New Energies, new possibilities

De Nora together with Maffei Sarda Silicati to build a plant that will generate about 50 tons per year of Green Hydrogen in Sardinia

Ossi (Sassari), November 12, 2024 – De Nora – an Italian multinational company specializing in electrochemistry and a leader in sustainable technologies and the emerging green hydrogen industry – is partnering with Maffei Sarda Silicati to build a green hydrogen production plant located in the Sardinian municipality of Ossi (Sassari).

The project, financed through PNRR funds and promoted by the local company Maffei Sarda Silicati – operating in the field of extraction, processing, and marketing of raw materials mainly intended for the ceramic and hollow glass markets- is coordinated by Make Energy as technical advisor and sees De Nora involved for the supply of its Dragonfly® small electrolyzer, with a production capacity of 1 MW.

The production site, located on a decommissioned industrial area in the municipality of Ossi, will be redeveloped by Maffei Sarda SilicatI itself and will generate about 50 tons of hydrogen per year, which the Sardinian company will use to power its industrial plant, partly replacing the fossil fuel currently used, with significant decarbonization benefits. In addition, the green hydrogen plant will be powered by a new 1.5 MW photovoltaic plant located in the same area, thus ensuring a 100% sustainable industrial process.

Significantly, the role of the municipal administration, which is in charge of issuing the compulsory authorizations for the construction of the plant, was immediately welcomed by the Mayor of Ossi – Pasquale Libinu.

In addition to meeting Maffei Sarda Silicati’s energy needs, the green hydrogen thus generated may have various applications, such as in sustainable mobility, industry, power generation, and heating, positively contributing to the decarbonization of the Sardinia Region.

Paolo Dellachà, CEO of De Nora, commented,

We are proud to have been selected as a partner in this project that will significantly boost Sardinia’s green transition.

“Through its sustainable and innovative solutions, such as the Dragonfly® electrolyzer, De Nora is once again a facilitator of green production processes, positively impacting territories and communities. Our electrolyzer, developed in-house and patented, is confirmed to be a leading product, particularly suitable for local industrial needs, as a modular plug-and-play solution.”

Federico Fiorelli, President of Maffei Sarda Silicati, added,

Maffei Sarda Silicati SpA is pleased to announce the agreement reached with the company De Nora; agreement implemented for the construction and installation of a 1 MW electrolyzer by June 2026 that will be used for the production of green hydrogen.

“The hydrogen will be fed into the drying process of the sands mined by the company, with a significant reduction in CO2 emissions. This is yet another step that Maffei Sarda Silicati SpA is taking to achieve zero emissions within all its activities and increasingly in line with its policy of respect for the environment.”

Pasquale Libinu, Mayor of Ossi:

The topic of renewable energy sources has become increasingly relevant; the innovative project presented by Maffei and the PNRR funding achieved is also a good result because they are located on a site that was exploited from a mining point of view, then restored and now again affected by this intervention.

“The future, which requires more and more energy, is not in coal or other fossil sources but in the use of clean energies, which must be realized not only because they are incentivized but because they are necessary for the environment.“

READ the latest news shaping the hydrogen market at Hydrogen Central

De Nora together with Maffei Sarda Silicati to build a plant that will generate about 50 tons per year of Green Hydrogen in Sardinia, source  

De Nora together with Maffei Sarda Silicati to build a plant that will generate about 50 tons per year of Green Hydrogen in Sardinia - Hydrogen Central (hydrogen-central.com)

The Norwegian manufacturer is currently in talks with the European Commission to clarify regulations that could restrict its equipment from being used in subsidised green hydrogen projects

Norwegian electrolyser manufacturer HydrogenPro has warned in its Q3 results that its reliance on China for its supply chain could present a risk for future revenue.

In September, the European Commission introduced a new rule for its upcoming €2.2bn ($2.33bn) European Hydrogen Bank auction, which would restrict bidders to sourcing no more than 25% of their electrolysers from China.

Given that HydrogenPro’s 500MW of stack manufacturing capacity is based in Tianjin, China, this presents a risk that the Norwegian company will be avoided by developers bidding for EU subsidies.“First, I want to emphasise here that import from China is not banned or embargoed. The European content is only relevant for those projects being subsidised by EU,” said CEO Jarle Dragvik on an earnings call, adding that in HydrogenPro’s portfolio, 75% of its projects were not dependent on EU funding.

Dragvik noted that the firm, along with its EPC partner Andritz, is currently engaged in discussions with the European Commission to clarify the regulations.

“What qualifies and what doesn’t qualify? Until now, the Hydrogen Bank has admitted that it cannot answer, and do not know themselves how to understand their own requirements,” he argued.The CEO said the company is confident that it can qualify as European supply for customers that have been awarded subsidies already, such as Salzgitter, which had been given the greenlight for €1bn in federal and state funding in Germany.“We have a European base, we are assembling in Europe, and we are coating [electrodes] in Europe,” Dragvik said, adding that the company was investigating whether it could move other aspects of the supply chain from China to Europe without increasing costs.

