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REFHYNE 2 hydrogen electrolyser facility at Shell Rheinland, showing industrial equipment and the project’s exterior structure.

Wasserstoff-Kraftpakete angekommen – Anlieferung der ersten Elektrolyse-Stacks bei Shell Rheinland markiert nächsten Meilenstein für REFHYNE 2

Wesseling, Köln-Godorf − Sie sind das technische Herzstück von REFHYNE 2 und künftig der Ort, an dem erneuerbarer Wasserstoff entsteht: Mit der Anlieferung der ersten Elektrolyse-Stacks hat das Wasserstoffprojekt im Shell Energy and Chemicals Park Rheinland einen weiteren Meilenstein erreicht. Dank dieser Anlagenbestandteile entsteht aus Wasser mithilfe von Strom aus erneuerbaren Energien Wasserstoff. Dieser wird für die Produktion im Standort verwendet werden. Die ersten 14 von insgesamt 150 Stacks sind nun in Wesseling eingetroffen, weitere Lieferungen folgen in den kommenden Monaten.

„Mit der Ankunft der ersten Elektrolyse-Stacks erreicht REFHYNE 2 einen weiteren Meilenstein“, sagt Marijn Bezuijen, Senior Project Manager Transformation im Shell Energy and Chemicals Park Rheinland. „Die Anlieferung markiert den Übergang von der Bauphase hin zur späteren Inbetriebnahme der Anlage. Nun biegen wir auf die Zielgerade dieses für den Standort sehr wichtigen Transformationsprojektes ein.“

Die Elektrolyse-Stacks sind die zentralen Komponenten der Anlage. In ihnen wird mittels Proton-Exchange-Membrane-Technologie (PEM) Wasser unter Einsatz von Strom, erzeugt aus erneuerbaren Energien, in Wasserstoff und Sauerstoff aufgespalten. Der Wasserstoff wird anschließend aufbereitet und in das bestehende Wasserstoffnetz des Standorts eingespeist. Dort wird er dazu beitragen, die CO₂-Intensität von Betrieb und Produkten zu senken.

Bei voller Auslastung soll die 100-MW-Anlage REFHYNE 2 künftig bis zu 16.000 Tonnen erneuerbaren Wasserstoff pro Jahr produzieren (in Abhängigkeit der Verfügbarkeit erneuerbarer Energien). Voraussichtlich im Laufe des Jahres 2027 soll die Anlage ihren Betrieb aufnehmen. Gemeinsam mit dem bereits 2021 eröffneten
10-MW-Elektrolyseur REFHYNE 1 werden die beiden Anlagen künftig einen signifikanten Beitrag zur Versorgung der Produktionsprozesse am Standort mit aus erneuerbaren Energien erzeugtem Wasserstoff leisten.

Von Sheffield nach Wesseling

Gefertigt werden die Stacks von ITM Power im britischen Sheffield. Vor dem Versand durchläuft jede Einheit umfangreiche Tests und Abnahmeverfahren. Die Anlieferung erfolgt in mehreren Chargen über die kommenden Monate. Die erste Lieferung umfasst 15 dieser Anlagenbestandteile, die zunächst eingelagert und umfangreichen Kontrollen unterzogen werden, bevor sie in die bereits installierten Elektrolysemodule eingebaut werden. Die hochspezialisierten Komponenten werden in eigens entwickelten Transportgestellen geliefert, die die empfindlichen Bauteile während der gesamten Reise schützen und für weitere Lieferungen wiederverwendet werden.

Baustein der Transformation

Die Anlieferung der ersten Stacks unterstreicht den Fortschritt des von Linde als Generalunternehmer durchgeführten Projekts, das zu den größten PEM-Elektrolyseuren Europas zählt. Die Anlage wird außerdem wichtige Erfahrungen bei Herstellung, Integration und Betrieb von Elektrolyseuren im industriellen Maßstab liefern. Der Elektrolyseur ist Teil der umfassenden Transformation des Shell Energy and Chemicals Park Rheinland. Neben REFHYNE 2 investiert Shell am Standort unter anderem in die Umwandlung der bisherigen Rohölverarbeitung im Werksteil Wesseling in eine Grundölanlage sowie in die Produktion von Bio-LNG (seit 2024). Ziel der Transformation ist es, die Zukunftssicherheit des Werkes zu gewährleisten und die CO₂-Emissionen des Standorts und der dort erzeugten Produkte Schritt für Schritt zu reduzieren.

Forklift transporting a large electrolyser stack crate in a warehouse before shipment to the Shell Rheinland hydrogen project.
Worker conducts a digital inspection of an electrolyser stack using a tablet in an industrial environment.

Zusatzinformationen

Der Shell Energy and Chemicals Park Rheinland mit den Werksteilen Köln-Godorf und Wesseling liegt im Kölner Süden. Rund 1.400 Shell Mitarbeitende sowie Beschäftigte von Partnerfirmen produzieren hier Kraft- und Heizstoffe (Diesel- und Ottokraftstoffe, Kerosin, Heizöl) sowie Produkte für die chemische Industrie.

Wichtige Projektpartner von REFHYNE 2 sind ITM Power, Linde, TECNALIA, ERM, SINTEF AS und CONCAWE.

REFHYNE 2 wurde durch unterstützende politische Rahmenbedingungen ermöglicht, darunter die verbindlichen Ziele der Europäischen Union (EU) für den Einsatz von erneuerbarem Wasserstoff sowie der regulatorische Rahmen der deutschen Bundesregierung. Das Projekt hat zudem Fördermittel aus dem Forschungs- und Innovationsprogramm Horizont 2020 der EU unter der Finanzhilfevereinbarung Nr. 101036970 erhalten.

Medienanfragen

Shell Deutschland GmbH ǀ Energy and Chemicals Park Rheinland
Sebastian Düring, External & Internal Comms Advisor
Tel.: +49 (0) 2236 75 21 90
E-Mail: SDE-CR-Rheinland@shell.com

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