per day using renewable energy sources by 2026. (Image: Lhyfe)
- Start of groundworks on green hydrogen plant by Lhyfe at Le Cheylas, France.
- The new facility has a capacity to produce up to 4 tons per day.
- Production of green hydrogen for local mobility, industry, and fulfilling air quality objectives.
- Project attracted the support from an EU subsidy and other funding amounting to €6.25m.
Lhyfe is kicking off with the construction of a green hydrogen production site on a 7,000 m² plot on the former grounds of a steelworks in Le Cheylas, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France. Industry and mobility should thus be covered by up to 4 tonnes of hydrogen per day. The ambitious project is to be completed by early 2026.
The plant will be located on a brownfield site occupied by the Ascométal steelworks in the past and produces green energy as part of regeneration. SLS Actiparc Sillon Alpin is the owner of the site and is engaged in reindustrialization. The facility was named Lhyfe Le Cheylas, and it will be launched with 10MW of electrolysis capacity, thus making it the largest of its kind in France.
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Lhyfe plans to manufacture hydrogen through the electrolysis of water, with renewable energies provided from national producers. This would thus feed green hydrogen into local markets, targeting the metallurgy, chemicals, and microelectronics sectors for decarbonization. So far, Lhyfe has already built a chain of hydrogen production sites in France and Germany, with this one being one of the biggest in its portfolio.
Le Cheylas will be one of France’s important transition points for green energy, especially in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, known for its pioneering role in hydrogen technology deployment. Since 2017, the region has already launched several initiatives, with some examples being the Zero Emission Valley project and the IMAGHyNE project, focused on a renewable hydrogen economy.
In partnership with HYmpulsion, Lhyfe has signed a ten-year agreement to supply local stations in the Alps with hydrogen, with an initial volume of 600 tonnes per year. Six stations are operational today and seven more are currently under construction. Apart from mobility, hydrogen production at Le Cheylas will replace grey hydrogen and natural gas in industrial purposes, thus contributing further to the region’s carbon reduction.
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The construction of the Le Cheylas plant is financed by the Just Transition Fund, which finances the 2021-2027 European Regional Programme, in the context of which it covers subsidizations in the amount of €5.5 million. Subsidies in the sum of €0.75 million were also received from the Clean Hydrogen Partnership as part of the IMAGHyNE initiative.
Matthieu Guesné, CEO and founder at Lhyfe, thanked Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes for its commitment to the development of green hydrogen. “Thanks to the region’s visionary and supportive stance, we are able to realize our largest production site in France. We are looking forward to collaborating with the industrial players of the region in realizing their ambitious sustainability goals,” Guesné added.
However, it is a major milestone in the green energy transition for France. With important regional and European support, this plant will make a big impact on both local industry and environmental sustainability as Lhyfe continues to lead the sector of renewable hydrogen production.
