Multinational group Air Liquide on Thursday announced a €130-million project to build a new 20 000 t/y hydrogen facility that will use residual biogases from the Grandpuits refinery, in France.

TotalEnergies has committed to purchase the hydrogen for the needs of its refinery, which is being converted into a zero-crude platform as part of its strategy to get to net-zero emissions by 2050.

The companies said in a joint statement that the project was based on an “innovative sustainable and circular approach”.

By recycling residual biogases from the biorefinery as a substitute for the natural gas traditionally used, the hydrogen produced by this unit would be partly renewable. In addition, this unit would include, from its startup, an Air Liquide Cryocap hydrogen carbon capture unit, which would enable it to capture for reuse more than 110 000 t/y of carbon dioxide (CO₂).

"This innovative project is characterised by the combination of several solutions in order to produce renewable and low-carbon hydrogen, and contribute to the decarbonisation of TotalEnergies’ Grandpuits site. It also provides the opportunity to recycle CO₂ as part of a circular economy approach while securing its supply for agri-food applications,” said Air Liquide senior VP Pascal Vinet in a media statement.

He added that the project was an example of the key role that hydrogen would play to succeed in the energy transition.

The biorefinery would use most of the renewable and low-carbon hydrogen to produce sustainable aviation fuel.

TotalEnergies president for refining and chemicals Bernard Pinatel said the project contributed to the group’s ambition to decarbonise all the hydrogen used by its European refineries by 2030.

"By recycling the biogas produced by the biorefinery into renewable hydrogen, this innovative project makes full use of the conversion of the Grandpuits refinery into a zero crude platform harnessing the potential of biomass, especially in the production of sustainable aviation fuel,” he commented.