North Sea offshore hydrogen project of 10 MW secures EUR-20m grant

The HOPE (Hydrogen Offshore Production for Europe) project, which seeks to prepare the ground for the deployment of large-scale offshore production of renewable hydrogen, has signed a EUR-20-million (USD 21.8m) grant agreement with the European Commission.

The grant was secured in a call for proposals by the Clean Hydrogen Partnership, as announced on Tuesday by Lhyfe (EPA:LHYFE), coordinator of the nine-member project consortium.

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The partners will build a 10-MW production unit in the North Sea, off the coast of Belgium, capable of producing up to four tonnes a day of green hydrogen, which will be exported to shore by composite pipeline, with operations expected to start in 2026. This is the first offshore project of such a scale to begin actual implementation, Lhyfe pointed out.

HOPE will be located one kilometre from the coast in the offshore testing area in front of the port of Ostend and will be powered by renewable electricity supplied under a power purchase agreement (PPA). The hydrogen will be compressed at medium pressure at sea, exported by pipeline and then compressed at high pressure, stored and distributed onshore for use in industry and the transport sector. The water for the electrolysis will be pumped from the sea, desalinated and purified.

The project partners are of the entire renewable hydrogen value chain and include Lhyfe, Plug Power Inc, EDP Group’s subsidiary EDP NEW, provincial development agency POM West-Vlaanderen, French research organisation CEA, Dutch composite pipe technology company Strohm, Alfa Laval, German consultancy DWR eco and advisory firm ERM.

Plug said separately it will design and deliver a 10-MW proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyser system for this project.

Lhyfe simultaneously announced a milestone in the efforts towards offshore hydrogen generation with the start of sea trials of the 1-MW Sealhyfe platform, the world’s first offshore hydrogen production pilot.

(EUR 1 = USD 1.092)