Shell's Holland Hydrogen 1 – building block of Europe’s green hydrogen economy

Holland Hydrogen 1 green hydrogen electrolyser in the Port of Rotterdam is set to be a key stepping stone to delivering Shell’s and Europe’s decarbonisation goals.

The 200MW facility, which is in the early stages of construction, marks a major step up in size for hydrogen production in general and Shell in particular, from its megawatt scale plants in Germany and China.

“Hydrogen is going to play a large role in decarbonising our fuel products and decarbonising mobility,” says Shell’s Hydrogen Business and Project Development Manager, Lijs Groenendaal.

The electrolyser will be powered from Shell-Eneco’s Hollandse Kust (Noord) offshore wind farm, which also is in construction, with the output of up to 68t of green hydrogen daily destined for Shell’s nearby Pernis refinery as a replacement for grey hydrogen.

This is expected to lead to an emissions reduction of 2.4Mt of CO2 during the first decade of operations – equivalent to the emissions produced by over 150,000 vehicles, over half of Rotterdam’s vehicle fleet, driving 10,000km/year over the same period.

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Groenendaal, who is overseeing the development, points to the huge challenges of such a scale-up in terms of building and operations.

Notable features of Holland Hydrogen 1 include the application of state-of-the-art sustainable architectural and building technology and the use of non-toxic and recyclable construction materials.

Plans for the reclaimed Maasvlakte 2 area of the port where it is taking place include landscaping with dunes and the introduction of plants and nesting facilities for birds.

“We need a regulatory framework built around it and we need to collaborate with all the parties to make it happen,” Groenendaal says, commenting that as the first in a planned gigawatt scale development at the site, the project is also serving as an ‘enabler’ for other infrastructure such as the power connection.

“I'm excited because I see change happen every day while working on the Holland Hydrogen 1 project,” she says.

“By constructing hydrogen infrastructure, I think I can really make a difference in decarbonising our fuel products and mobility.”

More insights from Enlit on the Road – Rotterdam:
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Stedin chief talks realising, optimising and digitising the energy transition
How the Port of Rotterdam is enabling the energy transition with hydrogen