TotalEnergies, Air Liquide strike deal on green hydrogen projects to decarbonise refineries

TotalEnergies has signed agreements with industrial gas supplier Air Liquide to develop two green hydrogen projects in the Netherlands, aimed at reducing emissions from its refineries in Belgium and the Netherlands by up to 450,000 tonnes per year, the companies said on February 18.

The projects will use renewable electricity, primarily from the OranjeWind offshore wind farm, a 50-50 joint venture between TotalEnergies and RWE. The initiative is part of TotalEnergies’ broader strategy to decarbonise its European refinery operations by 2030.

Under the deal, TotalEnergies and Air Liquide will establish a 50-50 joint venture to build and operate a 250-MW electrolyser near the Zeeland refinery. The facility, expected to be operational in 2029, will produce up to 30,000 tonnes of green hydrogen annually and reduce CO2 emissions at the site by up to 300,000 tpy. The partners plan to invest around €600mn ($620mn) in the project and are seeking financial support from European and national subsidy programmes.

Additionally, TotalEnergies has signed a tolling agreement with Air Liquide for 130 MW of capacity from Air Liquide’s 200-MW ELYgator electrolyser project in Maasvlakte, the Netherlands. The agreement will supply 15,000 tpy of green hydrogen to TotalEnergies’ Antwerp platform, cutting CO2 emissions there by up to 150,000 tpy. TotalEnergies will supply wind energy from OranjeWind to power the facility, which is set to begin operations by the end of 2027.

“Following the first partnership agreement with Air Liquide to supply the Normandy refinery with green hydrogen, and the agreements to supply the Grandpuits and La Mède biorefineries with renewable hydrogen, the partnership with Air Liquide takes on a new dimension,” TotalEnergies’ president for refining and chemicals, Vincent Stoquart, said in a statement. “By supplying these two electrolysers with renewable electricity from our offshore wind project in the Netherlands, TotalEnergies is leveraging its positioning as an integrated electricity company.”

Air Liquide said the projects will contribute to reducing emissions in “hard-to-abate sectors” such as industry and heavy mobility. “These two projects will complete the five Air Liquide low-carbon units already in operation or construction in Europe,” said Emilie Mouren-Renouard, a member of Air Liquide’s executive committee.

TotalEnergies has committed to reducing the carbon footprint of its refining operations through low-carbon hydrogen. The company has already secured contracts for over 170,000 tonnes of green hydrogen annually across multiple European refineries, including La Mède, Grandpuits, Normandy in France, and Leuna in Germany.

The French major’s strategy is in line with a broader trend in European refining – a sector struggling to remain profitable because of lacklustre fuel demand and rising competition from  elsewhere in the world. By decarbonising their facilities, companies hope to give them a second life through subsidies for projects.