Lhyfe and its partners have successfully obtained a €20m grant from the European Commission for the HOPE project, which focuses on offshore production of renewable hydrogen. The consortium’s goal is to facilitate the implementation of large-scale manufacturing of renewable hydrogen in offshore areas.
Over a period of five years, the HOPE project will involve the development, construction, and operation of a 10MW production facility off the coast of Belgium in the North Sea by 2026.
The main objective is to demonstrate the technical and financial viability of this offshore project, as well as the feasibility of transporting the hydrogen through pipelines to onshore customers.
The funding for the project was provided by the Clean Hydrogen Partnership, which is jointly founded and financed by the European Union. Lhyfe took an initial step in 2022 with the inauguration of Sealhyfe, a pilot production plant for offshore hydrogen. This pilot plant already incorporates Plug’s PEM technology and is powered by a 1MW floating wind turbine.
With the HOPE project, the consortium partners are taking a significant leap forward and aiming to commercialize the production of offshore hydrogen.
The 10MW electrolyser within the HOPE project will be capable of producing up to four tonnes of green hydrogen per day at sea. The hydrogen will be transported to shore through composite pipelines, compressed, and delivered to customers for industrial and transportation purposes.
The HOPE installation will be located 1km off the coast, in the offshore testing area near the port of Ostend, which aims to become a central hub in the hydrogen supply chain in Belgium and has been involved in the project’s development since its inception.
The production site will be powered by electricity obtained through Power Purchase Agreements that ensure its renewable origin. The water required for electrolysis will be drawn from the North Sea, desalinated, and purified.
The production site will consist of three units: offshore production and compression at medium pressure, pipeline export, and onshore compression at high pressure, storage, and distribution.
The hydrogen produced will cater to the mobility needs and small industries within a 300km radius encompassing Belgium, northern France, and the southern Netherlands.
The €20m grant awarded by the European Commission covers a five-year period and will be utilized to finance the design, equipment supply, construction, and various research, development, and innovation tasks. The focus of these efforts will mainly revolve around optimizing technological solutions and ensuring efficient operation of this type of infrastructure.
Additionally, the project will conduct a techno-economic analysis of offshore renewable hydrogen production on a larger scale.
The HOPE project will leverage the expertise and knowledge of each of the nine partner organizations involved, thereby covering the entire value chain of renewable hydrogen. The installation of the 10MW PEM electrolyser offshore will be one of the pioneering endeavors of its size, hosted on a recycled barge along with other system components.
Apart from Lhyfe, the consortium partners in the HOPE project include Plug, EDP NEW, and Strohm.
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