Fortum to pilot hydrogen production plant in Loviisa

The Finnish majority state-owned energy company Fortum will build a hydrogen production pilot plant in Loviisa, said the company in a press release on Tuesday.

The plant will be located in the Källa area near Fortum’s Loviisa nuclear power plant.

The construction of the Kalla test center will begin in the summer and the plant is scheduled to be commissioned in late 2025.

Hydrogen will be produced by electrolysers, by using electricity to split water into hydrogen and oxygen, with a capacity of around two megawatts from the main grid and using local household water in Loviisa.

A filling station will be built in connection with the plant for the delivery of hydrogen to industrial customers.

The Kalla test center is funded entirely from Fortum’s research and development funds, and the design work is mostly carried out by in-house designers.

The Kalla test center is expected to be in operation for around two years between 2025 and 2028.

The total R&D cost of the pilot project is around EUR 17 million.

According to Fortum’s strategy, the company will stepwise explore hydrogen through small-scale projects in the Nordics.

“Testing hydrogen production at the Kalla test center on a megawatt scale will provide valuable information not only in terms of the design and operation of potential larger plants, but also of the business opportunities provided by green hydrogen and hydrogen derivatives. The pilot project is the first step towards possible future projects and investments. In addition to the test center, we also have other hydrogen-related studies underway that involve customers and partners from various industries,” said Satu Sipola, vice president of Power-to-X of Fortum.