeping through Texas.

Texas outpaced all other states in various categories of power generation in 2024, according to a new report from Ember, an energy think tank. The report shows that Texas contributed more (12 terawatt-hours) to the country’s 64 terawatt-hour rise in solar generation last year than any other state. Continue reading.

Global co. opens state-of-the-art energy innovation hub in Houston

flagship facility

French multinational company Schneider Electric has opened a new 10,500-square-foot, state-of-the-art Energy Innovation Center in Houston.

The new facility is located in Houston’s Energy Corridor and is designed to “foster increased collaboration and technological advancements across the entire value chain,” according to a news release from the company. The new Houston location joins Schneider's existing innovation hubs in Paris, Singapore and Bangalore.

The venue will serve as a training center for process control engineers, production superintendents, manufacturing managers, technical leads and plant operations personnel. It can simulate various real-world scenarios in refineries, combined-cycle power plants, ethylene plants, recovery boilers and chemical reactors.

It includes an interactive control room and artificial Intelligence applications that “highlight the future of industrial automation,” according to the release.

"Digitalization is significantly enhancing the global competitiveness of the U.S. through continuous innovation and increased investment into next-generation technology," Aamir Paul, Schneider Electric's President of North America Operations, said in the release.

Texas has over 4,100 Schneider Electric employees, the most among U.S. states, and has facilities in El Paso, the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex and other areas.

"This flagship facility in the Energy Capital of the World underscores our commitment to driving the future of software-defined automation for our customers in Houston and beyond,” Paul added in the release. “With this announcement, we are excited to continue supporting the nation's ambitions around competitive, efficient and cost-effective manufacturing."

Schneider Electric says the new Houston facility is part of its expansion plans in the U.S. The company plans to invest over $700 million in its U.S. operations through 2027, which also includes an expansion at its El Paso campus.

The company also announced plans to invest in solar and battery storage systems developed, built, and operated by Houston-based ENGIE North America last year. Read more here.

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