Today (November 22), Air Liquide revealed it will invest over $130m into the construction and operation of the new hydrogen production unit at the Grandpuits zero crude platform in France.

With capacity to produce over 20,000 tonnes of “partly” renewable hydrogen a year, by recycling residual biogas from the Grandpuits biorefinery, in place of natural gas that is normally used, the unit will feature Air Liquide’s Cryocap™ carbon capture technology, which is expected to capture over 110,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide a year.

Under a long-term contract, TotalEnergies is committed to purchase the hydrogen produced from the site, which will be used to produce sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), with a view for it to be used to support sustainable mobility in the Ile-de-France region.

H2 View understands, carbon dioxide capture from the hydrogen production process is planned to be reused in food and industrial applications.

Bernard Pinatel, President, Refining & Chemicals at TotalEnergies, commented, “By recycling the biogas produced by the biorefinery into renewable hydrogen, this innovative project makes full use of the conversion of the Grandpuits refinery into a zero crude platform harnessing the potential of biomass, especially in the production of sustainable aviation fuel.

“Combined with the production of low carbon hydrogen and the capture of carbon dioxide, this project contributes to TotalEnergies’ ambition to decarbonise all of the hydrogen used by its European refineries by 2030.”

Earlier this year (2022), TotalEnergies, Siemens Energy, and Masdar announced intentions to develop a new demonstrator plant in Masdar City, Abu Dhabi to produce sustainable aviation fuel from green hydrogen. 

Read more: Abu Dhabi-based plant to produce sustainable aviation fuel from green hydrogen

“This innovative project is characterised by the combination of several solutions in order to produce renewable and low-carbon hydrogen, and contribute to the decarbonisation of TotalEnergies’ Grandpuits site,” said Pascal Vinet, Senior Vice-President and member of the Executive Committee at Air Liquide.

Vinet added, “This project illustrates Air Liquide’s expertise in working with its customers on customised solutions to help them reduce their carbon footprint and actively participate in the fight against global warming. It provides yet another example of the key role that hydrogen will play to succeed in the energy transition.”