Holland Hydrogen Hub (H3), an alliance of Dutch businesses active across the hydrogen value chain, has announced the launch of a pilot initiative in partnership with SOHAR Port and Freezone to assess the feasibility of producing green hydrogen using alternative technologies.
According to Marcel Kooter, Co-Founder of H3, the demonstration project is being implemented in collaboration with Hydrom, the orchestrator of Oman’s green hydrogen sector and OQ, the state-owned integrated energy group.
The initiative is designed to showcase how a suite of advanced technologies can produce, store and transport hydrogen more efficiently and sustainably.
An update on the project — first announced during the State Visit of His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik to the Netherlands in April — was outlined in an interview hosted by Dr Nasser al Rizeiqi, Sustainability Expert at the Oman Net Zero Centre.
The interview formed part of The Energy Talks series leading up to the Green Hydrogen Summit Oman in December.
Kooter explained that the project is centred on the deployment of novel solid oxide electrolysers, which operate at high temperatures and thereby enhance efficiency by drawing heat from alternative sources rather than electricity.
For the transport of hydrogen, the initiative employs liquid organic hydrogen carriers (LOHC), which enable safe storage and transportation through an additional thermal process.
He noted that electrolysis at temperatures of around 1,000°C allows waste heat to be utilised, reducing electricity consumption by about 30 per cent for the same hydrogen output. This, in turn, lowers overall production costs by reducing the scale of renewable infrastructure required. Furthermore, by integrating different technologies, the project can also channel waste heat into water desalination, creating a highly efficient ecosystem for hydrogen production and transportation.
He added: “In May, we signed an MOU with Hydrom to take the project to the next stage, which basically is completing a feasibility study, which we have now started and which we hope to complete by the end of the year.
We are quite confident that we will be able to demonstrate the economics of the project before we go to the next stage”.
SOHAR Port and Freezone, with Port of Rotterdam as a joint-venture partner, plays a pivotal role in the initiative. Green hydrogen produced in Suhar will be shipped as LOHC to the Netherlands and wider Europe through Rotterdam. If progress stays on track, the first shipments are expected by 2028.
A number of technology pioneers are involved in the demonstration. They include: Desolenator, a Dutch startup behind the world’s first solar thermal desalination solution for producing drinking or ultrapure water sustainably; Elestor BV, showcasing its advanced hydrogen flow battery for optimised energy storage; Bosal and SolydEra Group, highlighting high-efficiency SOEC electrolysis for superior hydrogen production; HyET Hydrogen BV, presenting its efficient electrochemical hydrogen compression solution; Voyex, developer of proprietary LOHC technology for safe, scalable transport; and SoluForce, offering high-pressure Flexible Composite Pipe (FCP/RTP) systems for hydrogen transport.
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