The project realised by the European group Lhyfe in Schwäbisch Gmünd represents a milestone in the market ramp-up of green hydrogen in Germany and is exemplary for the integration of renewable gas into local ecosystems. The production plant will be powered by renewable electricity from hydro, wind and solar power plants and is scheduled to go into operation in the second half of 2024. The hydrogen will be used in part at the "H2-Aspen" industrial park and at a JetH2 hydrogen filling station in Schwäbisch Gmünd. Funded by the state of Baden-Württemberg and the EU, this project supports a climate- and future-proof solution for the neighbourhood of the local industry. It lays the foundation for a climate-friendly infrastructure on site. The project, which is part of the HyFIVE project (Hydrogen For Innovative Vehicles), is supported by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through a grant agreement of 6.4 million euros.
Model project of the cooperation partners supports important goals of the federal government
"This project demonstrates the economic viability of hydrogen solutions in the transport and industrial sectors and also supports the state of Baden-Württemberg in its efforts to become a model region for the development of a hydrogen refuelling infrastructure", says Luc Graré, Head of Central & Eastern Europe at Lhyfe. "We very much welcome the fact that the state and the city of Schwäbisch Gmünd want to implement their ambitious goals for a hydrogen economy based on renewable energies and that we are taking this step together. By building the production plant, we are making an important contribution to the federal government's goals."
Richard Arnold, Lord Mayor of Schwäbisch Gmünd, is also pleased with the cooperation: "Through cooperations like this, Schwäbisch Gmünd is developing into a model region for the nationwide development of a hydrogen and filling station network as a central supply infrastructure. Schwäbisch Gmünd is part of the model region of the state of Baden-Württemberg and, with the completion of the plant, will then also be the largest hydrogen producer in the state. We are thus creating a basis for marketing the land in Aspen, which will enable companies to produce climate-neutrally."
In 2021, Lhyfe already inaugurated the world's first large-scale green hydrogen production facility in France, linked to a wind farm. In 2022, the world's first offshore pilot platform for the production of green hydrogen was opened at the port of Saint-Nazaire. This makes Lhyfe the first company globally to have already started offshore hydrogen production, based on a production capacity of up to 400 kg/day.
