Energy giant Shell announced today its final investment decision to move forward on building Europe’s largest renewable hydrogen plant, Holland Hydrogen I.

Anticipated to be operational in 2025, the plant will produce up to 60,000 kilograms of renewable hydrogen per day for use by industry and the transport sector. Earlier this year, Shell announced an agreement with thyssenkrupp Uhde Chlorine Engineers to build the plant’s 200 MW electrolyser in the port of Rotterdam.

Hydrogen is viewed as one of the key building blocks of the transition to a cleaner energy future, particularly for sectors with difficult to abate emissions, in which renewable energy solutions such as wind or solar are less practical.

Despite being the most abundant element in the universe, however, there are no pure hydrogen deposits on earth and it must be extracted from other materials. The extraction process often creates pollutants and GHG emissions. Significant investments are required to develop clean extraction processes, such as using renewable energy-powered electrolysis processes to extract hydrogen from water.

For the new plant, Shell aims to produce hydrogen using electricity that has been generated by the offshore wind park Hollandse Kust Noord.

Anna Mascolo, Executive Vice President, Emerging Energy Solutions at Shell, said:

“Holland Hydrogen I demonstrates how new energy solutions can work together to meet society’s need for cleaner energy. It is also another example of Shell’s own efforts and commitment to become a net-zero emissions business by 2050. Renewable hydrogen will play a pivotal role in the energy system of the future and this project is an important step in helping hydrogen fulfil that potential.”