Siemens Energy electrolyzers selected for world-scale electrofuel facility in Texas

Houston-based electrofuel (eFuel) company HIF Global has selected German technology major Siemens Energy to supply electrolyzers to new eFuel facility in Matagorda County, Texas.

To this end, the companies have reached an agreement which would allow Siemens Energy to expand its electrolyzer manufacturing capacity beyond its previously announced plans and assist HIF Global in obtaining sufficient capacity for its eFuel facility.

The electrolyzers will aggregate an expected capacity of approximately 1.8 gigawatts (GW) to support approximately 300,000 tonnes per year of green hydrogen production.

HIF Global aims to develop a world-scale eFuels facility, located in Matagorda County, Texas. For this project, HIF and Siemens Energy are engaged in front-end engineering and design (FEED) for 1.8 GW of Silyzer 300 polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) electrolyzers that will use renewable energy to separate hydrogen from water, resulting in approximately 300,000 tonnes of hydrogen per year.

The green hydrogen will be utilized together with recycled carbon dioxide to produce carbon-neutral eFuels, which are chemically equivalent to fuels used today and can therefore be dropped-in to existing engines without any modifications required. The green hydrogen and eFuels produced by the HIF Matagorda eFuels Facility will be able to convert approximately half a million cars to carbon neutral as early as 2027.

Cesar Norton, CEO of HIF Global, said: “We face a time of incredible expansion in hydrogen production amid global supply chain challenges. The agreement with Siemens Energy allows for electrolyzer deliveries which could support the start of construction as early as the first part of 2024 for the HIF Matagorda eFuels Facility. We look forward to starting construction at the pioneering Texas green hydrogen and eFuels facility, with Siemens Energy’s industry-leading electrolyzer design and manufacturing strength.”

Stefano Innocenzi, SVP, Sustainable Energy Systems of Siemens Energy added: “Hydrogen and power-to-X applications such as eFuels will play a key role in the energy transition. To ramp up this new industry, we need many projects, including large-scale ones, and investors and off-takers who are willing to make a promise for the future. These agreements give us planning certainty, creating the basis for ramping up the technology and the industry as a whole.”

Siemens Energy’s electrolyzers will also be used at Ørsted’s FlagshipONE plant, which is expected to be Europe’s largest commercial production facility for carbon-neutral marine fuels, as well as for the world’s first large-scale commercial e-methanol project that will ultimately provide supplies for Maersk’s methanol-fueled fleet.

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