Lhyfe’s new project in Lubmin to support future European hydrogen backbone

French hydrogen producer Lhyfe has unveiled plans for a new 800 MW project in Lubmin, Germany, to supply the future European hydrogen backbone network.

Lhyfe revealed that the company plans to produce up to 330 tons of green hydrogen per day in the Lubmin plant, which is said to be one the largest plants to be built in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany, with a targeted commissioning date by 2029. The plant will be built on the site of a decommissioned nuclear power plant.

According to Lhyfe, the new project site will offer access to extensive existing and future electricity production capacities from offshore wind farms, and it benefits from an extra-high voltage grid connection operated by the transmission system operator 50Hertz, which already operates a transformer station in Lubmin and will feed all the required electricity power to produce hydrogen.

As part of the company’s backbone development strategy, Lhyfe said the plant will feed into the German core hydrogen pipeline network, expected to transport hydrogen across the country and to Germany’s neighbors. Recently, the German government announced an estimated investment of €20 billion in the network by 2032.

• Germany aims to set up hydrogen core network by 2032

Alongside its bulk and onsite strategy, Lhyfe noted that its backbone strategy consists of positioning some of its green hydrogen production units at locations specifically chosen for their proximity to the future European hydrogen backbone, thus enabling it to address a wide array of customers, delivered through these infrastructures once deployed.

Over the last two years, Lhyfe is said to have developed a backbone project portfolio representing 3.8 GW of electrolysis installed capacity (as of June 2023) or 37% of its total project pipeline, including large projects such as in Perl, Saarland, Germany, and Delfzijl, the Netherlands, located near future hydrogen transport infrastructures.

• Lhyfe reveals plan for 200MW hydrogen plant in Netherlands

These strategic locations ensure that future hydrogen production can be reliably transported and used in the decarbonization of industrial sites throughout these regions, Lhyfe pointed out.

In this context, Lhyfe’s project in Lubmin is said to fit very well with both the company’s backbone strategy and Germany’s strategy to support green hydrogen development.

Luc Graré, Head of Central & Eastern Europe at Lhyfe, commented: “This location is of strategic importance to us. We are building these plants not only for our short-term needs but also for future generations. The introduction of green hydrogen in Europe is a long-term project and Lubmin meets all the requirements to establish itself as a sustainable center for green hydrogen in the long term.”

“We look forward to the long-term development of this location, to the development of the region’s core hydrogen infrastructure and to supporting the longstanding decarbonization of Europe’s industry and transport.”

To note, the project’s implementation is subject notably to the granting of operating authorizations, construction permits, as well as to financial investment decisions.