BASF commissions Germany’s largest PEM electrolyser

Germany’s largest proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyser has gone into operation at German chemical firm BASF’s Ludwigshafen site. Designed to produce zero-carbon hydrogen, the electrolyser has a connected load of 54 megawatts and the capacity to supply the main plant with up to 1 tonne of this substantial chemical feedstock every hour.

Built in cooperation with Siemens Energy, the water electrolyser is embedded in the production and infrastructure at the Ludwigshafen site, making it unique in terms of its interface and integration into a chemical production environment, it adds.

A total of 72 stacks – modules in which the actual electrolysis process takes place – have been installed in the system. The electrolyser has the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at BASF’s main plant by up to 72,000 metric tonnes/year.

The emission-free production of hydrogen – using electricity from renewable sources – is fundamental to the market ramp-up of chemical products with a reduced carbon footprint. Once produced, the hydrogen is fed into the site’s hydrogen network and distributed to the production facilities as a raw material. In addition to using it as a feedstock for chemical products, BASF plans to supply hydrogen for mobility in the Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region, supporting the development of a hydrogen economy in the area.

In cooperation with the State of Rhineland-Palatinate, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action provided funding of up to EUR124.3 million for the construction of the plant – EUR37.3 million of which was financed by the government of Rhineland-Palatinate.

BASF’s investment in the project amounts to around EUR25 million. The project, titled Hy4CHem, was selected as part of the IPCEI Hydrogen expression of interest procedure and subsequently funded as an individual project.

Among other applications, hydrogen is used in the production of ammonia, methanol, and vitamins. Until now, hydrogen has been produced at the Ludwigshafen location primarily by means of natural gas-based steam reforming or as a coupling product and by-product. With the electrolyser, BASF is now taking an important step in the transformation of hydrogen production technology.