Siemens Energy reports the sale of 12 electrolysers with a total capacity of 200 MW to Air Liquide. The French gas company plans to use the units in its Normand'Hy project in northern France. Starting in 2026, they are expected to produce 28,000 t of green hydrogen annually to supply a TotalEnergies refinery, among others.
Air Liquide reports that it paid €400 million for the 200 MW electrolysers. With the amount they produce annually, a hydrogen-powered truck could travel 10,000 times around the world. Air Liquide plans to use the hydrogen from the Siemens electrolysers to supply industrial plants and mobility applications in Normandy. In particular, the TotalEnergies refinery in Gonfreville is to be among the customers. In total, up to 250,000 t of CO2 could be saved annually - 25 million trees would be needed to sequester this amount of CO2.
PEM for volatile energy flow
The electrolysers from Siemens use PEM (protone exchange membrane) technology. These have a comparatively low ramp-up time with high dynamic controllability. This makes them particularly suitable for operation with volatile renewable energies. The company also emphasizes the plants' high energy density and low space and material requirements. In September 2022, a similar electrolyzer began operation in Wunsiedel, Bavaria.
Normand'Hy is one of the first projects to be supplied from the electrolyzer production facility in Berlin, which has been planned since June 2022, as part of a joint venture between Air Liquide and Siemens Energy.
