Industrial gas major Linde has a strong project backlog of $7bn in sale-of-gas projects, with expectations for further growth by year-end despite a delay in its $2bn clean hydrogen facility in Alberta, Canada. CEO Sanjiv Lamba expressed confidence in the company's Q1 earnings call, highlighting plans to start up around $1bn worth of projects from the backlog in the latter half of the year. The Alberta clean hydrogen facility, situated in Fort Saskatchewan, is set to serve the world's first net-zero ethylene and derivatives complex under construction by US-based chemicals company Dow. This project involves carbon capture, storage, and hydrogen infrastructure, with Linde responsible for building and operating an air separation unit and hydrogen production facility. While Dow announced a delay in its $11.5bn Path2Zero project due to economic concerns, Linde reassured shareholders about the minimal impact on its operations, citing contractual protections for such events. Linde's recent results showed $1.3bn in capital expenditure in Q1, with a significant portion allocated to backlog projects, including the Beaumont, Texas blue hydrogen plant. This plant, valued at $1.8bn, will supply clean hydrogen to a large blue ammonia project in the US Gulf Coast. Despite delays and economic considerations, Linde remains optimistic about its project pipeline and ongoing investments in clean energy infrastructure.