A consortium including Nouryon and Gasunie has secured an €11m grant from the EU towards a proposed green hydrogen project at Delfzijl in the Netherlands.
The funding has come from the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCH-JU), a partnership of the European Commission and industry that supports the development of innovative hydrogen technologies.
The 20MW electrolyzer, which will be owned and operated by Nouryon and Gasunie, would be the first of its kind to be implemented in Europe on this scale, the companies said.
There are four other partners involved.
McPhy will provide its alkaline electrolysis technology (pictured) to convert renewable electricity into 3000 tonnes of green hydrogen per year.
BioMCN will combine the hydrogen with CO2 from other processes to produce renewable methanol.
DeNora will provide electrodes, while consultancy services will be provided by Hinicio.
Nouryon and Gasunie plan to take a final investment decision for the plant this year.
The two companies are also studying options to increase the plant’s electrolyzer capacity to 60MW from 20MW to make green hydrogen to produce sustainable jet fuel in a project with another group of partners.
The project is also supported by an additional €5m in subsidies from Waddenfonds, a fund that invests in projects in the northern Netherlands.
Nouryon president industrial chemicals Knut Schwalenberg said: “This project will be a stepping-stone for the circular economy.
“With the support of the EU and the region and backed by an experienced technology supplier and customer agreements, we are ready to move to the next phase of implementing Europe’s first large-scale hydrogen plant in support of a more sustainable future.”
FCH-JU executive director Bart Biebuyck said: “The FCH JU supports the development of high-performance electrolyzers by European industry that can operate dynamically on renewable energy, helping to balance the electricity grid.
“Scaling up in this field is key for sustainable industry, transport and buildings and this project is a firm step in moving towards electrolysis of hundreds of megawatts or even gigawatts.”
Gasunie executive board member Ulco Vermeulen said: “Scaling up is the keyword here. From our 1 MW electrolysis project Hystock, via this 20MW electrolysis installation in Delfzijl. towards gigawatts in 2030.
“Gas infrastructure will play a facilitating role in the energy transition as we will be transporting energy carriers, such as hydrogen, increasingly through our pipelines.”
McPhy chief executive Laurent Carme said: “We are proud of the trust we received from two such major industrial groups.
“The size and scope of this project, as well as its deep integration into our customers’ processes, represent a major step change for McPhy and the global hydrogen market. This will boost the rise of a clean, secure and cost-competitive hydrogen ecosystem.”