In the Uruguayan department of Tacuarembo, the German renewable energy firm Enertrag will create a green hydrogen production project named Tambor Green Hydrogen Hub in conjunction with SEG Engineering.
For the production of green hydrogen and its derivatives, the project will include wind and solar plants, as well as an electrolyzer and conversion facilities.
Uruguay is one of the world’s pioneering countries in the field of renewable energy, with intentions to export green hydrogen and its derivatives in the near future. According to statistics from Enertrag, the country’s potential is enormous, to the point that it could produce gigawatts of hydrogen and meet Germany’s total ethanol consumption.
The German government has recognized this potential and, through the H2Global project, of which Enertrag is a founding member, plans to develop an efficient finance package to support rapid market expansion and the import of green hydrogen-based goods into Germany. The proposed funding structure would allow for the long-term commercial operation of green hydrogen facilities as well as the market’s expansion to a worldwide industrial scale.
The German firm has more than ten years of expertise in green hydrogen generation and is presently working on large-scale international projects in Germany, South Africa, and Namibia. For numerous years, the firm has operated in Uruguay, collaborating with organizations such as the Uruguayan-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
“We want to promote Uruguay’s role as a Latin American leader in implementing a green energy transition.” With its high-quality energy resources, stable political and regulatory framework, and extensive experience in enabling and implementing large-scale renewable energy installations, Uruguay is an ideal partner for Europe and us,” says Aram Sander, head of Enertrag’s Department of International PtX Project Development. “Moreover, the generation of green hydrogen and its compounds provides great opportunities for development and structural advantages.”
The Tambor Green Hydrogen Hub project will include 350 megawatts (MW) of wind and solar plants, as well as an on-site electrolyzer and other infrastructure. This project will be developed in collaboration with SEG Engineering of Uruguay. The annual production of 15,000 tons of green H2 would be turned into derivatives. The hydrogen will be converted into renewable e-methanol in the initial phase of the project. The e-methanol produced in Uruguay might offset around 10% of the methanol produced conventionally at Germany’s largest refinery from crude oil imported from Russia.
Methanol is an essential chemical raw ingredient that may also be employed as an energy carrier. The synthesis gas necessary for methanol manufacturing is mostly produced from fossil fuels like coal. The Tambor project will only employ renewable resources. As a result, the end result will be renewable methanol.
“International collaboration is essential for the energy transition to succeed, and green hydrogen is critical to that achievement,” says Aram Sander. “With a fast-rising market, hydrogen can not only help to accomplish global defossilization, but it can also help to lessen reliance on Russian gas, releasing enormous economic possibilities worldwide and allowing people to participate.”
