US manufacturer Plug Power signs contract with H2 Energy Europe to supply machines for subsidy-free project in Denmark

Electrolyser maker Plug Power has landed an order to deliver a 1GW unit — the world’s biggest to date — to hydrogen company H2 Energy Europe as part of an offshore wind-powered project in Denmark that is foreseen generating enough green fuel to run some 15,000 heavy duty vehicles.

Electricity from the as-yet-unnamed wind farm will flow ashore into a planned H2 hub in the port city of Esbjerg where Plug Power's PEM (proton exchange membrane) electrolysers will produce as much as 100,000 tonnes a year for use in operating Hyundai fuel-cell trucks provided as part of a joint venture between H2 Energy and the Korean auto manufacturer.

The project is entirely subsidy-free, which can only happen because green H2 is already cost-competitive with diesel in Denmark, Andy Marsh tells Recharge.

“When you look at hydrogen in general, there's certain segments today without policy that you can sit back and say ‘yeah, that makes sense’. And I think in a place like Denmark, hydrogen can be competitive [with diesel].”

We see green hydrogen as the future and have made significant investments in green hydrogen including in the construction of a gigafactory for electrolyser production,” stated Andy Marsh, CEO of Plug Power.

“Our operational readiness and manufacturing capacity were key determinants in our selection for the world’s largest order to date, and we are pleased to be a part of this project with H2 Energy.”

The electrolyser will be supplied out of Plug Power’s gigafactory in Rochester, New York state, with some balance-of-plant equipment delivered by external European suppliers. Installation at H2 Energy’s Danish complex is slated for 2024, with the first hydrogen due to be produced in 2025.

Rolf Huber, CEO of H2 Energy — which recently signed a deal with Phillips 66 to build more than 250 hydrogen refuelling stations in Denmark, Germany and Austria — said: “Plug Power’s unique knowledge and market position within the green hydrogen ecosystem made our choice of collaboration very easy.

“We have the same ambitions to reduce CO2 emissions and create a world where hydrogen is the future of energy.”

Swiss-headquartered H2 Energy Europe is a joint venture with commodity trading firm Trafigura.

The deal with H2 Energy is the latest in a series of sizeable international electrolyser orders for Plug Power, including a 250MW unit via a JV with Fortescue Future Industries in Australia, a 100MW unit for Fertiglobe in Egypt, and a 10MW unit for MOL in Hungary.

Plug Power has deployed more than 50,000 fuel-cell systems — mainly for forklift trucks — and over 165 fuelling stations to date, and has plans to build and operate a “green hydrogen highway” across North America and Europe.

It currently has a 1GW fuel cell/electrolyser factory in New York, and is also building giga-scale factories in South Korea, as part of joint ventures with SK Group and Fortescue Future Industries.

aiming to build an electrolyser and fuel-cell gigafactory, as well as a number of green hydrogen plants with daily production capacity of 500 tonnes each by 2025.

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