Norwegian Hydrogen has been working on the development of a large-scale production plant for green H₂ at Ørskog in Ålesund municipality for a long time. The company announces plans for what will become one of the largest production facilities for green H₂ in the Nordic region.

The factory will have a capacity of 270 MW when it is fully developed, with a production capacity of 40,000 tpy of green H₂. A capacity of 20 MW has been granted, and an application for a further 250-MW capacity has already been submitted and is being processed.

“This is an important milestone for the development of large-scale production of green H₂ in Norway and we look forward to being part of developing a new forward-looking industry. It is also particularly exciting that this project is home in Sunnmøre. From Ørskog, a large volume of green H₂ will be exported to Europe, and part of the production capacity will cover the demand from customers in Norway,” said Jens Berge, CEO of Norwegian Hydrogen.

The H₂ produced by the plant can reduce CO₂ emissions by over 500,000 tpy. This corresponds to over 20% of the emissions for the whole of Møre og Romsdal. Production of green H₂ will contribute to increased availability of emission-free energy and building of infrastructure for use in the maritime industry, heavy vehicles and industrial processes.

Norwegian Hydrogen collaborates with Provaris Energy for this project, an Australian company that has developed a solution for storing and transporting compressed H₂ by ship.

“Provaris is pleased to collaborate with Norwegian Hydrogen in developing Norway's largest production facility for green H₂. This is a large-scale project that will effectively meet both local demand for H₂ and allow for flexible delivery of demanded green energy to Europe. The efficiency of our supply chain, based on compression, allows a flexible production, storage and transport solution that allows this to become a competitive project in the green shift,” said Martin Carolan, CEO of Provaris Energy.

This investment will be vital in accelerating the transition to an emission-free society and a green economy and is an important contribution to the EU's need to import 10 MMtpy of green H₂ by 2030.

The regional value creation will be significant. The project will create more than 50 new jobs in Norwegian H₂ in Ørskog, and including the indirect ripple effects, it will also lead to many more jobs beyond this.

During the production of H₂ through electrolysis using renewable energy, oxygen and excess heat are obtained as derivatives. This provides great opportunities for nearby industry which can use this in other processes.

The electrolysis plant has a high degree of flexibility when it comes to usage of the power grid and has the option to adjust production if required. The technical solution means that one can effectively work together with other users of the power grid, which is of great importance when grid connections of this size are to be assessed.

Norway has ambitious targets to produce H₂ and wants to become a net-zero emissions country by 2050. Green H₂ is highlighted as one of the most important factors that must be in place to achieve this. Norwegian Hydrogen has already done thorough preparatory work over a long period of time and is now entering a targeted and concrete process together with partners and authorities for detailed planning and regulatory work for the area.

“Green H₂ will be a key component in the transition to a zero-emission society, and we are happy to be part of this. We have a good dialogue with the local population, and we experience Ålesund municipality as supportive and constructive. There will be great value created here, both for us and the business community in the region, and our contribution to reducing global emissions to such a significant extent is just as important,” said Berge.

Norwegian Hydrogen will start production of green H₂ in both Norway and Denmark in late 2023, and the company has also recently launched its subsidiary Vireon, which will roll out a network of H₂ filling stations throughout the Nordic region. The company also has several other exciting plans and projects throughout the Nordics.