Shell starts operation of largest European hydrogen production plant

After a two-year construction period, Royal Dutch Shell has put Europe's largest hydrogen electrolysis plant into operation at its Rhineland refinery in Wesseling and is thus expanding further in the direction of alternative energies. The Refhyne plant with a capacity of 10 megawatts (MW) will produce green fuels as part of a consortium funded by the European Union that is already considering a 100 MW plant at the location near Cologne. Refhyne II could go into operation in 2024, said Marco Richrath, Director of Shell Energy and Chemical Park Rhineland, at the opening ceremony for the smaller facility. Hydrogen is considered green "if it is produced from renewable electricity from wind or sun by electrolysis, but gray" hydrogen from fossil fuels is currently the feedstock in many standard industrial processes. Green hydrogen can play a role in the areas of energy, mobility, heat supply and in industries that are difficult to decarbonize. Shell also wants to produce sustainable aviation fuel from renewable electricity and biomass in Wesseling and develop a plant for liquefied renewable natural gas (bio-LNG). The company is under increased pressure after a Dutch court ruled that it must drastically tighten planned greenhouse gas emissions reductions. The Refhyne Polymer Electrolyte Membrane (PEM) electrolyser will produce up to 1,300 tons of green hydrogen per year. The plant cost around 20 million euros ($ 23.72 million), half of which came from EU funds. The consortium also includes the electrolyser manufacturer ITM Power, the research organization SINTEF and the consulting companies Sphera and Element Energy. "This system helps to pave the way to climate neutrality and at the same time to keep economic innovation in our region", said the North Rhine-Westphalian Prime Minister Armin Laschet. Fabian Ziegler, CEO of Shell in Germany, pointed out that green hydrogen is still five times the price of fossil hydrogen, but that this price can be cut by half through scaling and efficient supply chains, with the rest through political intervention in Regarding the promotion of renewable energies and carbon prices must be balanced. Richrath said Shell is working with partners like Daimler, Uniper, Remondis, Thyssenkrupp, DHL and Rheinenergie in areas such as hydrogen pipelines and filling stations, biofuels and recycling.