(Dresden) – Uniper SE has commissioned Dresden-based Sunfire GmbH to build a 30 megawatt alkaline pressure electrolysis facility. The plant will produce hydrogen from renewable electricity and treated wastewater. The company said the final investment decision is still pending.
“Project Air” for a more environmentally friendly chemical industry
The electrolysis is part of “Project Air”, a cooperation between the Swedish chemical company Perstorp AB and Uniper. The aim is to produce sustainable methanol using green hydrogen for the production of chemical products. To this end, Perstorp is building a CO2 capture and utilization (CCU) plant in Stenungsund, Sweden, “in which carbon dioxide from Perstorp operations as well as other residues, biogas and renewable hydrogen are converted into methanol,” according to a statement.
Sunfire pressure alkaline electrolyser at the Austrian grocer MPreis. © Sunfire GmbH
The renewable hydrogen is produced by the alkaline pressure electrolyzer developed by Sunfire. The technology does not require resource-critical precious metals and rare earths. The electrodes are immersed in a potassium hydroxide solution and placed under voltage. Oxygen is produced at the anode and hydrogen is produced at the cathode.
“With the Air project, Uniper will take an important step towards breaking the chemical industry’s dependence on fossil fuels,” says Axel Wietfeld, Managing Director of Uniper Hydrogen. “As a showcase project, it offers enormous potential for the chemical sector worldwide,” because it shows “that a switch from fossil raw materials to circular production is possible.”
Cooperation already in Bad Lauchstädt
Uniper and Sunfire are already cooperating on another project: The energy company has commissioned the Dresden company to build a pressurized alkaline electrolyzer with an output of 30 megawatts for the Bad Lauchstädt energy park in Saxony-Anhalt. Delivery is scheduled for 2024, the companies announced in August last year.
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In southern Sweden, Uniper, Perstorp and Sunfire want to produce green methane for the chemical industry. © Uniper
