Shell and Eneco have won a tender to build and operate an unsubsidised wind farm in the Dutch North Sea, supporting plans for a green hydrogen hub.
On 29 July, it was confirmed that the CrossWind consortium – a joint venture between Shell and Eneco – plan to have Hollandse Kust (Noord) operational in 2023. It will have an installed capacity of 759MW and generate at least 3.3TWh per year, supplying renewable power to over 1mn Dutch households. It also supports Shell’s ambition to build a green hydrogen plant in Rotterdam, as well as the NortH2 project, with Director of Shell Integrated Gas and New Energies, Maarten Westelaar, describing the wind farm as a “crucial part” of a new value chain from wind to hydrogen.
The NortH2 project has the ambition of 3-4GW wind energy capacity for hydrogen production before 2030, before potentially reaching 10GW by 2040. Green hydrogen production would take place initially at a plant in Eemshaven, as well as possibly later at sea, with a target of 800,000 tons per year in 2040.
