Innovative Hydrogen Production from Waste to Start in 2025

Producing hydrogen in a decentralized, sustainable, and cost-effective manner is the goal of the collaboration between the greentech startup Green Hydrogen Technology (GHT), the energy service provider RheinEnergie, the hydrogen truck rental company hylane (part of the DEVK Group), and the medium-sized recycling company ETG. Together, the partners have completed the structural framework of a new hydrogen plant and celebrated the topping-out ceremony for the state-of-the-art facility. This marks the creation of the first plant to convert waste into climate-neutral hydrogen, scheduled to begin operations in 2025.

The patented technology developed by GHT is being implemented on the premises of ETG Entsorgung und Transport GmbH, a recycling company based in Baden-Württemberg. The centerpiece of the plant is a so-called entrained flow reactor, which converts non-recyclable residual materials into pure synthesis gas at temperatures of up to 1,600 degrees Celsius. An innovative process is then used to extract liquid carbon dioxide (CO2) as a circular product and hydrogen (H2) in fuel-cell quality from the synthesis gas.

In the future, the plant will produce 100 tons of climate-neutral hydrogen annually from biogenic residual materials—enough to meet the annual demand of a hydrogen filling station. The production costs will be significantly lower than those of conventional electrolysis.

Partnership Across the Entire Value Chain

The GHT solution can make a significant contribution to ensuring hydrogen is widely available. The partners contribute their respective strengths along the entire value chain: GHT provides the technology, RheinEnergie will offer the plants as a customer solution through contracting without requiring upfront investments, and hylane guarantees hydrogen offtake. For the first plant, ETG will operate the facility and supply the biogenic feedstock on site.

“We are proud to implement the first plant here at our site, contributing to a sustainable value chain,” says Beate Schwarz, Managing Director of ETG Entsorgung und Transport GmbH. “I am particularly impressed that we moved from the initial discussions to the groundbreaking ceremony within just one year. We need such innovative solutions not only to sustainably dispose of waste but also to profitably repurpose it. This demonstrates the implementation strength and innovative power of Germany's medium-sized businesses.”

Regional Association of Stuttgart Supports Second Project Phase

Following the completion of the plant, the focus will shift to extracting hydrogen from the produced synthesis gas while also utilizing CO2 for circular economy applications. The Regional Association of Stuttgart is supporting this project phase with a total funding volume of approximately €4.3 million. The funding will cover the period from mid-2025 to the end of 2026.

“The region is sending a strong signal for technological innovation in the energy transition,” says Rainer Wieland, Chairman of the Regional Association of Stuttgart. “We are proud to advance this future technology here, making an important contribution to the competitiveness of our region.”