(Espoo, Finland) – The Finnish energy company Fortum Oyj plans to build a hydrogen production plant in Finland. The proposed location is the "Källa area," a company-owned plot of land near the Loviisa nuclear power plant. Construction is scheduled to begin in summer 2024, with commissioning planned for the end of 2025.
Fortum Loviisa nuclear power plant, around 90 kilometers northwest of Helsinki. © Fortum Oyj
According to the information, the electricity for the electrolysers comes from the network and the water comes directly from Loviisa. A hydrogen filling station for industrial customers will be installed in connection with the system. This also serves as storage. Part of the proceeds could be used in the Loviisa nuclear power plant. The complex, called the “Kalla Test Center” and developed internally, is financed entirely with funds from Fortum’s research and development fund. The pilot project is expected to be operational for around two years between 2025 and 2028. The company puts the total costs at around 17 million euros. Fortum wants to “gradually explore hydrogen projects through small projects in the Nordic countries”.
Gain experience with hydrogen
“Megawatt-scale hydrogen production at the Kalla Test Center will provide valuable information not only in relation to the planning and operation of potential larger plants, but also in relation to the business opportunities that green hydrogen and hydrogen derivatives offer,” says Satu Sipola, Vice President of Power-to-X at Fortum, whose largest shareholder is the Finnish state. There are also hydrogen-related studies in which “customers and partners from various industries” are involved. According to Sipola, they are working to “advance the development of clean hydrogen” and, according to Sipola, are “engaged in active research collaboration with companies in the forestry, steel and chemical industries as well as the transport sector”.
Piloting hydrogen production on a small scale is necessary to gain practical experience for potential future scaling. Concrete technical details were not mentioned, but elsewhere there is talk of an electrolyser with a size of one to two megawatts.
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Construction of the Kalla test center is expected to begin soon near the Loviisa nuclear power plant. © Fortum Oyj
