Dow Confirms Up to Two-Year Delay for Chemicals Complex with Blue Hydrogen

Dow Inc.’s flagship blue hydrogen-based chemicals complex in Alberta, Canada, will be delayed by up to two years amid market weakness.

Jim Fitterling, CEO, confirmed the delay to its Path2Zero project, originally announced in April, could last between one and two years until market conditions improve, pushing back what had been billed as a showcase for hydrogen in chemicals decarbonisation.

The $11.5bn Path2Zero project plans to expand Dow’s ethylene and polyethylene capacity in Fort Saskatchewan while cutting around 1.5 million tonnes of annual carbon dioxide emissions.

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At the heart of Path2Zero is a large-scale blue hydrogen facility, designed to fuel Dow’s new ethylene cracker and existing operations in place of natural gas. Built and operated by Linde, the plant will combine hydrogen production with carbon capture and storage.

Phase one of the development was due in 2027 before expanding in 2029.

However, the firm delayed construction of the development, citing concerns over global economic conditions and the impact of US tariffs. As a result of the delay, Fitterling said it would save $1bn in 2025 capital spend.

“The plan was to bring it up in ’27,” the CEO told investors. “In this market environment, that doesn’t feel like the right timing.

“We’ve announced a one-year delay. I think a one- to two-year delay timeframe is what we’re looking at.”

Fitterling said that the delay would allow Dow to balance continuing engineering work and order long-lead equipment while holding off on major construction works until it is ready to commit.

But the delay will have an impact on hydrogen supply. Linde announced it would invest over $2bn to build, own, and operate a large-scale blue hydrogen and atmospheric gases production facility to support the development.

Initially, Linde downplayed the delay to remain firm on its $7bn in sale-of-gas project pipeline, pointing to contract protections in place for delays caused by customers.

Fitterling stressed that Dow had “good ongoing dialogue” with the industrial gas major to manage engineering and labour “hand in glove.”