BAKU

SOCAR Energy Switzerland, Azerbaijan’s state energy firm SOCAR’s subsidiary, is to participate in a project to build a plant for the production of green hydrogen (electrolysis) in Switzerland with an annual capacity of up to 10 megawatts.

Green hydrogen is a critical component of the energy revolution since it enables low-emission, decarbonized mobility and is unquestionably critical for meeting the Paris Climate Agreement’s goals.

SOCAR Energy Switzerland will implement the project together with Alpiq and EW Hofe AG. The electrolysis plant that will provide green hydrogen for zero-emission mobility, will be built in the municipality of Freienbach. It is scheduled to be commissioned from the end of 2022, and after full expansion, will produce from 1,000 to 1,200 tonnes of green hydrogen per year.

The green hydrogen in Freienbach is connected to the grid and produced exclusively with electricity from renewable sources. It will primarily be used in mobility – especially in heavy-duty vehicles in which battery solutions are not a primary answer.

The produced hydrogen will be delivered by a pipeline to a service station on the Fuchsberg highway, where SOCAR will install hydrogen filling stations in both directions. In heavy traffic, the green hydrogen produced in Freienbach can supply a maximum of approximately 200 fuel cell electric commercial vehicles.

This helps avoid the emission of around 14,000 tonnes of carbon per year compared to the use of diesel trucks.

In addition, infrastructure will be built to deliver this hydrogen to other hydrogen filling stations in Switzerland.

“In a second phase, the project partners also plan to supply waste heat from hydrogen production to the new regional district heating network Energie Ausserschwyz. This will provide heat for up to 1,300 households in the Höfe and Marsh districts,” EW Hofe said.

In addition, the companies intend to test the addition of hydrogen to the existing  EW Hofe gas distribution network.

SOCAR has been a member of the H2 Mobility Switzerland Association since June 2018. In Switzerland, the company has been operating in the field of retail trade in petroleum products, having a network of filling stations under the SOCAR brand. In 2011, SOCAR acquired shares of Ecco Schweiz GmbH for $330 million.