NYSE-listed industrial gases multinational Air Products and industrial technology multinational thyssenkrupp on July 5 announced that they had signed an exclusive strategic cooperation agreement to develop world-scale electrolysis plants to generate green hydrogen.

The two companies will collaborate exclusively in key regions, using their complementary technology, engineering and project execution strengths to develop projects supplying green hydrogen. thyssenkrupp will deliver its technology and supply specific engineering, equipment and technical services for water electrolysis plants to be built, owned and operated by Air Products.

The collaboration leverages thyssenkrupp’s technology supporting Air Products’ development of green hydrogen as an energy carrier for sustainable transportation, chemicals and power generation.

thyssenkrupp has developed high-efficiency alkaline water electrolysis technology, as well as extensive, in-depth knowledge in the engineering, procurement and construction of electrochemical plants. It has completed more than 600 projects worldwide with a total rating of over 10 GW realised.

"Matching the need for low capital expenditure, low operational expenditure, reliable technology and solid project execution to make world-scale green hydrogen projects feasible, Air Products and thyssenkrupp are committed to deploying economic green hydrogen plants in the gigawatt size," the statement said.

“The strategic cooperation agreement with thyssenkrupp is an important element of our value chain in developing, building, owning and operating world-scale projects and supplying green hydrogen for mobility, energy and industrial applications. We look forward to applying our complementary strengths and delivering substantial sustainability benefits through transformational green hydrogen projects,” said Air Products COO Dr Samir Serhan.

“We are proud to cooperate with Air Products in making value chains for fuels, chemicals, and industry feed stocks sustainable. Large-scale electrolysis is the key technology to connect renewable power to the different sectors of mobility and industry. We are a leader in electrolysis, and bring technology and production capacity at scale. We are already set to supply one gigawatt for water electrolysis plants a year, and we are prepared to ramp up the capacity in this rapidly evolving market,” said thyssenkrupp Uhde Chlorine Engineers CEO Denis Krude.

The thyssenkrupp Chemical and Process Technologies business unit combines technological expertise and decades of global experience in the engineering, procurement, construction and service of chemical plants, the statement said.

"Our portfolio includes leading technologies for the production of basic chemicals, fertilisers and polymers as well as complete value-chains for green hydrogen and sustainable chemicals. We develop innovative processes and products for a more sustainable future and contribute to the long-term success of our customers in almost all areas of the chemical industry."