VDL Hydrogen Systems and Battolyser Systems join forces

Battolyser Systems and VDL Hydrogen Systems join forces to bring the first fully flexible electrolyser for large-scale industrial applications to the market. The combined company will develop and bring the electrolyser to market with VDL Groep as the manufacturing partner. This electrolyser will produce green hydrogen using electricity generated from solar or wind power.

Hydrogen will play an important role in the energy transition and has the potential to become the energy carrier of the future. Although developments are well underway, there are still obstacles to overcome. For example, electrolysers are still relatively expensive, the infrastructure for transporting hydrogen is still under development, and the energy and network costs are still too high. The expectation is that around 2030, volumes of green hydrogen will take on serious proportions.

VDL Hydrogen Systems, with 15 employees, has been engaged since 2022 in the development of an electrolyser for large-scale industrial applications. This has resulted in a test setup, the size of a shipping container, on which tests are conducted to increase productivity and reduce costs. At the heart of the test setup is a ‘stack’ composed of dozens of stacked cells through which electrolyte (water with alkali) flows. A cell has two electrodes, separated by a membrane, allowing electricity to be conducted that results in hydrogen production on one side and oxygen production on the other. The produced oxygen and hydrogen are separated from the electrolyte, after which they are cleaned up for use in, for example, the production of sustainable fuels or steel.

Further strengthening of combat effectiveness

President-Director Willem van der Leegte of VDL Groep: “The pooling of expertise between the two activities will further strengthen our resilience and competitive position. This will enable us to produce state-of-the-art electrolysers from our own country, allowing customers to produce competitive green hydrogen on a large scale. This is essential for the success of the transition to a sustainable energy supply.”

Develop a better product

Mattijs Slee, CEO of Battolyser Systems: “Our technologies complement each other and together we can develop a better product that we can supply to our customers on an industrial scale with VDL Groep as our manufacturing partner”.

The combined company aims to introduce the first fully flexible electrolyser on the market with a capacity of up to 15 megawatts, capable of producing approximately 300 kilograms of hydrogen per hour. For comparison: with 1 kilogram of hydrogen, 20 kilograms of CO2 can be saved in steel production.

Electrolysers for industrial applications currently on the market cannot be easily switched on and off. Fully flexible electrolysers provide a significant advantage to enable the integration of renewable energy, such as wind, into our future energy system. During periods of high wind, flexible electrolysers can convert excess energy into hydrogen and inject it into a pipeline network. When there is little wind, electrolysers can be turned off, supplying customers connected to the pipeline network with stored or imported hydrogen.

Accelerating the energy transition

With offshore wind potential, infrastructure and industrial hydrogen customers, the Netherlands is well positioned to build a strong hydrogen economy. This convergence will play a crucial role in developing a Dutch value chain to accelerate our national energy transition and export products to other countries.