Hystar officially opens electrolyser demo project in Norway

Hystar has officially opened its HyPilot demonstration project at a ribbon cutting ceremony hosted at the Kårstø Gas Processing Plant in Rogaland, Norway.

The HyPilot project is situated at the Kårstø plant's K-Lab test centre, a large-scale laboratory wholly owned by Equinor for testing and certification of equipment and processes for the production and transport of hydrocarbons.

The project aims to demonstrate Hystar’s proprietary 1.5MW containerised PEM electrolyser. The electrolyser concept combines knowledge from the fuel cell industry with electrolyser technology, which, according to Hystar, has resulted in a solution that is safer and more efficient.

The project will provide Hystar with performance data from various operating scenarios, such as intermittent power supply.

Hystar CEO Fredrik Mowill commented in a statement: “The project allows us to showcase our patented, ultra-efficient electrolysers, and the exceptional benefits of our unique design and scalable technology can bring to the industry. We are grateful to Enova and our partners, Equinor, Yara Clean Ammonia, Gassco, and ABB for their collaboration and support.”

Have you read?
Iron could be the answer to Germany’s hydrogen requirements shows report
RWE secures permits for Eemshaven electrolyser project

Andreas Jagtøyen, SVP for Renewable & Low Carbon Technology at project partner Equinor: “HyPilot is a technology demonstration project that is focused on testing the operability, lifetime, and efficiency of Hystar’s novel electrolyser design for intermittent renewable energy applications. This project is an important step in gaining first-hand experience with green hydrogen production and operational data for system modelling and technology qualification.”

In October this year, Hystar received a €26 million grant from the EU Innovation Fund to scale up production of its electrolyser stacks. The funding will be used to implement its automated factory at its Høvik location, which will have an annual capacity of 1.5 GW when the factory goes into operation in 2027, and scale to 4.5 GW of annual capacity in 2031.  

Hystar's project partners include Equinor, Yara Clean Ammonia, Gassco, and ABB, as well as Enova, which has provided funding to the project.