Oil major BP has ordered 100MW of proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysers for a project in Germany from Accelera, the clean-tech business segment of US-headquartered Cummins.
BP had taken a final investment decision on the project, to be sited at its Lingen refinery, in December last year, with commissioning scheduled for 2027.
Accelera will supply 20 of its HyLYZER-1000 electrolysers, which will be assembled at its factory in Guadalajara, Spain.
The manufacturer has advertised the HyLYZER-1000 has having a system efficiency of 51kWh of electricity input per kilogram of H2 produced, as well as a “5-125%” operating range — although phrasing which implies production beyond maximal load is controversial among electrolyser makers.
While PEM electrolysers are generally more expensive than standard alkaline equipment, they are said to be able to ramp up and down more quickly in response to intermittent renewable power input.
Cummins had spent $312m in the last quarter of 2024 to restructure Accelera, noting in its latest financial report that costs associated with manufacturing electrolysers, fuel cells and battery-electric vehicle systems contributed to the unit's $764m pre-tax losses for 2024 (including restructuring costs).
BP plans to produce 11,000 tonnes of green hydrogen a year at Lingen. In addition to part of this volume being used to displace grey H2 consumed by the refinery, BP will also connect the project to Germany’s planned core network of hydrogen pipelines in order to supply other industrial users.
The oil major has secured €87.6m in state aid towards the project from the German federal government and €37.5m from the Lower Saxony government after being classified by the EU as an Important Project of Common European Interest.
