PVTIME – OMV Petrom has completed the on-site installation of its new 35MW electrolyser suite at the Petrobrazi refinery in Romania, marking a significant milestone in the development of the site’s low-carbon hydrogen programme. The new seven-unit electrolyser array, comprising individual 5MW modules, has been integrated with the facility’s existing 20MW electrolyser asset, increasing the refinery’s total installed green hydrogen capacity to 55MW.
Backed by €29 million in public funding from Romania’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan, the expansion project was realised through a collaboration between equipment provider Neuman & Esser and construction contractor Kraftanlagen Romania. The upgraded facility is set to generate around 4,700 tonnes of green hydrogen annually from the new electrolyser units, with the total annual output from the full 55MW capacity reaching approximately 8,000 tonnes.
All of the green hydrogen produced will be used to supply on-site refining operations and to support the manufacture of sustainable aviation fuel and hydrotreated vegetable oil. The refinery is currently constructing a sustainable fuel production complex with an annual capacity of 250,000 tonnes, which will establish OMV Petrom as Southeastern Europe’s first large-scale producer of advanced low-carbon transport fuels. This capacity upgrade is central to the operator’s strategy of decarbonising domestic refining activities and reducing operational carbon emissions.
