ORLEN is starting construction of a hydrogen hub in Szczecin. It will be capable of producing round about 90 kg of automotive-grade hydrogen per hour. The PLN 75 million investment is going to be an important element of the company’s infrastructure development for zero-emission transport along with being a hydrogen economy in Poland. Being the general contractor for the project, the Polish company Torpol Oil & Gas has been selected, which increases the involvement of domestic companies as far as strategic energy investments are concerned.
As per the executive director of biofuels and hydrogen at ORLEN, Grzegorz Jóźwiak, “We are developing infrastructure that will be the foundation of the hydrogen economy in Poland and the entire region. Szczecin, thanks to its connection to the European TEN-T transport corridors and logistics facilities, is crucial for building a zero-emission transport market. This project supports our pursuit of carbon neutrality and increased energy security. With the growing participation of Polish companies, we are consistently building the full hydrogen value chain from production, through storage, to distribution and use in transport and industry.”
It is well to be noted that hydrogen hub in Szczecin will produce hydrogen via energy from renewable sources. The investment will encompass the construction of an electrolyser having a capacity of about 5 MW, hydrogen-storage facilities, and infrastructure for loading and transportation of the fuel. The plant will have a capacity of approximately 90 kg of hydrogen an hour, enabling a production volume of 2,160 kg/day with the plant running at full capacity 24 hours every day. The hydrogen generated in Szczecin is going to be used for hydrogen refuelling stations, predominantly for public transport and passenger cars along with trucks.
Apparently, the location of the investment is not by pure chance. Szczecin is one of the most important locations on the map of hydrogen infrastructure being constructed by ORLEN in north-western Poland. The project is strategically connected to the European TEN-T transport corridors and significant logistics hubs of the region.
The Szczecin hub is going to be built as part of the third phase of the Clean Cities Hydrogen Mobility in Poland programme, which backs the establishment of low and zero-emission transport in Poland as well as the construction of infrastructure suited for alternative fuels. Notably, ORLEN received a non-refundable investment of €62 million from the European Union for its delivery.
The investment in Szczecin happens to be yet another step in the construction of a national network of hydrogen hubs through ORLEN. The first was established in November 2021 in Trzebinia. ORLEN is also working on additional investments in low- and zero-emission hydrogen sources, such as in Płock, where a municipal waste gasification plant Waste-to-Hydrogen is going to be built, as well as in Włocławek and Gdańsk, where the hydrogen hubs are going to be based on the water electrolysis technology driven via renewable sources of energy.
The infrastructure being developed should eventually generate a unified framework for the production, storage, and shipment of hydrogen for transport and industry across Poland. In accordance with the investment schedule, the hydrogen hub in Szczecin will launch operations at the beginning of 2027/2028.