Neste and partners to develop industrial ‘Hydrogen Valley’ in Finland

Neste and its partner companies are planning the development of an industrial “Hydrogen Valley” in the Uusimaa region of Southwest Finland. The Finnish firm’s project partners include fellow renewable fuel producers Gasgrid Finland, Helen, and Vantaa Energy.

The aim of the joint project is to accelerate Finland’s progress towards becoming a leading hydrogen economy in Europe that creates industrial investment opportunities, according to Neste. As a key feedstock of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), mass production of hydrogen would significantly boost the availability of renewable fuels.

Outi Ervasti, vice president, Renewable Hydrogen, Neste said that hydrogen is key in achieving its goal of carbon-neutral production by 2035.

“Today, Neste is the biggest hydrogen consumer in Finland,” said Ervasti. “Hydrogen is an essential part of our processes and an efficiently functioning hydrogen valley would be a great way to source hydrogen in the future.”

Once built, the industrial complex will combine the infrastructure, storage and transmission of renewable hydrogen to serve both producers and consumers. The Hydrogen Valley complex will also generate  significant amounts of heat  for use in district heating.

“Building up both the power infrastructure as well as hydrogen storage and distribution infrastructure are key enablers for the hydrogen economy development. By being open to collaboration and seeking partnerships we discover new paths and unlock a world of interesting possibilities,” added Ervasti.

For the Finnish hydrogen economy to be competitive in a global context, Neste said that cost efficient solutions for hydrogen transmission and storage are needed. It claims that hydrogen transmission infrastructure, such as the Hydrogen Valley, will contribute to the emergence of a competitive hydrogen market.

Sara Kärki, senior vice president, Hydrogen Development, Gasgrid Finland, said the company’s main goal is to promote the development of the national hydrogen network, international infrastructure and the hydrogen market in the Baltic Sea region.

“Our task is to support industrial investments and develop a hydrogen pipeline that connects hydrogen producers and consumers,” said Kärki.