In Hungary, MOL Group, a central European integrated oil, gas, petrochemicals, and consumer retail company has announced that it has begun green hydrogen production at its Százhalombatta refinery, said to be the largest of its kind in the region.
In April 2024, MOL Group officially inaugurated a 10 MW capacity green hydrogen plant at its Százhalombatta refinery. Supplied by US-headed Plug Power, Inc., the new electrolyzer unit is the largest of its kind in Central and Eastern Europe.
Since then, the EUR 22 million green hydrogen unit has undergone extensive commissioning to integrate it into refinery operations.
This included necessary pressure tests, inspection of the process control system, insertion and connection of the electrolytic cells, and the water treatment system.
Using renewable electricity, the Plug Power electrolysis unit produces up to 1,600 tonnes of clean, carbon-neutral green hydrogen annually.
This hydrogen is used for fuel production in the Százhalombatta refinery, reducing its fossil carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by an estimated 25,000 tonnes per annum.
Green hydrogen is a clean and versatile energy source that we currently use for fuel production to reduce our carbon dioxide footprint, and according to our plans, soon it can be directly used in the transportation sector as well. Production and use of green hydrogen help the green energy transition in an innovative way, which is a fundamental goal of MOL’s strategy. After Százhalombatta, we are planning similar plants in Bratislava (Slovakia) and Rijeka (Croatia) of which the latter can commence operations in 2026, said Ádám Horváth, VP of New and Sustainable Businesses at MOL Group.
The new technology will gradually replace the natural gas-based hydrogen production process, which currently accounts for one-sixth of MOL Group’s total CO2 emissions.
