Solhyd and partners to build world's first solar hydrogen park

Unique collaboration, one integrated chain

This project brings together four players from different sectors, each with complementary expertise:

• Ether Energy: solar energy project developer. Owner and operator of the project.
• SunBuild: solar EPC expert. Designs and builds the solar installation with battery storage.
• Solhyd: technology partner. Supplies and maintains the hydrogen modules.
• Nippon Gases: hydrogen and industrial gases expert. Handles post-processing, storage and distribution of the hydrogen to industrial end users.

The sun-powered Solhyd modules (50 kilowatts) will be integrated into a traditional solar park of ca. 2 megawatt-peak, with battery storage. The site will thus produce both electricity and hydrogen from solar energy. In future installations, the proportion of Solhyd modules will increase relative to the capacity of conventional solar panels. This creates a scalable model enabling solar parks across Europe to diversify their energy production and supply green hydrogen as well.

Solhyd: Powered by Moonshot Innovation

Recently awarded a World Hydrogen Award, Solhyd’s technology produces hydrogen directly from sunlight and air, without liquid water, without heavy grid connection and without rare metals. The system is modular, easy to install and radically simplifies the production of renewable hydrogen. 

This breakthrough did not happen overnight. Solhyd was founded as a KU Leuven spin-off following Moonshot's Later Stage Innovation (LSI) project HyPPr, which concluded in mid-2023 and helped prepare the solar hydrogen technology for commercial upscaling.

As Solhyd's CEO, Jan Rongé, explained in last year's Moonshot interview: "We were the first in the world to make hydrogen from outdoor air and sunlight". Today, this breakthrough leads to another world first in green hydrogen: the world’s first solar hydrogen park, to be built in 2026.

Validated by industry

The involvement of Nippon Gases underlines the industrial relevance of the project: the hydrogen produced will be integrated into the existing value chain of industrial gases.

“Hydrogen has always been a key part of our product portfolio. For years, we have supplied hydrogen in high-pressure containers to sectors such as food, chemicals and pharma. Today, we are seeing hydrogen emerge as a growing market, including in combustion processes and in the manufacture of next-generation chips. This project is an important step forward and demonstrates that we can now also offer green hydrogen – exactly what our industrial customers need.”

— Johan Desmet, Nippon Gases

Ether Energy and SunBuild bring years of experience in renewable energy and are developing new business models for solar parks. The sector faces several challenges (negative electricity prices, congested grids), and green hydrogen offers an additional path to reinforce the economic value of solar energy.

“This project demonstrates that sunlight can be valorized differently, through green hydrogen. It opens new perspectives for investors and is crucial for the energy transition.”

— Pierre de Liedekerke, Ether Energy

“Combining solar power and hydrogen on the same site is a major technical challenge using conventional technology. By linking innovation with industrial know-how, we demonstrate that it is now possible. We are building a new generation of hybrid energy parks that produce both renewable electricity and green hydrogen, thanks to Solhyd technology. It is an essential step towards sustainable energy autonomy for Europe.”

— Gilles Charlier, SunBuild

Path to scale-up

The 50 kW demonstration site will remain operational for at least five years. The partners aim to start operations in 2026, once permitting is completed. The next step for the consortium is a 2 MW project in 2028, followed by rollout in Europe and sun-rich regions worldwide. The solar hydrogen park is set to become a new instrument in the energy transition, with Solhyd technology at its core.

Today, solar parks across Europe generate green electricity. With this concept, they will also be able to produce green hydrogen, creating new revenue streams, reducing grid congestion, and increasing the value of solar projects during periods of low or negative electricity prices.

About Solhyd

Solhyd is a pioneer in green hydrogen production. The Solhyd team previously invented revolutionary hydrogen panels, that generate hydrogen from sunlight and air. The company has further developed this technology into versatile, flexible modules that produce green hydrogen using solar and other energy sources, without heavy grid connection, liquid water or rare metals. This technology is easy to install, scalable and affordable. Solhyd received the prestigious World Hydrogen Award for it this year, at the world’s largest green hydrogen event. The company is now scaling up, through projects with industrial partners. With its approach, Solhyd redefines how green hydrogen is produced, turning decarbonization into a competitive advantage for industry.

About Nippon Gases

Nippon Gases is a leading industrial and medical gas company in Europe and part of Nippon Sanso Holdings Corporation, with 115 years of experience and operations in over 30 countries and nearly 20,000 employees worldwide. In Europe, the company has over 3,400 employees, serves more than 150,000 customers and 390,000 homecare patients in 14 countries. Nippon Gases is committed to innovation, collaboration and sustainability, maintains high safety standards and is recognized by leading organizations in the industrial gas sector. Its dedication to customers, employees, partners and communities reflects its commitment to the environment and sustainable development.

About Ether Energy

Ether Energy is an energy producer created to accelerate energy independence in Europe. The company delivers decarbonized, affordable, and flexible energy to companies, public authorities and grid owners, by combining solar, storage and cutting-edge hybridization technologies. Ether Energy covers the entire value chain of its projects: from initiation to operation, including construction and financing. Agility, ethics, and innovation are in its DNA. Ether Energy is already a pioneer in hybridization, which combines photovoltaics and batteries, and agrivoltaics – which combines photovoltaics and agriculture.  Combining photovoltaics and hydrogen is the next big innovation.

About SunBuild

SunBuild is a key player in the energy transition in Europe. The company specializes in the engineering, construction and maintenance of large-scale photovoltaic installations – on the ground, on rooftops or as carports – and develops integrated, tailor-made solutions that combine solar panels with battery storage and electric mobility. With operations in Belgium, France and Luxembourg, SunBuild helps companies, governments, farmers and industrial players to decarbonize their activities sustainably.