Plug Power Inc. (Latham, N.Y.) has announced that it is supplying electrolyzers for new green-hydrogen projects in Australia and Europe.
Firstly, Plug Power has been selected to supply two 5-megawatt (MW) proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzer systems for green hydrogen projects in Tasmania, Australia, under development by Countrywide Hydrogen Pty Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of ReNu Energy Ltd.
Plug’s electrolyzer systems, which were selected by Countrywide Hydrogen, will be installed at planned production facilities in Brighton near Hobart and Western Junction near Launceston. The 4,200 kg/day of hydrogen produced at these two sites will be used to decarbonize road transport and natural gas sectors in Tasmania.
“Plug is pleased to support Countrywide Hydrogen with its ambitious green hydrogen projects in the state of Tasmania,” said Plug CEO Andy Marsh. “The plants are strategically located to leverage existing infrastructure, and Plug’s PEM electrolyzer systems are a perfect complement to the plant designs.”
The hydrogen will be produced via electrolysis with renewable power planned to be initially sourced from the state grid, with subsequent supply from behind-the-meter solar and power purchase agreements from wind, solar and hydropower operators. The water will be supplied from TasWater’s network.
The design includes a second electrolyzer at each site to meet increased hydrogen demand. It ensures a secure supply by implementing electrolyzer redundancy and use of tube trailers for hydrogen storage. The storage system ensures that the sites can support one another in the event of unexpected outages. The sites will include connections to the TasGas network, allowing injection of hydrogen into the network as well as supply to local industry.
Plug Power also secured an order for 100 megawatts (MW) of proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzers, representing the largest announced project in the oil and gas sector in Europe.
The Plug electrolyzers will be powered by 100% renewable energy and will generate approximately 43 tons of green hydrogen per day to replace gray hydrogen in the oil refining process. This will eliminate approximately 516 tons per day of CO2 (carbon dioxide).
“Plug is playing a leading role in advancing green hydrogen projects in Europe through the deployment of our industry-leading PEM technology,” said Plug CEO Andy Marsh. “We are demonstrating how green hydrogen can be generated at scale to decarbonize hard-to-abate industries while also helping companies to achieve aggressive carbon reduction goals.”
Plug provided engineering support for a Front End Engineering and Design (FEED) study leading to the successful decision to move the project to execution phase. The electrolyzers will be delivered and installed in 2024.
Plug’s electrolyzers use PEM stack technology in a modular design that offers a small footprint with potential for capacity expansion. The electrolyzer’s hydrogen output instantaneously adjusts based on electrical input, which is especially important when paired with intermittent renewable resources.
The PEM stacks for the system will be manufactured at Plug’s 155,000 square foot gigafactory in Rochester, New York. The gigafactory currently has a capacity of 100 MWs per month of electrolyzer stacks.