Statkraft cancels 40 MW electrolyzer deal with Nel

Norwegian renewable energy supplier Statkraft has cancelled its 40 MW alkaline electrolyzer contract with compatriot hydrogen technology company Nel.

This purchase order was listed as one of the contracts with “significant” risk of delays or cancellation as stated in the Q1’2025 financial report, Nel said, adding that with this cancellation, the total reduction in its backlog will be NOK 120 million ($11.58 million).

“Statkraft has over several years put considerable engagement and commitment into developing and attracting funding to a hydrogen project in Mo. Despite the efforts we have not been able to create a viable commercial model for the project in the current market conditions. We therefore need to adjust the plan accordingly and cancel our order with Nel says SVP for hydrogen in Statkraft, Bjørn Holsen,” Nel reported Statkraft as saying.

To remind, the deal between the two parties was signed in January 2023. At the time, the companies revealed that the electrolyzer stacks would be produced at Nel’s manufacturing plant at Herøya and used for the production of renewable hydrogen in one of Statkraft’s projects.

As disclosed, Statkraft’s ambition was to accelerate its annual development rate to 4 GW of new power production per year and to add 2 GW of renewable hydrogen production by 2030.

In other news, Nel and compatriot hydrogen systems developer HydePoint signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to work on scaling up hydrogen production in offshore, nearshore and other harsh environments.

It is understood that the collaboration envisions integrating Nel’s PEM electrolyzer stacks into HydePoint’s modular hydrogen production system. The parties plan to focus on system efficiency, modularity and operational resilience in offshore and nearshore environments to “significantly improve” the levelized cost of hydrogen (LCOH), unlocking the potential for large-scale clean hydrogen production and enabling decarbonization across key industries.