Topsoe takes FID for 500-MW/year SOEC electrolyser plant in Denmark

Topsoe A/S has taken the final investment decision (FID) to build a factory in Herning, Denmark, that will each year manufacture 500 MW of electrolysers based on solid oxide electrolysis cell (SOEC) technology.

"The case for using electrolysis to produce green fuels is now well established, but manufacturing capacity has always been the challenge," Topsoe CEO, Roeland Baan, said in the announcement on Thursday,

“We are dedicated to taking the lead on scaling power-to-x technology to help drive the energy transition, and we are investing over DKK 2 billion [USD 269.8m/EUR 268.9m] to meet this demand and address this fundamental supply weakness,” said Baan.

Already touted as the world’s largest SOEC manufacturing plant at 500 MW, the facility could be expanded to 5 GW, according to Topsoe. The Danish chemicals and catalysis-focused company intends to begin construction in the second half of 2022, it said.

Topsoe already has an off-take agreement in place.

“We already have 500 MW of pre-sold capacity and are in discussions with other potential offtake partners as well, who find our electrolyzer technology attractive, and look forward to being able to make more announcements in due course,” added Sundus Cordelia Ramli, CCO of Topsoe’s Power-to-X division.

The Topsoe SOEC electrolyser product is a compact stack built primarily from abundant, low-cost ceramic materials enclosed within a metal housing. It needs electricity to split water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen, consuming less of it compared to alkaline and PEM electrolysers, according to the company.

The SOEC unit’s high degree of automation and auto-response capability, across the entire hydrogen process, minimize oversight and training requirements -- as well as associated risks -- for efficient, convenient on-site hydrogen production and supply, Topsoe says.

(DKK 1.0 =USD 0.135/EUR 0.134)

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