New Report from ISPT: what does a 1 GW electrolyser plant look like?

By Julian Atchison on January 27, 2022

Main optimizations for the advanced design of a 1-GW green-hydrogen plant based on alkaline water electrolysis technology. Source: Figure 3, A One-GigaWatt Green-Hydrogen Plant, ISPT, Jan 2022.
Click to enlarge. Main optimizations for the advanced design of a 1-GW green-hydrogen plant based on alkaline water electrolysis technology. Source: Figure 3, A One-GigaWatt Green-Hydrogen Plant, ISPT, Jan 2022.

The new report from ISPT is the culmination of the Hydrohub Gigawatt Scale Elektrolyser project, and presents a detailed design for an advanced, GW-scale green hydrogen plant. The greenfield design could be up-and-running in a Dutch port area by 2030, and would have total investment cost levels of 730 €/kW for alkaline water electrolysis, or 830 €/kW for PEM water electolysis. This translates to about half the CAPEX required for a state-of-the-art design from 2020.

A raft of technological optimisations make the impressive cost drop possible, but the authors note that a significant amount of R&D, pilot projects and demonstrations are required to put all the optimisation pieces together. Speed and haste are also required: 2030 is presented in the report’s foreword as a deadline, not an aspiration.

But don’t take our word for it! Learn more in the video below, or take a virtual tour of the plant. The full pdf is free to download.

Gigawatt green hydrogen plant: the advanced design. Source: ISPT.
Artist’s impression of an advanced alkaline water electrolysis 1-GW green-hydrogen plant. Source: Figure 15, A One-GigaWatt Green-Hydrogen Plant, ISPT, Jan 2022.
Click to learn more. Artist’s impression of an advanced alkaline water electrolysis 1-GW green-hydrogen plant. Source: Figure 15, A One-GigaWatt Green-Hydrogen Plant, ISPT, Jan 2022.