July 1 (Renewables Now) – Swedish utility Vattenfall AB and Finnish energy company St1 Oy are planning to produce synthetic electro fuel from offshore wind-based hydrogen on Sweden’s west coast, targeting one million cubic metres of production which will be supplied mainly to the aviation industry.
The two companies have signed a letter of intent for the partnership which will start with a feasibility study to assess the development of a fossil-free value chain for the production of electro fuels, Vattenfall said on Thursday.
As part of the partnership, Vattenfall will seek to build supply infrastructure on Sweden’s west coast for hydrogen produced from offshore wind. On its part, St1 plans to produce one million cubic metres of electro fuels, starting from 2029.
The fossil-free fuels are meant primarity for the aviation industry. Vattenfall noted that such a volume of fuel would be enough to meet the annual aviation fuel demand of Sweden’s largest airport Arlanda.
The Swedish utility sees huge potential for decarbonisation on the country’s west coast for industries such as refinery, petrochemicals, steel and fertilisers. Just a few days ago, Vattenfall and fuel company Preem AB unveiled a plan to investigate the possibility of decarbonising the refining industry in the region using offshore wind-based green hydrogen.
“For Vattenfall, the electrification of society and industry is at the core of our business strategy. The development and optimisation of value chains based on offshore wind and fossil-free hydrogen is an interesting way forward. Our strong and growing Swedish offshore wind development portfolio of currently more than 20 TWh offers ample opportunities”, said Vattenfall’s chief executive Anna Borg.
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