The Caisse de depot et placement du Québec is making its first foray into the production of green hydrogen by investing in Hy2gen, a German company that wanted to set up in Varennes, Quebec.
Posted yesterday at 3:02 p.m.
With three other partners, the Fund will invest 288 million (200 million euros) in Hy2gen which intends to produce fuels based on green hydrogen for the transport sector.
Hy2gen had partnered with Greenfield Global, which produces ethanol in Varennes, to build and operate a hydrogen plant powered by renewable electricity from Quebec, on land adjacent to Greenfield Global’s existing facilities. The project has since been abandoned.
For the Caisse de dépôt, this is a first investment in the production of green hydrogen, on which there are great hopes for decarbonizing the most polluting industries. “Through this investment in Hy2gen, we are demonstrating our determination to provide concrete and pragmatic solutions to meet current environmental challenges,” said Emmanuel Jaclot, Senior Vice-President and Head of Infrastructure at la Caisse.
Hy2gen is a private company based in Wiesbaden, Germany. She is currently developing projects in Canada, in an unspecified location, and also in France, Norway, Germany and the United States.
The investment of the Caisse and its partners in H2gen is considered to be one of the most important contributions of private funds in the production of green hydrogen. Hy24, an infrastructure fund in which Air Liquide and TotalEnergies notably participate, Mirova, a management company affiliated with Natixis, and Technip Energies are the co-investors.