TotalEnergies inks deal for supply of green hydrogen to Normandy integrated refinery

TotalEnergies SE has entered a preliminary agreement with Air Liquide SA for long-term supply of green and low-carbon hydrogen to the operator’s 253,000-b/d integrated Normandy refining and petrochemicals platform in Gonfreville l’Orcher, France.

As part of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed on Sept. 14, Air Liquide has agreed to supply 10,000 tonnes/year (tpy) of green hydrogen and up to 5,000 tpy of low-carbon hydrogen to the Normandy platform beginning in second-half 2026, TotalEnergies and the service provider said in separate releases.

Designed to help decarbonize the Gonfreville site by reducing its carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions by up to 150,000 tpy in line with TotalEnergies’ broader goal of achieving net-zero emissions across its global operations by 2050, green and low-carbon hydrogen supplies secured under the MoU support the operator’s more-immediate plan to decarbonize all hydrogen used by its EU conventional and renewable refineries by 2030.

As outlined by the MoU, Air Liquide said it will invest more than €400 million to build and operate its 200-Mw Normand’Hy electrolyzer that—based on Siemens Energy AG’s proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysis technology—will deliver the Gonfreville site renewable and low-carbon hydrogen supplies equivalent to 100 Mw of Normand’Hy’s electrolysis capacity.

In return, TotalEnergies said it will supply about 700 gigawatt-hours (Gw-hr)/year of renewable and low-carbon electricity from its solar and wind projects to power the Normand’Hy electrolyzer for half of its capacity, which corresponds the equivalent 100-Mw share of green and low-carbon hydrogen the Normandy refinery will receive from the electrolyzer.

In line with shared commitments by TotalEnergies and Air Liquide to help decarbonize industry as well as develop a renewable and low-carbon hydrogen sector in the Axe Seine corridor, the Normand’Hy electrolyzer’s remaining 100-Mw capacity will be dedicated to other customers in the Normandy industrial basin, as well as for development of low-carbon mobility in the region, the companies said.

Air Liquide said it plans to secure the remainder of low-carbon electricity needs for its Normand’Hy electrolyzer from the French power grid under long-term renewable power purchase agreements.

To be built in Normandy’s Port-Jérôme industrial zone as part of a partnership framework between Air Liquide and Siemens Energy formed in February 2021, Air Liquide also confirmed the Normand’Hy PEM electrolyzer has received €190 million in support from the French government within the framework of the Important Project of Common European Interest (IPCEI) approved by the European Commission.

Once operable, the proposed electrolyzer is anticipated to reduce CO₂ emissions from the Normandy industrial basin by more than 250,000 tpy, according to a series of official project descriptions from Air Liquide.