Delfzijl Joint Development of green Water Electrolysis at Large Scale

Project Information

Djewels

Grant agreement ID: 826089

DOI

10.3030/826089

EC signature date 3 December 2019

Start date 1 January 2020

End date 30 June 2026

Funded under

• SOCIETAL CHALLENGES - Secure, clean and efficient energy

Total cost

€ 41 967 250,00

EU contribution

€ 10 999 999,00

Coordinated by

HYCC B.V.
Netherlands

Periodic Reporting for period 3 - Djewels (Delfzijl Joint Development of green Water Electrolysis at Large Scale)

Reporting period: 2023-01-01 to 2024-06-30

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

Djewels demonstrate the operational readiness of 20 MW electrolyser for the production of green fuels (green methanol) in real-life industrial and commercial conditions. It will bring the technology from TRL 7 to TRL 8 and lay the foundation for the next scale-up step, towards 100 MW on the same site.
Djewels will enable the development of next generation of pressurised alkaline electrolyser, by developing more cost efficient, better performing, high current density electrodes, preparing the serial manufacturing of the stack and scale-up of the balance of plant components.
Leveraging economies of scale, the flexible and optimized operation of the electrolyser and applying advanced electricity procurement and arbitrage strategies will ensure a low cost of green hydrogen for the end-user during the 3 years of operation. This project will demonstrate the conditions for a profitable business cases for green hydrogen production as an input for renewable methanol production towards large-scale deployment in Europe before 2030.
Djewels will be located in Delfzijl industrial park, where Nobian already produces hydrogen through a chlor-alkali process and where the (bio)methanol producer, BioMCN, is also located. Delfzijl industrial park has a direct connection to the electricity transmission grid, and low distribution network charges within. Other hydrogen industry clients in Delfzijl create further conditions for scaling up green hydrogen elektrolysers. Beyond Delfzijl, the park is connected via a dense gas networks to other large-scale chemical and (petro)chemical hydrogen clients in the Netherlands and Germany. These could allow Djewels to be a stepping stone towards the creation of a new hydrogen valley, in line with the ambitions of the FCH2-JU and the regional roadmap, within the industrial cluster of Delfzijl, the Northern Netherland and beyond.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

The project has been set-up and launched. Meeting structures and communication activities had to be adopted just after the start due to COVID-19 restrictions. Despite this complexity, the activities on the further development and improvement on the state-of-the-art pressurized, high current density stacks have been performed in San Miniato (test bench) and Les Renardieres (pilot installation). The lessons learned from these tests have been incorporated in design of the Djewels plant.
FEL 3 engineering on the Djewels plant is completed. The plant’s design enables the state-of-the-art technology to operate in the industrial conditions required. Significant effort and resources have been committed to design the overall plant and verify the safety of this design. During the design thorough reviews have been performed on safety, reliability, operability and maintainability aspects. Also, the integration of the (flexible) hydrogen supply to BioMCN’s methanol reactor has been designed and reviewed.
Good progress has been made on the establishment of the new value chain: power to e-methanol. Items such as the technical product specification; ability to accommodate flexible hydrogen supply, hydrogen price formula, guarantees and other conditions that are custom in an industrial setting.
Djewels has also secured approval for state aid from EU Directorate General Competition for a Tailor made subsidy from the Dutch government.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

Testing of the pressurized, high current density alkaline stack in the pilot facility has confirmed safety aspects of the 1 MW stack. Areas are identified for optimization. The associated engineering and manufacturing improvements are identified to improve efficiency and endurance, both critical enable green hydrogen in industrial applications.

A 4 MW technology, module has been designed that meets the various requirements of industrial equipment on topics such as safety, reliability, operability and maintainability.

The combination of multiple 4 MW modules in a larger plant is key to enable the 20 MW electrolyser unit for Djewels, but also sets the foundation for scale up by adding additional modules.
The market for e-methanol is under development. In Djewels, we are preparing to showcase critical elements such as certification and classification (RNFBO) under REDII. Establishing e-methanol will require further efforts following a new business development approach towards new potential customers / prospects and key partners as well as explaining this renewable value chain to stakeholders.

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