Siemens Gas and Power has been awarded a contract by Salzgitter Flachstahl to provide a proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysis plant as part of a wind-hydrogen project to make steel in Germany.
The Siemens plant is due to start operations in the fourth quarter of next year and cover all of Salzgitter Flachstahl’s hydrogen demand.
It will receive power from seven wind turbines totalling 30MW to be erected by Avacon on the Salzgitter Group site. The turbines will also start operations next year.
The total cost of the project is €50m.
Siemens Gas and Power executive vice president of hydrogen solutions Gabriele Schmiedel said: “Reducing CO2 across all industries is a central challenge if we are to meet medium- and long-term climate targets.
“Renewable energy generation and innovative technologies such as the production of green hydrogen through electrolysis are essential components.
“We are delighted to join with Salzgitter Flachstahl to advance the application of green hydrogen in the steel industry.”
Salzgitter executive board chairman Heinz Jorg Fuhrmann said: “We are proud to be pioneers in the industrial application of hydrogen in the steel industry.
“As our SALCOS project has demonstrated, we are technologically in a position to achieve significant reductions in CO2 with the aid of hydrogen.
“The Salzgitter wind hydrogen project is an important building block on the way towards climate-friendly steel production.
“It is now the turn of politicians to put in place the right conditions to support the transformation into a low-CO2 industry.”