The electrolyser will provide almost 50% of the total green hydrogen supply for fuel cell vehicles at the Zhangjiakou competition zone during the Winter Olympics
The electrolyser project is part of a joint venture (JV) between Shell (China) and Zhangjiakou City Transport Construction Investment. (Credit: akitada31 from Pixabay)
Shell said that its 20MW power-to-hydrogen electrolyser in Zhangjiakou in the Chinese province of Hebei has started production of green hydrogen.
The electrolyser project is part of a joint venture (JV) between Shell (China) and Zhangjiakou City Transport Construction Investment, which was formed in November 2020 with an aim to develop a hydrogen value chain.
It is located at the Zhangjiakou integrated green hydrogen hub project.
According to Shell, the plant will provide nearly 50% of the total green hydrogen supply for fuel cell vehicles at the Zhangjiakou competition zone during the upcoming Winter Olympic Games.
Shell integrated gas, renewable and energy solutions director Wael Sawan said: “The electrolyser is the largest in our portfolio to date and is in line with Shell’s Powering Progress strategy, which includes plans to build on our leading position in hydrogen.
“We see opportunities across the hydrogen supply chain in China, including its production, storage and shipping. We want to be the trusted partner for our customers from different sectors as we help them decarbonise in China.”
The power-to-hydrogen electrolyser along with hydrogen refuelling stations in Zhangjiakou make up phase 1 of Shell’s JV in the Chinese city. In the next two years, the partners intend to scale up the electrolyser’s capacity to 60MW in phase 2.
Shell said that the completion of its first commercial hydrogen development project in China took 13 months.
The electrolyser, which uses onshore wind power, will initially provide green hydrogen to fuel a fleet of over 600 fuel cell vehicles at the Zhangjiakou competition zone.
After the Winter Olympic Games, the hydrogen produced from the plant will be used for public and commercial transport in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, said Shell.
Zhangjiakou Municipal Development and Reform Commission director Bai Jing said: “The hydrogen industry is critical for Zhangjiakou’s transition to low-carbon energy and to achieve the city’s carbon peak and carbon neutrality targets. The recent approval of the Hebei Fuel Cell Vehicle Demonstration City Cluster, which is led by our city, will also accelerate the development of the hydrogen industry in our city.
“This project will help secure hydrogen supply for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and make it a green one while contributing to the development of hydrogen industry in the city and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.”
The other partner in the JV is Zhangjiakou Zhiqing Technology Partnership, which has a 4% share, while Shell and Zhangjiakou City Transport Construction Investment hold stakes of 48.5% and 47.5%, respectively.