Lhyfe inaugurates in Buléon in Morbihan one of the two largest green and renewable hydrogen production sites in France. Thus, it has been possible in Brittany since 1is quarter of 2024 to decarbonize its transport and industrial processes using hydrogen produced locally from water and renewable electricity.
Lhe Lhyfe company, one of the pioneers in the production of green and renewable hydrogen for industry and mobility, inaugurated its Lhyfe Bretagne green and renewable hydrogen production site in Buléon in mid-December, the first site of this type to be created in this region. Lhyfe Bretagne will mainly supply the territory’s mobility and the industrial processes of regional companies. Lorient Agglomération will be the first Breton agglomeration to benefit from the hydrogen produced on this site. Lhyfe Bretagne is part of the Vallée Hydrogène Grand-Ouest project, supported by Ademe.
Large-scale deployment
Two years after opening its first site in the Pays de la Loire region, and one week after Lhyfe Occitanie, Lhyfe confirms its promises of large-scale industrial deployment (five other sites are already under construction or expansion across Europe). These two new sites in Brittany and Occitanie – each with a production capacity five times greater than the historic site – meet a growing demand for green and renewable hydrogen on the market. Lhyfe aims to produce up to 80 tonnes per day by 2026.
Clean fuel
This site also marks the start of the hydrogen sector in Brittany, with the launch of the first uses of Lorient Agglomeration during the first quarter of 2024. From the town of Buléon, located in Morbihan, near the VSB énergies nouvelles wind farm, Lhyfe will produce up to 2 tonnes of green and renewable hydrogen per day, or up to 575 tonnes per year (installed electrolysis capacity of 5 MW). As an equivalence, 2 tonnes of hydrogen allow a truck to travel approximately 25,000 km without emitting a single gram of CO2. For Pierre Bouédo, mayor of Buléon, “the hydrogen produced here will be able to be delivered throughout the region, to decarbonize transport and industry and contribute to the energy autonomy of Brittany.”
Lhyfe produces its hydrogen by electrolysis of water. The company sources its hydrogen from renewable sources, thus obtaining completely decarbonized hydrogen. The electricity supply is ensured by PPA contracts (Power Purchase Agreement) signed with producers of renewable electricity, including VSB énergies nouvelles.
Stations locales
Lhyfe Bretagne is part of the dynamic Vallée Hydrogène Grand Ouest (VHyGO), supported by public and private stakeholders in the region, whose ambition is to build the first supra-regional infrastructure for the production and distribution of green hydrogen in the Grand Ouest. The central location of this site in Morbihan will allow Lhyfe to supply its customers throughout the Brittany region, in a short circuit approach.
Through this VHyGO dynamic, Lhyfe Bretagne will supply 2 refueling stations operated by HyGO in Lorient Agglomeration, one located at the Lorient bus depot (which should be inaugurated during the first quarter of 2024), and the other on the left bank of the Scorff, which will be used in particular for maritime uses. Ultimately, 19 buses – the first of which should also be delivered during the first quarter of 2024 – and 2 passenger transport boats (transrades) could be powered by this clean and local energy. These hydrogen transrades will be a first on French territory.
Lorient Agglomération is thus actively participating in the ecological transition, by renewing its fleet of public transport vehicles with the objective of having a fleet composed entirely of clean vehicles in 2030 and of achieving carbon neutrality in 2050 with a migration of buses (80% of the fleet with BioGNV engines and 20% with renewable hydrogen engines) and ships (hydrogen water buses).
“Lorient Agglomeration aims to accelerate its ecological, energy and digital transitions, in particular by decarbonizing its land and maritime transport,” says Fabrice Loher, its president. “The inauguration of this hydrogen production unit is part of the deployment of an integrated local renewable hydrogen sector, ranging from production to uses, including research & development, innovation and training.”
Compact and modular unit
In Buléon, as on the Lhyfe Occitanie site, the production unit is now adopting a new compact and modular “containerized” format which has the dual advantage of reducing the footprint of its sites and promoting their scalability in order to support the development of uses in the regions.
On a plot of land of approximately 6,800 m2Lhyfe Bretagne is therefore made up of a series of containerized buildings intended for different functions (reception of drivers, control room, electrical conversion, water electrolysis, compression, quality control, etc.), a circulation space for trucks, and loading bays for trucks which transport hydrogen to the distribution stations and the various customers.
The group comprising the companies HyGO, GNVert and Lhyfe has been designated by the Agglomeration of Lorient as the awardee of a global performance contract for the design, construction, operation and maintenance of two green and renewable hydrogen refueling stations. Lhyfe Bretagne will ensure the supply of green and renewable hydrogen for a period of ten years.
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Lhyfe Heroes To encourage mobility players to switch to hydrogen, Lhyfe launched the Lhyfe Heroes digital platform in 2022, which includes all the information needed for this transition: a simulator to assess needs and estimate quantities of CO2 avoided, a catalog that lists hydrogen players, an “Ecosystems” module that allows you to identify hydrogen pioneers around you in order to set up joint projects… Lhyfe Heroes will very soon open a Brittany Ecosystem, through which local players will be able to access a first group offer, facilitating access to a selection of 7 Stellantis and GCK Mobility hydrogen vehicles (coaches, dump trucks, household waste trucks and light utility vehicles). |
