Saipem to produce hydrogen from offshore energy platforms

Saipem (an Italian multinational oilfield services company) has launched Suiso, a technological solution for the production of green hydrogen.

The new solution brings together various renewable energy sources such as floating wind, floating solar and marine energy in a single system, aiming to power electrolyses installed on existing offshore platforms to produce green hydrogen.

The solution will help increase green hydrogen production and convert those oil & gas offshore facilities that are reached the end of their life cycle. Oxygen, a by-product in the electrolysis process, can be used in various applications such as aquaculture or seaweed production.

The first application of Suiso will be in the Agnes project, the offshore energy hub that Saipem, in partnership with Qint’x, aims to build off the Adriatic coast of Ravenna.

Francesco Caio, CEO of Saipem, said, “The know-how gained in the design and execution of infrastructures and technologically advanced plants allows Saipem to cover the green hydrogen production value chain and to be a strategic partner in the path towards a net-zero economy.”

In 2020, Saipem signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Agnes (a company that develops renewable energy projects in the Adriatic Sea, in particular offshore and nearshore wind farms, floating solar panels at sea, energy storage systems and hydrogen production from renewable sources) and Qint’x ( an Italian company specialising in renewable energy, specifically solar, wind and hydroelectric energy and e-mobility). The project will involve installing approximately 56 turbines on fixed foundations on the seabed at two different sites. The overall installed power will be about 450 MW.