As part of Hydro’s strategic direction of strengthening its position in low carbon aluminium and exploring new growth opportunities within new energy sources, Hydro established a separate green hydrogen company earlier this year. Hydro Havrand will enable the switch from gas to renewable energy-based hydrogen at several of Hydro’s own sites as well as developing and serving the external market.

“The core of our business is using green hydrogen based on renewable energy to replace fossil fuels across a range of sectors. This includes many heavy industries where a part of the production process often requires temperatures far higher than what electricity can produce, as well as the maritime sector and long-distance transport. Together these three sectors make up almost 30% of global CO2 emissions and we have the opportunity to change that by getting them to switch to green hydrogen,” says Per Christian Eriksen, Head of Hydro Havrand.

“We want to make green hydrogen a key energy solution, which means that we will not only produce the hydrogen but also work closely with our customers to provide the solutions they need to make the switch from coal, oil or gas to green hydrogen in their industrial processes,” says Eriksen.

Eriksen says the company’s name reflects the global challenge ahead.

"‘Havrand’ is a Norwegian word that describes the line where the ocean meets the sky – like the horizon, but specifically at sea level. In days gone by, seafarers bravely travelled beyond the limit of what they could see to find better and faster routes. Today it is crucial that we act with urgency to find ways to make the shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy.”

Hydro Havrand has started to recruit, and the company will expand its team by around 30 more people over the next six months.

“Our aim is to be the leading provider of industrial fuel switch solutions. We are driven to go the extra distance for our customers, and we are now investing in creating a world-class team to deliver on our objectives of providing green hydrogen at speed and scale,” Eriksen says.