Shell and RWE Pinpoint North-East of England for Gigawatt-Scale Offshore Wind-to-Hydrogen Projects

Shell New Energies and RWE Generation will explore the possibilities of establishing integrated projects for the production of green hydrogen using offshore wind power on a gigawatt scale in the industrial regions in the north-east of England such as Teesside and/or Humberside.

The plan is one of the steps set out in a recently signed Memorandum of Understanding between the two companies to jointly advance projects for the production, use, and distribution of green hydrogen, as well as further options to decarbonise RWE gas and biomass-fired power plants in northwest Europe. The aim of the MoU is to identify concrete project options which could then be developed toward investment decisions, the two companies said.

”Effective climate action needs cross-sector and cross-national cooperation. In our cooperation with Shell, we want to develop solutions that combine new approaches with proven technologies and, above all, can be applied quickly and on a large scale. We will also contribute our special expertise in the development of offshore wind projects as well as the provision of energy in the form of electricity, heat and, in the future, green hydrogen for our customers,” said Markus Krebber, CEO of RWE.

RWE and Shell already have a background of cooperation through the NortH2 project in the Netherlands, and AquaVentus in Germany.

The two companies intend to jointly assess the future development of electrolysis plants to produce green hydrogen and consider locations which have potential pipeline capacity for hydrogen yet are currently difficult to connect to the electric grid. RWE and Shell want to investigate whether, and how, green energy can be transported from such locations to customers via hydrogen pipelines.

RWE and Shell also want to develop new green hydrogen solutions for industrial customers, focused on the Shell Energy & Chemicals Park Rheinland in Germany, Shell sites in Rotterdam and Moerdijk in the Netherlands, and on customers in their immediate vicinity.

In addition, RWE and Shell intend to evaluate the possible application of green hydrogen in the mobility sector in Germany, the Netherlands, and the UK.

”We are delighted about this agreement with RWE. Both companies are of the opinion that progress towards net-zero emissions needs government policy to support the energy transition and our customers’ needs for low-carbon energy solutions,” said Wael Sawan, Director of Integrated Gas, Renewables and Energy Solutions at Royal Dutch Shell plc.

”It makes sense for us to evaluate the potential of joint decarbonisation projects and make the best of the global energy experience both companies bring to the table.”