bp to Build 2 GW Green Hydrogen Cluster ‘HyVal’ in Valencia

Global energy conglomerate bp (British Petroleum) has launched the green hydrogen cluster of the Valencia region (HyVal) at its Castellón refinery in Spain. Bp said that this is a public-private collaborative for phased development of up to 2 GW of electrolysis capacity by 2030 for producing green hydrogen at bp’s refinery.

bp said that HyVal is expected to play an instrumental role in decarbonizing the operations of Castellón refinery. Its transformation – including green hydrogen, biofuels and renewable energy – could see bp invest a total of up to EUR 2 billion in Castellon by 2030.

bp also mentioned that its production of biofuels is expected to increase three-fold, to 650,000 tonnes a year 2030. Green hydrogen will also be used as a feedstock in biofuel production, specifically of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).

Andrés Guevara, president of bp Energía España, said, “We see HyVal as key to Castellón’s transformation and critical to supporting decarbonization across the Valencia region.”

The green hydrogen by bp produced will also be used in key hard-to-abate industries in the Valencia region like ceramic industry, chemical industries and heavy transport.

HyVal aims to support the development of Valencia region into a leader for the production of green hydrogen in Spain. Its hydrogen production is expected to be developed in phases, said bp.

The first phase is anticipated to be operational in 2027 and it will involve installation of an electrolysis plant with at least 200 MW capacity and produce upto 31,200 tonnes of green hydrogen per year. Use of this green hydrogen to replace natural gas is estimated to be able to avoid more than 300,000 tons of CO2 emissions per year.

In the second phase, which could be completed in 2030, the electrolysis plant would be expanded to reach a capacity of up to 2GW of net installed green hydrogen.

Green hydrogen production from such a world-scale plant could support both regional and national demand, as well as positioning Valencia region to export green hydrogen to the rest of Europe through the Mediterranean corridor of green hydrogen H2Med.

A broad initiative, led by bp, HyVal also includes the potential participation from companies from various industries in the region, public institutions and research and training centers.