11 March 2022

Nel ASA ready to increase production capacity to meet EU ambitions

The EU organisation Clean Hydrogen Partnership is allocating more than EUR 300 million to projects that support the scaling up of hydrogen and fuel cell technology. The investments will include projects that promote hydrogen production, cost reduction, development of storage and distribution solutions as well as projects that promote the use of low-carbon hydrogen in energy-intensive industries such as aviation and heavy truck traffic. The partnership will also invest in European “hydrogen valleys”. 

In light of this, Nel ASA has announced that the company is ready to increase its electrolyser production capacity to meet the EU’s raised ambitions for renewable hydrogen to make Europe independent from Russian fossil fuels before 2030. Their current electrolyser plant located in Herøya is able to provide a 500 MW capacity, with the possibility to expand up to 2 GW. 

Hydrogen Sweden , Press release

Ørsted and Maersk sign agreement on green fuels

Ørsted and Maersk have signed a letter of intent about partnering on a new Power-to-X facility in the US, which is planned to become a landmark project in the green transformation of international deep-water shipping and set the standard for future large-scale production of green maritime fuels. The 675 MW PtX facility will be located on the Gulf Coast and produce approximately 300,000 tonnes of e-methanol per year. The facility will be powered by 1.2 GW of renewable energy from new onshore wind and solar PV farms and the biogenic carbon needed to produce e-methanol will be extracted through carbon capture at large point sources. It is estimated that the new facility will be put into operation in 2025. 

Press release

Tibber raises USD 100 million in new investment round

Tibber announced that the company has raised USD 100 million in a new investment round. Schibsted, the largest owner of Tibber, is increasing its share by entering with an additional USD 11.5 million. The capital will be used to expand product offerings and expansion to European households, with the aim of making them independent of fossil fuels. 

Press release

Update from Smoltek on its nanofiber-based cell material for electrolysers

Smoltek has developed a high-performance nanofibre-based cell material for PEM electrolysers, which can streamline the production of fossil-free hydrogen. In 2021, a development collaboration was initiated with an industrial manufacturer of input materials for electrolysers, and the aim is to be able to start manufacturing small-scale prototypes in 2023. “The ambition is to in 2023, or earlier, start a collaboration with a large manufacturer of electrolysers, or components for electrolysers, to build small-scale prototypes together, to eventually use Smoltek’s nanofibre-based cell materials in future generations, concluded Ellinor Ehrnberg, CEO of Smoltek Innovation.  

Press release

Statkraft enters into 10-year PPA in Spain

The Norwegian energy giant Statkraft has got another Spanish electricity purchase agreement in place. This time, it is the steel producer Tubos Reunidos, which in the next ten years will have parts of its energy needs covered from Statkraft’s production. 

Energiwatch

What we’re reading

• A 10-Point Plan to Reduce the European Union’s Reliance on Russian Natural Gas (IEA)
• The EU wants to see more wind power to break dependence on Russian fuels (Swedish, Svensk vindenergi)
• South Australia names partners to $13 billion hydrogen hub (RenewEconomy)

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