Repsol launch two major carbon emission reducing projects
Repsol, Spanish fuel company, announced two industrial decarbonisation projects focused on green hydrogen and biogas.
Repsol has teamed with its Spanish and international partners, including Petronor, one of Spain’s main industrial centres and the Energy Agency of the Basque Government (EVE), a public-sector leader in energy transition, on two projects geared towards reducing carbon emissions in Spain.
According to a press release from Repsol, the first project is building a green hydrogen plant, powered by renewable energy to ensure net zero emissions.
Significantly, water and CO2 are the only two raw materials that will be used in the plant to produce green hydrogen fuel. The nearby Petronor refinery will capture the harmful CO2 directly from the air into the plant.
Repsol Technology Lab research centre will oversee the technological aspects of the hydrogen plant.
According to a press release from Repsol, the hydrogen fuel can potentially be used in combustion engines, currently installed in cars, airplanes, trucks, and other machinery in Spain and worldwide.
Repsol is envisioning this plant to become one of the largest synthetic fuel production plants in the world with net zero emissions, potentially placing Repsol as the leading company in net zero emission fuel production.
Repsol and partners have initially invested €60 million in this green hydrogen production plant and expect the facility to be fully operational within four years.
Repsol Launch Two Major Carbon Emission-Reducing Projects – CleanTech News
Repsol’s process of creating green hydrogen from CO2 and water
The second project: Biogas Plant
Led by Petronor, the second project is a pyrolysis plant that will produce biogas from urban waste.
The biogas will partly replace the fossil fuels used in the production process in the Basque, refinery, one of the largest refineries in Spain.
“With this project, the Spanish industry is positioning itself to become a leading European player in reducing emissions.”
Josu Jon Imaz, CEO, Repsol, said.
Emiliano López Atxurra, Chairman, Petronor, added:
Tthe project unifies three important characteristics in the current situation: a commitment to reduce the carbon footprint, the technological neutrality as a lever; the challenges that the industry are facing in relation to the energy transition; and public-private partnerships as a smart tool for industrial development that will help consolidate a sustainable welfare society.”
Repsol and partners have initially invested € 20 million in this pyrolysis plant and will be located next to the green hydrogen plant in the port of Bilbao, Spain, and its surrounding areas.
This second project implements the circular approach in the production cycle through technology and innovation and joins Repsol’s portfolio of 200 projects, which are already aiding the company’s goal of achieving net zero emissions by 2050.
Initially, the pyrolysis plant is expected to process approximately 10,000 tons of urban waste annually. Its capacity has the potential to process approximately 100,000 tons a year, equivalent to all the urban waste produced in the surrounding area.
Repsol Launch Two Major Carbon Emission-Reducing Projects – CleanTech News
The pyrolysis plant process
These projects are a good example of how the public-private collaboration can aid in achieving economic recovery post COVID-19 and tackle the challenges of climate change.