BP and Iberdrola have given the green light to the construction of a 25MW green hydrogen project at BP’s Castellon refinery in Spain.
The electrolyser is expected to be operational in the second half of 2026 and will be powered by renewable electricity through a power purchase agreement (PPA) signed with Iberdrola, which will supply 200GWh/year from Iberdrola’s solar and wind projects.
The unit will include five modules of proton exchange membrane (PEM) technology in 5MW containers, which will be supplied by Plug Power.
The green hydrogen produced by the electrolysis of water powered by renewable electricity will meet European requirements for producing green hydrogen (Renewable Fuels of Non-Biological Origin, RFNBO).
It is the first hydrogen project undertaken through Castellon Green Hydrogen, a joint venture in which both companies have an equal stake.
This initiative, which has the participation of the Energy Technology Institute (ITE), has obtained funding of €15m from the programmes to help the Innovative Value Chain and Knowledge in Renewable Hydrogen of the Spanish Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, with funds allocated by NextGenerationEU of the European Union.
BP’s senior vice president of hydrogen and carbon capture and storage Felipe Arbelaez said: “BP’s first investment decision in an industrial-scale project is an important step forward for our hydrogen business.
“We focus on value, advancing only the best projects in our portfolio that can create additional value through integration and fully meet our investment objectives.
“This also demonstrates the strength of partners combining their forces to move towards an emerging energy source that has the potential to play a significant role in the decarbonization of the industry.
“The Castellon refinery can lead this transformation.”
Global head of hydrogen at Iberdrola Millan Garcia-Tola said: “The plant will convert 200 GWh/year of Iberdrola’s renewable energy into green hydrogen, which will contribute to BP’s decarbonisation strategy, in another example of the close collaboration between the two companies, trusted partners who share values such as a long-term commitment to decarbonisation.
“Iberdrola will apply all the experience of its current green hydrogen plants to optimise and accelerate the development of this project.”