Shell starts up first hydrogen electrolyser in China to fuel Olympic host city

Shell said Jan. 28 that it has started operations at a 20 MW hydrogen electrolyser that will produce hydrogen from renewable energy in the city of Zhangjiakou, in the northern China province of Hebei.

This project is part of a joint venture between Shell China and Zhangjiakou City Transport Construction Investment Holding Group Co. Ltd, formed in November 2020. This 20 MW electrolyser and the supporting hydrogen refueling stations in Zhangjiakou represent phase 1 of the joint venture. In phase 2, the companies have plans to scale up to 60 MW in the next two years.

"We see opportunities across the hydrogen supply chain in China, including its production, storage and shipping. We want to be the trusted partner for our customers from different sectors as we help them decarbonize in China," Wael Sawan, Shell's Integrated Gas, Renewable and Energy Solutions director said.

"The electrolyser is the largest in our portfolio to-date," Sawan added.

This is Shell's first commercial hydrogen development project in China, and it took 13 months to complete, the statement said.

Zhangjiakou, located in Hebei province, is adjacent to the capital Beijing and will co-host the upcoming Winter Olympics from February 4.

The electrolyser will provide about half of the total green hydrogen supply for fuel cell vehicles at the Zhangjiakou competition zone during the Winter Olympics, the statement said.

The project will utilize onshore wind power and initially supply green hydrogen to fuel a fleet of over 600 fuel cell vehicles at Zhangjiakou during the Winter Olympics, the statement added.

After that, the hydrogen produced from this project will be used for public and commercial transport in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, helping to decarbonize the mobility sector of this region, in line with national plans to increase new energy vehicles.

On Jan. 21, China's ministry of transport released its 14th Five-Year Plan for green transportation development in which a pilot program of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles has been planned in Zhangjiakou, covering city buses, heavy trucks, and trucks for cold-chain logistics, adding that similar programs are expected in more cities.

"This project will help secure hydrogen supply for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and make it a green one, while contributing to the development of the hydrogen industry in the city and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region," Bai Jing, director of Zhangjiakou Municipal Development and Reform Commission, said.

"With project phase 2 expansion plans and through partnerships with the local government and businesses, we will support the development of a low-carbon energy system and low-carbon transport system in Zhangjiakou and the wider Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region," Jason Wong, Executive Chairman of Shell Companies in China, said.

China's annual hydrogen production reached 33.42 mil mt in 2019, while 63.5% were produced from coal, 21.2% from industrial byproducts, 13.8% from natural gas and only 1.5% were green hydrogen produced from electrolysis, according to data from government-backed think tank, China Hydrogen Alliance.