German multinational chemical company BASF has commissioned that country’s largest proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzer. The company said the 54-MW facility will have an annual capacity of as much as 8,000 metric tons of hydrogen.

The electrolyzer is located at BASF’s Ludwigshafen site. It is designed to produce zero-carbon hydrogen, using electricity from renewable energy resources, with capacity to supply the main plant at the site with up to one metric ton of chemical feedstock each hour.

BASF commissioned the facility on March 17, two years after the start of construction. The water electrolyzer was built in cooperation with Siemens Energy. BASF officials in a news release said the electrolyzer “is embedded in the production and infrastructure at the Ludwigshafen site, making it truly unique in terms of its interface and integration into a chemical production environment.” The system includes 72 stacks, which are the modules in which the actual electrolysis process takes place. Officials said the electrolyzer has the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at BASF’s main plant by up to 72,000 metric tons per year.

The individual electrolyzer modules are linked to each other and to the H2 network at the Ludwigshafen site in three so-called arrays. Source: BASF SE

BASF said that after it’s produced, the hydrogen is fed into the site’s hydrogen Verbund network and distributed to the production facilities as a raw material. BASF, in addition to using it as a feedstock for chemical products, plans to supply hydrogen for mobility in the Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region, supporting the development of a hydrogen economy in the area.

“The commissioning of the electrolyzer makes it possible for us to support our customers in achieving their climate targets by offering them products with a lower carbon footprint,” said Katja Scharpwinkel, a member of BASF’s executive board and the site director at Ludwigshafen. “At the same time, we are gaining experience at our largest Verbund site with the integration and operation of a system that brings us another step closer to transforming our main plant in Ludwigshafen. We welcome the fact that the federal government and state government have recognized the importance of this technology and provided us with significant support toward the project’s implementation.”

Katrin Eder, Rhineland-Palatinate’s state minister for Climate Protection, Environment, Energy, and Mobility, said, “BASF has embarked on an ambitious path to net zero. In addition to progressively increasing its generation of electricity and process heat from renewable energies, the company also plans to use renewable raw materials as alternatives to the fossil energy sources currently employed, such as natural gas. Designed to produce green hydrogen as a raw material, the new electrolyzer at the Ludwigshafen location represents an important milestone and supports the achievement of Rhineland-Palatinate’s climate protection targets.”

A worker inspects equipment during a plant tour through the new electrolysis plant. Source: BASF SE

Several agencies have supported the project. The German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action, in cooperation with the State of Rhineland-Palatinate, provided funding of up to €124.3 million ($135.2 million) for the construction of the plant, with €37.3 million ($40.6 million) of that financed by the government of Rhineland-Palatinate. BASF’s investment in the project amounts to about €25 million ($27.2 million). The project, called Hy4CHem, was selected as part of the IPCEI Hydrogen expression of interest procedure and subsequently funded as an individual project.

The heart of the electrolyzer facility  at the Ludwigshafen site comprises a total of 72 stacks. Source: BASF SE

Alexander Schweitzer, minister-president of Rhineland-Palatinate, said, “The commissioning of the electrolyzer at BASF for the production of green hydrogen is a milestone for the ramp-up of the hydrogen economy in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, and Europe and an important commitment of BASF to its technology and production site in Ludwigshafen. With the Hy4Chem project, BASF is impressively demonstrating how the transformation of the energy-intensive chemical industry can succeed—innovatively, sustainably, and internationally competitively. As the state government, we support this process with up to €37.3 million because we are convinced that hydrogen plays a key role in decarbonizing and securing our industrial jobs. Today’s inauguration sends a strong signal for a climate-neutral future and strengthens Ludwigshafen as a business location.”

“I am delighted that the federal government’s efforts to support the hydrogen economy in Germany are bearing fruit,” said Udo Philipp, state secretary at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action. “A flagship project for the integration of hydrogen into a chemical production site has become a reality at the Ludwigshafen site. It is the largest project of its kind in Germany to date, making it an important pioneer as we strive to achieve our climate targets. Through this collaboration, BASF is demonstrating what decarbonization of the industrial sector can look like in practice and inspiring further technological progress.”

Hydrogen previously has primarily been produced at the Ludwigshafen site through the use of natural gas-based steam reforming, or as a coupling product and by-product.

—Darrell Proctor is a senior editor for POWER.