France-based oil and gas major TotalEnergies has said that it will partner with VNG, a German distributor of gas, to incorporate green hydrogen into activities at its refinery in Leuna, Germany in order to reduce the emissions associated with producing fuel and base oils for the Total lubricant range.
Under the terms of the agreement, VNP will produce green hydrogen at Bad Lauchstädt using a 30 MW electrolyser powered by renewable energy. The hydrogen will then be pumped by pipeline to TotalEnergie’s Leuna site. This connection will also serve to give the refinery access to the international green hydrogen market and future infrastructure in Europe.
TotalEnergies Senior Vice-President Jean-Marc Durand said about the partnership:
“This project is fully in line with TotalEnergies’ ambition to decarbonize all hydrogen used in its European refineries by 2030. Our ambition is to replace the grey hydrogen with low-carbon hydrogen, representing a reduction of three million tons of CO₂ per year by 2030.”
TotalEnergies says that the switch to using green hydrogen at just its Leuna site will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 80,000 tons each year.
Green hydrogen is seen as a potential alternative energy source for hard-to-decarbonise sectors. The UK Government has therefore set a target of producing 10 GW of low-carbon hydrogen by the end of this decade, with prominent projects to achieve this including BP’s HyGreen Teesside and H2Teesside. The former will generate green hydrogen using electrolysers powered by renewable energy, while the latter will make hydrogen from natural gas while capturing and storing most of the associated carbon emissions.
