Cottbus: Enertrag opens new branch + + + Frankfurt: Ineratec is building a large-scale industrial PtL plant + + + Brazil: Engie wants to develop large-scale hydrogen production projects + + + Rostock: Rebus buys 52 hydrogen buses + + + Dresden: Sunfire and Fraunhofer IFAM develop AEM electrolyzer + + + Herne: Evonik invests in an electrolyzer for green hydrogen + + + Salzgitter: VNG and steel manufacturers deepen hydrogen cooperation + + + Australia: $25 million in funding for hydrogen research + + + Saerbeck: Enapter will put its megawatt electrolyser into operation in May + + +Appointments+ + +DISCOUNT promotion: Your ADVERTISING on the PtX portal
A selection of PtX topics summarized at the end of the week
+ + + + +
Opening of the new Enertrag office in Cottbus (from left to right): Klaus Freytag (Representative of the Prime Minister for Lausitz), Tom Lange (Enertrag), Tobias Schick (Mayor of Cottbus), Wolfgang Krüger (General Manager of the IHK Cottbus). © Enertrag SE / Stefan Specht
The energy company based in Dauerhal, Brandenburg Energy yield SE now also has a regional office in Cottbus. Enertrag is already active in the region and is developing projects on an industrial scale to generate electricity and hydrogen based on renewable energy sources. According to its own information, the company plans to build electrolysis capacities totaling around one gigawatt in Lusatia by the end of the decade. The inauguration of the new office took place in the presence of guests from politics and business.
+ + + + +
Production of the modules for the new PtL system in Frankfurt © Ineratec GmbH / Martin Wagenhan
The Ineratec GmbH is building a large-scale industrial power-to-liquid (PtL) plant in Frankfurt. The location is the Höchst Industrial Park. The plant will produce up to 2.500 tons of sustainable e-fuel annually. Liquid hydrocarbons (e-fuels) are produced from CO2 and green hydrogen. According to the company, it is “the first large-scale industrial PtL project in Germany”. The modules have been manufactured in Karlsruhe since summer 2022 and will be gradually integrated over the following months, so that the commissioning process will begin at the end of the year. The facility is scheduled to be completed in 2024. Ineratec puts the costs at 30 million euros. The company receives public funding of an undisclosed amount from the environmental innovation program of the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection.
+ + + + +
Engie Brasil Energias SA., Brazilian subsidiary of French energy group Engie SA, has signed a memorandum of understanding with Invest Paraná to develop large-scale green hydrogen production projects in the Brazilian state of Paraná. Engie wants to build “a strong position in the green hydrogen sector” in Brazil, says Eduardo Sattamini, Chief Executive and Investor Relations Officer of Engie Brasil Energia. The country is “crucial to the growth of the energy sector” given its “wealth of natural resources.”
+ + + + +
Rostock orders 52 “Urbino” hydrogen buses. © Solaris Bus & Coach sp. z oo
The Rebus Regionalbus Rostock GmbH buys 52 hydrogen buses from the Polish vehicle manufacturer Solaris Bus & Coach sp. z oo These include 47 vehicles of the 12-meter version and five with a length of 18 meters. This is the “largest single order” for hydrogen buses to date, Solaris explained. According to information from Norddeutscher Rundfunk, the 170 diesel-powered buses in Rostock's local public transport system will be gradually replaced by fuel cell vehicles from 2025. In addition, there will be the construction of two gas stations at the depots in Güstrow and Bad Doberan as well as the conversion of the workshops. In total, the project will cost 40 million euros in the first step, according to the NDR. The Federal Ministry of Transport subsidizes 80 percent of the additional costs compared to purchasing diesel buses. The district is providing a further 1,8 million euros as the sole Rebus shareholder.
