Metacon’s Helbio unit has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with DEDA, PowerCell and Soluforce for creating a “Hydrogen Village” demonstration and testing park for innovative hydrogen-based energy systems.
The MoU involves establishing a co-operation between the four companies, aiming at developing the project towards a “Hydrogen Village”. In the project, several technical energy solutions involving gas as main resource, reforming the gas to hydrogen and electricity production for households via fuel cells will be evaluated and tested. The first Hydrogen Village targets quantifying benefits related to energy efficiency, reduction of GHG emissions and other environmental parameters.
The plan is that the entire project should display a high degree of automation and limited or no need for personnel to be involved in the operation. Control software and system automation procedures allowing for start-up, steady state operation and shutdown procedures should be done automatically, without need for user intervention and thus resulting in a fully autonomous and automatic system. Monitoring of the operation will be done remotely. DEDA will play the key enabling role for the project and the parties will also jointly seek government and other financial support.
“Enabling the transition to a future sustainable hydrogen economy will require concrete practical initiatives by the key actors in the energy sector. I’m therefore extremely pleased to see this move by DEDA, a top national energy and gas supplier in Greece, showing leadership towards models for non-polluting and climate-friendly societies.” said Christer Wikner, President and CEO of Metacon.
Mr. Marios Tsakas, CEO of DEDA said in a statement; “We are excited about the opportunities in this area and very pleased with the partnership we managed to create for moving towards realising the Hydrogen Village concept. It is clear that the prospects for building new solutions in Gas to Hydrogen to Electricity offer fantastic possibilities for hydrogen as a source of both fuel for vehicles and electricity for societies, independent from the electrical grid”.
About Metacon AB (publ)
Metacon AB (publ) develops and manufactures energy systems for the production of hydrogen, heat and electricity. The products are based on a patented technology that, through so called catalytic steam reforming of biogas or other hydrocarbons, generates hydrogen. The development of Metacon’s reforming products is done within the wholly owned subsidiary Helbio, which is a spin-off from the University of Patra, Greece and was founded by Professor Xenophon Verykios in 2001. From the onset, the business has focused on catalysts and advanced reforming for high-efficiency hydrogen production.
Metacon also offers system solutions for the production of hydrogen through electrolysis, a large and globally growing area for small and large-scale production of green hydrogen. Electrolysis is a process of starting and driving a chemical reaction to split water by adding electricity. If the electricity used is non-fossil and green, the hydrogen will also become completely climate neutral and green. Green hydrogen can be used in, for example, the transport sector, the basic industry and the real estate sector with a better environment and climate as a result. www.metacon.se
About DEDA
DEDA was established in 2017 as a subsidiary of the Public Gas Company DEPA Infrastructure S.A. (DEPA, www.depa.gr). DEDA owns, develops, operates and maintains the gas distribution networks in the majority of Greece, ensuring the economical, reliable, safe and uninterrupted energy supply. With a plan to expand a 1,8km hydrogen ready pipeline, DEPA is involved in a variety of hydrogen technologies to support the net zero emissions national goals. DEPA and as a consequence, DEDA, is currently in an ongoing privatisation process and will according to the plan become part of the European energy company Italgas, a major Italian gas distributor, also heavily involved in innovative hydrogen projects https://www.italgas.it/en/group/our-key-projects/experimenting-with-hydrogen/
About PowerCell Sweden AB (publ)
PowerCell Sweden AB (publ) develops and produces fuel cell stacks and systems for stationary and mobile applications with a world-class energy density. The fuel cells are powered by hydrogen, pure or reformed, and produce electricity and heat with no emissions other than water. As the stacks and systems are compact, modular and scalable, they are easily adjusted to any customer need. PowerCell was founded in 2008 as an industrial spinout from the Volvo Group. The share (PCELL) has been subject to trade at Nasdaq First North Growth Market Stockholm since 2014. www.powercell.se
About Soluforce
SoluForce is the originator and technological leader of high-pressure Flexible Composite Pipe (FCP or RTP) systems for hydrogen applications. The SoluForce FCP has been certified for hydrogen applications up to 42 bar of operating pressure – unique in the world of hydrogen transport and a global first. With a significantly lower CO2 eq. footprint compared to alternatives, this ready to use pipeline solution has a major impact on the feasibility of (green) hydrogen and a sustainable energy mix. www.soluforce.com
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