ABB and Hydrogen Optimized have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to explore the development of large-scale green hydrogen production systems connected to the electrical grid to offer a clean, sustainable and affordable energy source for industries such as mining.

Hydrogen Optimized has ambitions to use its high current water electrolysis technology at scale to produce green hydrogen for emerging clean applications across industries, including chemical, utility and transportation. ABB’s hydrogen research team, meanwhile, will explore electrical power supply optimisation through projects involving ABB high power rectifier (HPR) systems.

Together, the companies plan to prove that Hydrogen Optimized’s RuggedCell™ water electrolysis technology can be used to develop an integrated product solution based on a 100 MW single module plant design concept, they said.

Within ABB’s HPR range, rectifier systems provide DC current in the range of 5,000 A to 550,000 A, as single or multiple units and, as such, can provide nearly unlimited current and voltage combinations and meet most plant specific requirements, the company says.

“ABB is a world leader in the control and electrification solutions designed for large-scale electrochemical processes,” Andrew TB Stuart, President and CEO of Hydrogen Optimized (pictured), said. “Such technology is an excellent fit with our patent pending RuggedCell. Together these technologies create a continuous reduction in the installed capital cost as the scale of the green hydrogen project increases.

“Our joint work will lay the foundations for single-plant sizes up to the hundreds of MWs input power range. Demonstrating the scalability of these two key components of a water electrolysis installation is vital to economic green hydrogen and we are excited about the potential benefits for customers.”

The MoU signed by the companies formalises the agreement to explore the implementation of a demonstration system as well as the preparation of a 100 MW plant design and commercialisation strategies, the two said.

Charl Marais, Global Product Manager, Process Industries, ABB, said: “This project plays to our strengths of building large, highly efficient, customised HPR systems, pushing the boundaries of what is possible from one rectifier unit. Based on our many years of experience in providing control and electrical system solutions for electrochemical industries, we understand that HPR systems have the characteristics required for successful large-scale project deployment.

“This collaboration advances the commercial availability and feasibility of large-scale green hydrogen systems. We have been exploring this type of project for more than two years and the synergies with Hydrogen Optimized have been very apparent. We have a clear vision, and the results could be significant.”

Applications using green hydrogen include zero-emission transportation fuel supply, ammonia and other chemical production with non-fossil sources of hydrogen, and green metal production with hydrogen instead of a coking-type process, the companies say.