bp has been granted funding, provided jointly by BMWK and the Lower-Saxony Government, as part of the European IPCEI Hy2Infra wave for a green hydrogen project in Germany.
The funding will help support the development of a 100MW green hydrogen project next to bp’s Lingen refinery.
German Federal Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate Protection Robert Habeck handed over the official letter for the grant on behalf of the German government and the state of Lower Saxony at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) in Berlin.
Green hydrogen can unlock the energy transition
Robert Habeck said: “The energy transition remains one of the greatest challenges facing our country, even in the face of further crises and conflicts.
“By funding green hydrogen projects, we are taking an important step towards a climate-neutral and sustainable economy in Europe and beyond.”
The funding will enable the construction of electrolysers in the three-digit megawatt class, enabling important progress in the domestic production of green hydrogen.
An efficient hydrogen infrastructure plays a key role in enabling the decarbonisation of industry and the energy sector.
Hydrogen pipelines will be the lifelines of industrial centres.
“The development of a hydrogen economy is an important building block for the energy transition in Germany and Europe,” explained Olaf Lies, Lower Saxony Minister for Economic Affairs, Transport, Building and Digitization.
“We want to form the central core of this hydrogen economy in Lower Saxony because this is where good, future-proof jobs are created.”
The importance of the Lingen refinery in producing clean hydrogen
The green hydrogen project aims to install a 100MW electrolyser capable of producing an average of 10-11kt of clean hydrogen per year.
The renewable power needed for the electrolyser is expected to initially be supplied by an offshore wind Power Purchase Agreement.
“Our Lingen refinery has helped provide German industry with the energy it needs for more than 70 years,” stated Patrick Wendeler, head of country at bp Germany.
“Decarbonising German industry is a significant challenge, and we are grateful to the German government for helping us.”
The green hydrogen from this project has the potential to support industrial customers, such as steel and chemicals producers, in an effort to decarbonise production processes in the region, including at bp’s Lingen refinery.
Wendeler concluded: “With this funding, we’re a step further towards progressing our green hydrogen project in Lingen that would enable us to provide low carbon hydrogen to industrial customers and our Lingen refinery in the future.”
