VT Group, Inovyn to develop Europe’s 1st hydrogen-fuelled chemical barge

Inovyn, a subsidiary of UK-based oil and gas company Ineos, has joined forces with Dutch bunkering company VT Group to develop Europe’s first bulk liquid chemical barge powered by hydrogen.   

As informed, the Dutch partner plans to retrofit an existing barge with hydrogen technology, replacing the gas-oil combustion technology. On the other hand, Inovyn will supply low carbon hydrogen to power the barge as a co-product from its chemical manufacturing operations. The project is expected to reduce annual CO₂ emissions by an estimated 1,000 tonnes.

“This is the latest example of INOVYN driving the decarbonisation agenda as part of INEOS’s €2 billion investment programme. Hydrogen-powered transport will play a critical role in Europe’s journey to net-zero and INOVYN is … positioned to drive down emissions in the transport sector as we are already a producer of low-carbon hydrogen and have significant demand for transportation,” Wouter Bleukx, Hydrogen Business Manager for Inovyn, commented.

The barge, which will be owned and operated by VT Group on behalf of Inovyn, will transport chemicals in Europe.

This is part of Inovyn’s ongoing strategy to develop green hydrogen and replace existing carbon-based sources of energy, feedstocks and fuel. The company has been involved in multiple projects through its parent company Ineos. The projects are launched across Europe to develop green hydrogen and replace existing carbon-based sources.

Last month, Ineos announced plans to build a large-scale, 100-megawatt electrolyser to produce green hydrogen at the Koln site in Germany.

The green hydrogen project aims to reduce direct and indirect carbon emissions by over 120,000 tonnes per year. In addition, H2 will be available for further Ineos processes at the site, and to other users in the region.