The EU has gone ahead and set a lofty ambition for Europe to establish itself as the first climate-neutral continent by 2050. The shift towards green and sustainable society has begun.
It is well to be noted that energy use and CO₂ emissions from European industry are heavily concentrated in energy-intensive sectors like ceramics and glass. Decarbonizing these sectors is thus crucial to meet the climate and industrial competitiveness objectives of the European Union. Electrification is going to be an important part of the solution, however other solutions will be required for high-temperature industrial processes in which direct electrification is still challenging.
The official launch of INDTEGRATE, a Horizon Europe Innovation Action that tackles this challenge, has taken place. The project brings together a diverse consortium of technology developers, industrial companies, research organisations, and universities as well as innovation experts from all over Europe to speed up the integration of Solid Oxide Electrolyser Cell – SOEC technology into energy-intensive industries. INDTEGRATE will integrate renewable electricity, advanced digital technologies, industrial waste heat recovery, and green hydrogen production to illustrate a feasible and scalable pathway to industrial decarbonization. This project will develop a set of advanced digital tools, such as reduced-order models, processes, and electrolyser digital twins, to aid the design, optimization as well as operation of hydrogen production systems within the glass and ceramics sectors.
With an intent to push green hydrogen in energy-heavy European sectors, INDTEGRATE will design and confirm a modular 220 kW SOEC system integrating renewable electricity and industrial waste heat recovery for more effective green hydrogen production, capitalizing on these digital features. INDTEGRATE will evaluate operational flexibility, technical performance, and financial viability via pilot demonstrations conducted in operational industrial facilities and promote the wider uptake when it comes to hydrogen technologies via stakeholder engagement, training activities, skills development, and a plan for large-scale replication throughout Europe.
Kick-off meeting summary and results
The kick-off meeting, which has been hosted by project coordinator KERIONICS S.L. from Spain, was the official start of INDTEGRATE and gathered representatives from all partner organisations in order to establish a shared goal and execution strategy for the following three years.
In the meeting, the consortium partners introduced their roles and duties while addressing the activities of the project in terms of technical and managerial as well as communication levels. Particular focus was paid to the development of the SOEC system, energy management solutions, digital twin technologies, and the planning of the industrial pilot trials in Spain and Slovenia. The partners also discussed anticipated impacts, partnership mechanisms, risk management protocols, and opportunities to generate synergies with other European initiatives promoting industrial decarbonization and hydrogen technologies.
The talks reaffirmed a shared dedication to delivering innovative, industry-led solutions that may speed up green hydrogen in energy-heavy European sectors while promoting wider sustainability goals of Europe.
What lies ahead
In the months to come, the INDTEGRATE consortium will concentrate on the comprehensive design and creation of the technological building blocks of the project, such as energy management systems, digital modelling tools, and SOEC integration approaches. Preparatory activities for pilot demonstrations will also be initiated, in addition to stakeholder participation, dissemination and collaboration tasks in order in order to optimise the effect of the project.
Notably, the first technical outcomes and project advancements are scheduled to be made available via the project’s channels of communication and stakeholder engagement initiatives aimed at advancing sustainable hydrogen solutions along with decarbonization of the European industry.