The firm has already decided to invest NKr70m ($6.3m) in a new production line for electrodes in Denmark, which in August had been increased from 90-100MW to 350MW of capacity with no additional investment.The firm’s Danish subsidiary had been awarded an EU Innovation Fund grant worth €16.5m ($17.5m) and DKr35m ($5m) from the Danish Export and Investment Fund towards the electrode production line, which is due to start up in the first quarter of next year.

Dragvik also noted in the call that the results of the US election have had little impact on the firm’s discussion with American clients. “Concerns related to the political changes in the US are not reflected by our prospects. From my point of view, I am more optimistic now than I was 15 months ago, when I started my tenure.”

'Slower pace than initially planned'
HydrogenPro has struggled over the past year, as it has been slow to secure firm orders to rebuild its backlog while delivering equipment to its flagship customers, the 220MW ACES Delta project in the US and the 100MW project by Salzgitter in Germany.While its result for Q3 2024 — a loss of NKr38m — was comparable to its NKr34m loss for the same quarter a year ago, its loss for the year to date has slipped to NKr162m, or more than double the loss for 2023 as a whole.

This is in part due to lower revenue this year, with around NKr126m in the first three quarters of 2024 compared to NKr441m secured in the same period last year.“Within HydrogenPro’s pipeline, projects are maturing and developing towards FID [final investment decision],” the firm noted in its report. “However, some projects may still experience delays in reaching fruition, primarily due to some funding uncertainties and the challenge of establishing viable offtake agreements.”

The manufacturer added that some projects in its pipeline may end up scaling back scope or capacity compared to what customers had originally envisaged.

HydrogenPro noted in its report that the wider market for green hydrogen projects has seen a number of high-profile cancellations in recent months.“For HydrogenPro’s portfolio of projects, whether undertaken independently or in partnership, we have observed relatively few cancellations or any significant delays, although the pace is somewhat slower than initially planned,” the manufacturer pointed out in its report.

It added that projects focusing on hydrogen derivatives such as ammonia or its use as a fuel are seeing more activity than green hydrogen for refining or as feedstock for synthetic aviation fuel.

“This trend may be due to the substantial hydrogen volumes these industries require, combined with anticipated lower carbon taxation and the allowance of low-carbon hydrogen (such as blue hydrogen) in several major projects.”

'Our reliance on manufacturing electrolyser stacks in China presents a risk', admits HydrogenPro | Hydrogen Insight

Horizon Fuel Cell recently showcased the world’s highest power PEM fuel cell at the Fuel Cell Technology Expo in Foshan China (CHFE2024): a mind-blowing 400kW

SINGAPORE-- Horizon Fuel Cell recently unveiled its new VLS-IV 400kW fuel cell, offering material advantages in fuel cell applications, such as high power output, low cost, long lifespan, and high fault tolerance. This groundbreaking product has the potential to reduce hydrogen consumption in fuel cell heavy trucks by up to 20%, in addition to providing ample power for the heaviest on-road trucks and various other heavy equipment with challenging decarbonisation pathways.

The new VLS-IV series fuel cells leverage the unique advantages of the company’s patented graphite-metal hybrid bipolar plate technology, which sets the standard in high-power, heavy duty fuel cells, bringing to market substantial technological innovation since the launch of the VLS-III series in 2021.

This new fuel cell from Horizon sets the stage for hydrogen applications to enter a new era characterized by higher power, greater efficiency, compact size and lower costs, which will collectively drive the hydrogen economy. Additionally, the company’s "zero-carbon MW powerplant" based on the 400kW stack will deliver more competitive zero emission power for grid-independent AI datacenters, along with electrical grid peak-shaving powerplants.

Seeking the most cost-efficient production methods, Horizon has made comprehensive upgrades in the bipolar plate manufacturing processes. The graphite layer is produced using high-precision molding techniques, enhancing product consistency while reducing production costs by over 50%. The metal layer utilizes newly developed PVD carbon coating technology to improve conductivity and reduce contact resistance, further enhancing the reliability and efficiency of the stack. The hybrid bipolar plates are assembled using the company’s long-validated sealing technology, reliably integrating the graphite and metal layers.

About Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies

Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies was founded in 2003, with a consistent focus on fundamental innovation in both materials and systems-level technology for fuel cell and electrolyser solutions. The launch of the VLS-IV 400kW fuel cell underscores the company's strong R&D capabilities and contributes to the global energy transition and a "zero-carbon" future. As hydrogen technologies mature and application scenarios diversify, Horizon is actively embracing the "post-subsidy era" of fuel cells, leading the mass commercialization of hydrogen power applications and green hydrogen generation.

Source: Fuel Cells Works