Acciona clarifies that the company, divided 50% between the two partners, will not operate in Spain and Portugal, where the company has an alliance with Plug Power.
With a target renewable energy portfolio of 50GW under development, the joint venture's plan is to develop projects that will produce 0.5 million tons of green hydrogen per year over the next ten years, according to a joint statement issued by the two companies. The first would be ready for construction in 2027.
Each of the projects, whose minimum size will be 1GW of installed renewable power, will be deployed through strategic agreements with other public and private companies and institutions interested in the production or massive consumption of green hydrogen.
The creation of the new joint venture has been articulated through the purchase by Acciona of half of the Nordex subsidiary for the development of green hydrogen projects, for a deferred amount of €68 million, to be paid over the next four years. .
Nordex has been working for a year at its plant in Barasoain (Navarra) on the development of a new prototype of a pressurized alkaline electrolyser adapted to the variable operation of renewable sources. This initiative has been recognized as an Important Project of Common European Interest (IPCEI).
Currently, the development of the electrolyser is in an advanced phase of R+D+i, with the aim of increasing the operational flexibility of alkaline technologies. In a later phase, Nordex will develop the modular prototype at its facilities in Navarra.
Guaranteed growth
The demand for green hydrogen in the world will grow exponentially, around 700%, in the next 30 years, driven by the decarbonization of the economy, according to various studies. Consequently, green hydrogen could contribute to 20% of the total emission reduction needs by 2050. More than 25 countries have already established green hydrogen plans.
The European Commission published in May last year its REPowerEU plan, which outlines the path of the European Union (EU) towards the rapid reduction of energy dependence on fossil fuels by 2027. The plan aims to produce ten million tons of renewable hydrogen in the EU and the same amount of imports by 2030.
“Green hydrogen will be key to ending greenhouse gas emissions in sectors that are very difficult to decarbonise, such as industry, agriculture, or air transport and maritime”, affirmed José Manuel Entrecanales, president and CEO of Acciona. "This joint venture complements our alliance with Plug Power for Spain and Portugal, more focused on proximity solutions for our customers."
"Thanks to our experience in the development of wind projects, Nordex has been able to build an attractive portfolio of green hydrogen projects in interesting geographical areas, as well as a close network of excellent local developers and experienced partners," explains José Luis Blanco, CEO of the Nordex Group.
"We are very pleased to now accelerate these achievements together with Acciona, which has extensive experience in large infrastructure projects."