+ + + + +
Clemens Kubeil, scientist in the hydrogen technology department in the electrolysis laboratory at Fraunhofer IFAM. © Fraunhofer IFAM
Sunfire GmbH and the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Applied Materials Research IFAM in Dresden are developing an AEM electrolyser in the upper double-digit kilowatt range. “The AEM technology is currently only available in the single-digit kilowatt range and therefore cannot be used for large-scale hydrogen projects in industry,” says Hergen Wolf, Director Product Management at Sunfire. AEM electrolysis combines the respective technical advantages of polymer electrolyte membrane electrolysis (PEM) and alkaline electrolysis (AEL). In addition, AEM technology uses inexpensive and non-critical materials, similar to AEL technology. At the Dresden location, Sunfire will provide a test stand to measure the performance of the AEM stack. Ionomr Innovations Inc., the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) as well as Simon Fraser University and the University of Alberta (all Canada) are also involved in the project called “Integrate”. The Federal Ministry of Education and Research is funding the project with an undisclosed amount.
+ + + + +
Evonik wants to produce green hydrogen for its own needs at the Herne site in the future. © Evonik Industries AG
The chemical company Evonik Industries AG wants to replace fossil-produced hydrogen with green hydrogen at the Herne site. A Proton Exchange Membrane electrolyser from Siemens Energy with a nominal output of eight megawatts is used. This is powered by renewable energy and can cover up to 45 percent of the demand with green hydrogen and also supply 100 percent of the oxygen required at the site. The energy source is the starting material for the production of isophoronediamine (IPDA), a raw material for wind turbine rotor blades, the company said. In an accompanying project, Siemens Energy is researching how this electrolysis technology can prove its worth in an industrial chemical environment. The project called “H2annibal” – based on the former “Hannibal” hard coal mine – will run until mid-2025 and is funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research with 9,3 million euros.
+ + + + +
Want to work together more closely in the future: Hans-Joachim Polk (left), member of the board of directors for infrastructure and technology at VNG AG, and Gunnar Groebler, chairman of the board of Salzgitter AG.
The Salzgitter AG and the Leipzig gas transmission network operator VNG AG are jointly examining the possibilities of supplying the Lower Saxony steel group with hydrogen for the Salzgitter Flachstahl GmbH plant. A cooperation agreement was signed in April by Gunnar Groebler, CEO of Salzgitter AG, and Hans-Joachim Polk, member of the Board of Directors for Infrastructure & Technology at VNG. The initial aim is to prepare a study on the hydrogen supply for the Salzgitter industrial site. The analysis includes options for electrolysis and a supply via non-pipeline hydrogen derivatives such as ammonia or methanol. In addition, the focus is on the already planned long-term connection to a supra-regional hydrogen network, which will transport large volumes of hydrogen from different production regions and projects to the location, according to the companies.
+ + + + +
The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) has initiated a new round of financing, among other things, to promote research and development of green hydrogen. A total of $25 million (€22,5 million) is available to improve and optimize the production of renewable hydrogen and derivatives such as ammonia, as well as to explore storage and distribution solutions. “We are already seeing the use of renewable hydrogen increasing, but more needs to be done to improve efficiency, while storing and transporting the fuel at scale remains a major challenge,” said ARENA CEO Chris Faris . In a second part of the call, another $25 million will be awarded for research that will lead to a significant reduction in emissions in iron and steel production.
+ + + + +
Rendering of the production halls in Saerbeck. © Enapter AG
The Enapter AG wants to put the first AEM megawatt electrolyser into operation for the production of green hydrogen in Saerbeck, North Rhine-Westphalia, in mid-May. “We are taking the next big step towards scaling electrolyzer production in Germany and Europe,” says co-founder Vaitea Cowan. As reported, the company has selected the bioenergy village as the location for the “Enapter Campus”. A factory for electrolyzers is being built there on an 82.000 square meter site, along with facilities for research and development as well as administration. The groundbreaking ceremony took place in 2021. Enapter wants to operate the entire campus with renewable energy, which is either produced on site or purchased from the nearby Saerbeck bioenergy park. Around 60 percent of the electricity required for electrolyzer production is covered by a photovoltaic system on the roofs of the buildings. Once the facilities are fully ramped up, the production capacity will be more than 10.000 devices per month.
+ + + + +
DISCOUNT promotion: Your ADVERTISING on the PtX portal
Photos
iStock / © Danil Melekhin
