Iberdrola and bp join forces in Europe

By Julian Atchison on August 08, 2022

Plans for large-scale renewable hydrogen production

bp’s Castellón refinery in Spain, which will be the site of a new renewable hydrogen hub. Source: bp.
Click to learn more. bp’s Castellón refinery in Spain, which will be the site of a new renewable hydrogen hub. Source: bp.

The pair plan to form a joint venture focused on renewable hydrogen, ammonia and methanol production. Hubs in the UK, Spain and Portugal will be powered by new-build renewable energy, producing 600,000 tonnes of renewable hydrogen per year. Developing a renewable hydrogen hub at bp’s existing Castellón refinery in Spain will be the first project for the joint venture. Together with Iberdrola and the Instituto Tecnológico de la Energía, bp has already submitted the Castellón project for government funding via the PERTE ERHA scheme.

Creating the lower carbon energy solutions that our customers want and need requires the integration of different technologies, capabilities and forms of energy. We can deliver this faster and at scale when we work in partnership with others…

We expect the strategic agreement with Iberdrola to become a clear example of this: from renewables to large engineering projects, to customers and digitalization, we have the necessary complementary expertise and capabilities. Working together, we can offer innovative solutions that respond to the challenge of decarbonization at scale to accelerate the energy transition.

bp CEO Bernard Looney in Iberdrola’s official press release, 28 July 2022

The joint venture will also invest €1 billion in an EV fast-charging network across Spain and Portugal.

bp

The oil & gas giant continues to build momentum in the ammonia space:

  • In June, bp acquired a 40% stake & operatorship in the Asian Renewable Energy Hub, an ammonia mega-project in Western Australia.
  • In May it was announced that Australia’s first gas-to-hydrogen pipeline transition would feed the existing Kwinana industrial complex near Perth. bp is already planning the H2Kwinana project in the complex, and exploring the potential for ammonia production..
  • In November 2021, bp launched the Teesside green hydrogen project near Hartlepool, UK. CF Industries currently operates a large-scale ammonia production plant in Billingham, only a few km away from the proposed project site.
  • And last August. bp announced a feasibility study had successfully concluded for its Geraldton P-to-X project in Western Australia. No further project announcements have been made, but a clear “pathway forward” has emerged.