- Hiperbaric, Desmasa, Aciturri and Fundación Caja de Burgos have launched this regional association, which already has around twenty members, with projects under development in the region that exceed 1,400 megawatts
- The entity aims to promote the energy transition through strategies that encourage the use of renewable energy sources, innovation and business competitiveness, and promote decarbonisation
- H2CYL has set as objectives for the 2030 horizon, the installation of 1GW of electrolysers and 16 hydrogenerators and the construction of a network of more than 800 kilometres of hydroproducts
- La asociación estima la creación de 3.200 nuevos puestos de trabajo en la región gracias al desarrollo de la economía del hidrógeno
Burgos, 16 March 2023 – The Castilla y León Hydrogen Association (H2CYL), launched by Aciturri, Hiperbaric, Desmasa and Fundación Caja de Burgos, was created with the aim of making Castilla y León a reference in the production and consumption of renewable hydrogen, a key energy vector for the decarbonisation of the economy. This was stated by its founding partners at the press conference held this morning in the Nexo Building.
The entity’s mission is to promote and foster the development of the hydrogen value chain as a tool for technological, economic and social growth in Castilla y León. Specifically, it aspires to favour the energy transition by promoting strategies that encourage the use of renewable energy sources, innovation and business competitiveness, job creation and the decarbonisation of sectors such as industry, energy and mobility.
Its strategic lines of action include harnessing the renewable energy potential of Castilla y León; stimulating the consumption of hydrogen as a driver of growth in the industrial, economic and social fabric; and boosting R&D&I. Under this plan, the association foresees the creation of 3,200 new skilled jobs.
H2CYL OBJECTIVES UNTIL 2030
Among the more specific objectives that the Castilla y León Hydrogen Association has set itself for 2030 are the installation of 1 gigawatt of electrolysers, with which it will cover 25 percent of the current demand for hydrogen in Spain (125,000 tonnes per year). It is also committed to hydrogen as a fuel for mobility, foresees the construction of 16 hydrogen plants, the commissioning of 25 public transport vehicles and between 370 and 550 hydrogen-powered industrial vehicles, and the regional development of the sustainable fertiliser industry.
In order to meet these challenges, H2CYL considers it essential to generate regulation and guarantee funding that will enable its development; to facilitate the technological maturity of the sector, and to create the necessary infrastructures.
ASSOCIATES AND POSITIVE IMPACT ON THE ENVIRONMENT
H2CYL was created with around twenty members, including project developers and renewable energy generators, such as Capital Energy, Grupo Ibereólica, Ansasol and RIC Energy; engineering companies and photovoltaic installers such as Abasol; knowledge entities, such as CTME, CARTIF and CIDAUT; the University of Burgos; electrolyser manufacturers, such as H2GREEM; renewable gas operators and distributors, such as Redexis; hydrogen producers and marketers, such as Lhyfe; technology companies, such as DGH Technological Solutions; and potential consumers, such as Benteler, Campofrío and Grupo Joanca.
Currently, the partners’ project portfolio totals more than 1,400 megawatts of electrolysis power, which will prevent the total annual emission of more than two million tonnes of CO2.
Companies interested in joining can find more information about the association on the website www.h2cyl.com.
CURRENT SITUATION IN CASTILLA Y LEÓN
Castilla y León is the leading region in renewable energy generation in Spain. During 2022, more than 59% of the energy generated in the community came from its wind farms. Moreover, the region’s renewable potential is expected to triple in the next decade, mainly driven by photovoltaic and wind production.
Electricity accounts for 18 percent of the region’s energy consumption, with the remainder covered by fossil fuels, mainly natural gas and oil derivatives.
This is where hydrogen has a fundamental alternative role to play, mainly in the decarbonisation of industry and mobility, establishing itself as the fuel of the future and the driving force for industry to replace natural gas and fossil fuels in general in non-electrification uses.
PROJECTS IN CASTILLA Y LEÓN.
Castilla y León is currently hosting more than 25 hydrogen generation projects, most of them in the development and processing phase, with a total investment of close to 9,000 million euros.
The most advanced project is the hydrogen plant at the Garray Environmental Business Park in Soria, promoted by the Castilla y León Public Company for Infrastructures and the Environment (SOMACYL) and executed by Redexis, which will come into operation in the first half of 2024.
The main provincial capitals are also developing urban mobility plans, contemplating hydrogen as a fuel for their public transport fleets.
In the field of innovation, projects developed in Castilla y León include VALORH2, promoted by Hiperbaric, a leader in compression technologies, to research and innovate in the hydrogen value chain; H2MetAmo, for the production of hydrogen carriers on a small scale, in which the four public universities of Castilla y León are participating; H2ELIOS, led by Aciturri within the framework of the European Clean Aviation initiative, to promote hydrogen as a fuel in aviation; and the manufacture of electrolysers by H2Greem, in Segovia.
