The British firm did originally state “Pioneer 2” would open in Q4 2024; however, the full commercial operational date has been pushed back to “early 2026.” Planning and permitting processes have been completed.

Protium said in a statement that Pioneer 2 will integrate one of the UK’s largest containerised PEM electrolyser systems – a 2.5MW unit provided by Nel. At full capacity, it will provide up to one tonne of green hydrogen per day.

Furthermore, the project is one of the first to participate in the UK government’s Capacity Market, which is designed to ensure there’s enough power supply to meet national demand. The market is traditionally dominated by gas and battery assets.

Protium and its partner Flexitricity signed a 15-year Demand Side Response (DSR) agreement, meaning the electrolyser can adjust its power use in response to grid needs.

Flexitricity will manage Pioneer 2’s route to market, ensuring it earns revenue through grid services like reserve power, frequency response, and local network support.

Protium has indicated that customers are already lined up for Pioneer 2 and is now approaching the final phase before commissioning.

“For [Protium], this represents a 25x increase in our existing hydrogen production capacity and for our customers,” explained Chris Jackson, Protium CEO.

“This means Protium will be able to support larger volumes of hydrogen and in a greater variety of storage products than ever before. Having operated Pioneer 1 for more than two years, we’ve seen the demand in the market for available green hydrogen, and we know that supply is now the constraint on further UK green hydrogen demand growth.”

Pioneer 1, which can reportedly produce up to 40kg of hydrogen per day, is slated to supply the green hydrogen required for HyHaul Mobility’s £14m hydrogen HGV corridor in the UK.