Two Repsol initiatives to promote renewable hydrogen in Spain have been awarded 25 million euros in aid as part of the Institute for Energy Diversification and Saving (IDAEfinal)’s concession under the Strategic Programme for Recovery and Economic Recovery of Renewable Energies, Renewable Hydrogen, and Storage (PERTE ERHA).
The first involves the construction of a 30 megawatt (MW) electrolyser in the municipality of Puertollano (Ciudad Real) that will be fueled by photovoltaic energy from the RIC Energy plants, the project’s partner and recipient of a 10 million euro grant.
A 10-kilometer hydroduct that would deliver renewable hydrogen from the new facility to the Repsol Industrial Complex in Puertollano is also part of the plan, which is expected to cost 50 million euros. At the industrial complex, this renewable hydrogen will reduce 41,000 tonnes of CO2 annually.
The second is a 30 MW electrolyser with Naturgy and Reganosa as partners that will be built on the site of the former Meirama thermal power station in a Just Transition region in the municipality of Cerceda (A Corua). A grant of 15 million euros will be provided for this initiative.
In addition to replacing the conventional hydrogen now utilised by the Repsol complex in A Corua, the created renewable hydrogen will also be used for industrial purposes. It will also be utilised in other fields, such as mobility and gas network injection to combine with natural gas. With the help of all these applications, it will be possible to lessen the region’s carbon footprint and show that it is feasible to produce renewable hydrogen in large quantities and distribute it to end users.
These financial assistance programmes are a part of the Strategic Project for the Recovery and Economic Recovery of Renewable Energies, Renewable Hydrogen, and Storage (PERTE ERHA), which will provide more than 1,500 million euros for the promotion of green hydrogen and 2,800 million euros of private capital.
Each centre will contain a hydrogen generation facility that Repsol will use to decarbonize its operations. The Hympulso project, which thoroughly addresses rail mobility using hydrogen, has also been given to the company led by Antonio Brufau, together with Talgo and others.
On the other hand, the ‘HY2MOVE’ project, with which it will build six recharging points in the Trans-European Transport Network, was announced by the European Commission on March 15 as receiving 12 million euros in funding.
Together with Enagás and the Basque Energy Agency (EVE), Repsol will also construct a 10 MW electrolyser for the synthetic fuel plant that will be built in the port of Bilbao and play a crucial role in the energy transition after the European Union just a few days ago recognised synthetic fuels as a way to decarbonize mobility.
