German company pHYnix, an independent renewable hydrogen producer, has selected Howden, a leading global provider of mission critical air and gas handling products, technologies and services, to supply two hydrogen diaphragm compressors for its Vitale plant in Spain. This facility is the first commercial-scale 10MW renewable hydrogen production plant in the country and is one of the largest electrolysis projects under construction in Europe.

Enabled with Howden Uptime, the diaphragm compressors consist of a booster and a high-pressure compressor that will compress the hydrogen from the electrolyser into the gas infrastructure (from 30bar to 60bar) and into tube trailers (from 60bar to 380bar).

In addition to the diaphragm technology, the maintenance service is decisive for the selection of Howden compressors. In particular, Howden Uptime's continuous monitoring ensures the security and safety required by the plant.

pHYnix CTO/COO Philippe Guinot underlined the importance of this agreement: “Howden is a partner with proven expertise in manufacturing safe, efficient and reliable equipment for hydrogen compression, a major guarantee for the Vitale plant. We are getting closer and closer to producing the renewable hydrogen needed to decarbonise the most challenging sectors: industry and transport, and doing our bit to reach the ambitious European sustainability targets.”

Salah Mahdy, global director of renewable hydrogen at Howden, said: “By working closely with pHYnix, we identified the right compression solution for their process. With our efficient hydrogen compression technology along with a clear focus and understanding of the full lifecycle, we are able to minimise the total cost of ownership of operations. This project will play a key role in supporting the energy independence of Spain and accelerate the adoption of green hydrogen in Europe. We are pleased to be supporting pHYnix in implementing a clean energy solution and advancing the hydrogen economy.”

The sale of hydrogen will be to local industrial companies through direct supply, to the logistics and heavy transport sectors, as well as to urban and interurban transport in Madrid. In addition, a percentage of the production will be injected into the gas grid to be exported to the European market (gas blending).

Currently under construction, the Vitale facility will produce 1,450 tonnes of renewable hydrogen each year from 2024. As a result of this, pHYnix will meet its objectives of distributing ‘green’ hydrogen in Spain and contribute to the decarbonisation of the most critical sectors — industry and transport.