Shell has started operations at the power-to-hydrogen electrolyser in Zhangjiakou, for the production of green hydrogen in Zhangjiakou, Hebei Province, China.
The electrolyser will provide about half of the total green hydrogen supply for fuel cell vehicles at the Zhangjiakou competition zone during the Winter Olympic Games, set to begin on February 4, 2022.
“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,” said Wael Sawan, Shell’s Integrated Gas, Renewable and Energy Solutions Director.
The project is part of a joint venture between Shell China and Zhangjiakou City Transport Construction Investment Holding Group. The 20 megawatts (MW) power-to-hydrogen electrolyser and hydrogen refuelling stations in Zhangjiakou are phase 1 of the joint venture. The companies have plans to scale up to 60 MW in the next two years in phase 2.
This is Shell’s first commercial hydrogen development project in China. The project is utilizing onshore wind power. The project will supply green hydrogen to fuel a fleet of more than 600 fuel cell vehicles at the Zhangjiakou competition zone during the Winter Olympic Games. The hydrogen will be used for public and commercial transport in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.
The world’s largest hydrogen electrolyser is 30MW operated by Baofeng Energy in China, while the second largest is a 20MW one operated by Air Liquide in Canada. Shell’s Zhangjiakou Integrated Green Hydrogen Hub project is one of only three commercial-scale electrolysers in China today, alongside the 30 MW one operated by Baofeng Energy and a 10MW electrolyser operated by HyPower in Hebei province.