H2V comes to Fos-sur-Mer: a major project to accelerate the region's decarbonization

An industrial port agreement staked on the deployment of green hydrogen and connections for local usage

Mass hydrogen production through water electrolysis is one of the technologies being studied to reduce CO2 emissions from industrial activities. It is about to be deployed in a large-scale application in the Aix-Marseille-Provence metropolis. The French company H2V and the Port of Marseille Fos just announced a major project to create six units for a record investment of €750 million. The start-up, which was created in 2016, and regional stakeholders found the support needed to launch the project on the nearly 90-acre plot required for deployment.

Since it first visited the region in July 2017, the Normandy start-up H2V forged ahead, developing its processes and partnerships and culminating with the announcement on January 17, 2022, that it is bringing its vision to life in the south of France. After the H2VNormandy and H2V59 project in Dunkirk, the small business just signed an unprecedented agreement with the Grand Port Maritime de Marseille to install six green hydrogen production units at Fos-sur-Mer, the company's largest project to date.

Throughout its journey and from the inception of its projects, the engineering firm was approached by Provence Promotion. The economic development agency helped H2V get to know the region with introductions to local players, the Piicto industrial and innovation platform and several manufacturers such as Kem One and TotalEnergies, potential future users and customers.

"When I first contacted H2V, the green hydrogen market was booming. Our discussions about the project were of direct interest to the region," explains Nicolas Cambazard, who is in charge of attracting investments in the eco-industry sector. "In July 2018, I urged the company to submit an application for the Provence Industry'Nov call for projects being launched to promote industrial ecology projects in the Aix-Marseille-Provence metropolis."

This support turned into fertile ground for the H2V project at Fos initiated by the Port of Marseille-Fos as part of the national strategy to develop carbon-free hydrogen, an innovative technology in which France aims to become a global leader.

A huge step forward in decarbonizing industry and transportation

After complex studies carried out by the Port of Marseille Fos, an 88-acre site suited to H2V's utility needs was identified. Located in the southern basin of the CSF NSE (France's Strategic Committee for the New Energy Systems Sector), which is tasked with making the energy transition a driver of reindustrialization in France, it is fully in line with the strategy to vastly increase the uses of green hydrogen in France.

The six 100 MW units will be commissioned in stages from 2026 to 2031 and will ultimately prevent 750,000 metric tons of CO2 per year from being released into the atmosphere. It will be a boon for L'Etang de Berre and nearby manufacturers with benefits that could extend to other, more removed areas as connections are made.

Produced from renewable electricity, the green hydrogen injected into the gas networks and pipelines of the industrial port area to replace gray hydrogen from fossil fuel combustion is a solution to decarbonize a broad swath of industrial activities (petrochemicals, steel, metallurgy, plastics, etc.).

The Fos site is the largest project announced to date in Europe for a renewable hydrogen platform using water electrolysis with 84,000 T of production per year.

The deployment of this technology is also expected to find other uses in the region and will complement several current projects such as HySiLabs and Jupiter 1000 for hydrogen transportation and storage or Elyse Technology and Eranova which are focused on the circular economy.

As for heavy mobility, the work has already begun. H2V plans to build 20 hydrogen stations in the southeastern quadrant of France to decarbonize logistics transport by 2025.

H2V in Fos: investments and jobs

Alain Samson is one of the two founding members behind H2V Industry. He is a specialist in merchandise logistics and transport and serves as Chairman of the Malherbe Group and the investment company SAMFI-Invest (100% family owned). Samson set out to diversify into renewable energies back in 2004, and has targeted wind power, solar power and hydrogen. Given today's climate challenges, the hydrogen sector is growing fast in France, driven by a national plan to support the sector with €7.2 billion in investments by 2030, to which Emmanuel Macron added €1.9 billion in November 2021.

Its economic viability is contingent on large-scale deployment (i.e., "gigafactories") to attain profitability. It is also expected that European regulations and aid programs to subsidize investments and encourage manufacturers to switch to green hydrogen will be clarified in 2022.

H2V in Fos is a major investment of €750 million, in which the Grand Port Maritime de Marseille Fos is participating by acquiring a stake in the company's capital. It is an unprecedented shareholding agreement for a foundational project that will lead to the creation of 165 direct jobs and 100 indirect jobs.

Provence Promotion, working with a regional task force, will continue to support the project with financial and HR expertise.