On March 16, Shanghai Electric Power Station Group signed an agreement with Inner Mongolia Baofeng Coal-Based New Materials Co., Ltd. to provide core green hydrogen equipment and customized solutions for the Phase I water electrolysis hydrogen production project of its wind and solar power hydrogen production project. This marked a major breakthrough for the Group in the field of large-scale green hydrogen equipment and set a benchmark example for the low-carbon transformation of the global coal chemical industry.
Under the agreement, Shanghai Electric will provide eight 1,250 Nm³/h alkaline electrolyzers and the world’s largest single-set 5,000 Nm³/h separation and purification system, supported by the industry’s first outdoor three-dimensional layout, to meet the project’s large-scale hydrogen production needs and help build a world-leading demonstration project integrating green hydrogen with coal chemicals.
The project is the world’s largest single-plant “green hydrogen + coal-to-olefins” coupling demonstration project. Once completed, it will use green hydrogen produced from wind and solar power to replace gray hydrogen derived from coal, reducing the coal chemical industry’s dependence on fossil energy and cutting carbon emissions. At the same time, it will provide a replicable solution for the large-scale consumption of wind and solar power electricity and promote the coordinated low-carbon transformation of the energy and chemical industries.
Leading Core Equipment Technology, Breaking Through Industry Bottlenecks
The project selected Shanghai Electric’s independently developed new-generation “Z” series alkaline electrolyzers, featuring the core advantages of low energy consumption, high current density, wide load range, and fast response, making them well suited to scenarios in which wind and solar power output fluctuates. Following technical optimization, the equipment achieved DC power consumption of only 4.17 kWh/Nm³ at a current density of 4,000 A/m², with a wide load adaptability range of 20%–120% and a rapid response capability of ≥5%/s. This broke through the technical bottlenecks of traditional hydrogen production equipment and solved the coupling challenges of green electricity-based hydrogen production systems.
Innovative Layout Design Balancing Efficiency and Safety
The project adopted the industry’s first outdoor three-dimensional layout. Compared with traditional indoor layouts, it significantly reduced land use and lowered civil construction costs, while enhancing operational safety through natural ventilation and delivering both economic and safety benefits. The supporting world’s largest 5,000 Nm³/h separation and purification system overcame the challenges of gas-liquid balance and pressure coordination under sudden wide-load changes, ensuring hydrogen purity and separation efficiency under complex operating conditions and consolidating Shanghai Electric’s leading position in the field of large-scale hydrogen production systems.
This cooperation fully demonstrated the core strength of Shanghai Electric’s green hydrogen equipment. Going forward, the Group will continue to deepen its efforts in iterative technology R&D, support the low-carbon transformation of high-energy-consuming industries, and contribute equipment strength to the realization of the nation’s "dual carbon" goals.
