The Basque Country has began to produce renewable hydrogen thanks to a 2.5 MW electrolyzer located at Petronor that supplies the Energy Intelligence Center, as well as the company’s new offices, in the Ezkerraldea-Meatzaldea Technology Park, in Abanto Zierbena (Bizkaia).
In addition, this renewable hydrogen will also be used for the first buses and heavy vehicles of the park’s own mobility logistics platform, which will have the first hydroline station (hydrogen pump) in the Basque Country. All this promoted by EVE and Repsol.
It is also the first production of renewable hydrogen with European technology, in which Petronor participates as an essential part of the creation of a solid value chain. This commitment to technology based on cross-border collaboration will allow the development of the European renewable hydrogen industry as well as the necessary infrastructure for its implementation as a source of decarbonized energy.
The start-up of this electrolyser, manufactured by SENER and John Cockerill, as well as the necessary infrastructure for the production and distribution of renewable hydrogen, has involved an investment of 11 million euros.
It should be noted that all the necessary hydroducts, from the Petronor refinery to the Energy Intelligence Center, have been developed by Nortegas.
This first electrolyzer has also served to validate all the technology and regulations necessary for the generation of renewable hydrogen and, thus, pave the way for the following ones that Petronor is going to launch.
All of these Petronor projects are part of the initiatives promoted by the Basque Hydrogen Corridor association, BH2C, which aims to contribute to the change in the energy and economic model to advance the decarbonization of strategic sectors such as energy, mobility, industry and services.
The Basque Country’s renewable hydrogen project uses a 2.5 MW electrolyzer to produce hydrogen from water and electricity. The electrolyzer is powered by renewable electricity from the Basque Country’s power grid.
The hydrogen produced by the electrolyzer is stored in a hydrogen storage tank and then distributed to the Energy Intelligence Center, the company’s new offices, and the park’s own mobility logistics platform via a hydroduct.
The Basque Country’s renewable hydrogen project has the potential to have a significant impact on the region’s economy and environment. The project could help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, boost the economy, create jobs, and develop a solid value chain for renewable hydrogen.
The project could also pave the way for the deployment of renewable hydrogen technologies on a larger scale in the Basque Country and other parts of Spain.
