ScottishPower, a subsidiary of Iberdrola, has submitted a planning application for the UK’s largest electrolyser. The 20MW system will be the key component of a green hydrogen facility near the Whitelee wind farm (539 MW).
In addition to the electrolyser, the proposed facility will employ solar PV panels of up to 20MW and storage batteries of up to 50MW that will generate green hydrogen daily at rates of over 8 tonnes. This new facility is expected to fuel 550 buses daily going from Glasgow to Edinburgh and back.
It will be the first project to be delivered by Green Hydrogen for Scotland, a partnership between ScottishPower, BOC and ITM Power, to create green hydrogen production facilities with clusters of refuelling stations across Scotland. Green hydrogen is a zero-carbon energy source which can be used by industries and companies that cannot fully electrify their operations to help them lower their emissions, for example, heavy duty transport like buses and bin lorries.
Glasgow, which will host the United Nations 26th climate conference, COP26, later this year, aims to become the first net-zero city in the UK by 2030 by implementing a zero emission vehicle fleet that uses only electric and hydrogen-powered vehicles
ScottishPower will be leading the proposed green hydrogen project, which will be based on the outskirts of Glasgow. The project will be designed by BOC, powered by wind and solar energy generated by Scottish Power Renewables, and and a 20MW electrolyser installed by ITM Power.
Barry Carruthers, ScottishPower’s Hydrogen Director, said: “Whitelee keeps breaking barriers, first the UK’s largest onshore wind farm, and soon to be home to the UK’s largest electrolyser. The site has played a vital role in helping the UK to decarbonise and we look forward to delivering another vital form of zero carbon generation energy at the site to help Glasgow and Scotland achieve their net zero goals.”
Barry explained that “green hydrogen is a sustainable energy source that can provide clean, renewable energy for industries, heavy transport and companies for decades to come.”
Graham Cooley CEO ITM Power, commented: “This is an exciting milestone based on market development for green hydrogen for the city of Glasgow, that will see the UK’s largest electrolyser deployment to date being realised in Scotland.”
Mark Griffin, Hydrogen Market Development Manager for Clean Fuels at BOC said: “The scale of this project demonstrates the growing demand for clean hydrogen and as a member of the Green Hydrogen for Scotland partnership, we’re delighted to bring our hydrogen mobility and refuelling project expertise to help deliver a ground-breaking facility in Glasgow.”
Iberdrola is currently developing the most ambitious green hydrogen projects in Europe, which will enable the decarbonisation of industry and transport or heavy mobility in countries such as Spain and the United Kingdom, as well as developing the supply chain. The company has submitted 53 projects to the Next Generation EU programme, which would activate investments of €2.5 billion to achieve an annual production of 60,000 tn/year.
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