Moeve is scheduled to lay the first stone of a 300 megawatt (MW) renewable hydrogen plant in Palos de la Frontera (Huelva) this Thursday, September 17. This facility marks the start of the first phase of its Valle Andaluz del Hidrógeno Verde project, according to sources from the company who spoke to Europa Press.
The company, majority-owned by the sovereign fund Mubadala (63%) and the investment firm The Carlyle Group (37%), plans to deploy a total electrolysis capacity of 2 gigawatts (GW) in Andalusia. This capacity will be distributed between the energy parks of La Rábida, in Huelva, and San Roque, in Cádiz, with 1 GW at each location. The plan aims to achieve a production of up to 300,000 tons of green hydrogen per year.
According to Moeve’s forecasts, the project will involve an investment of up to 3 billion euros and could generate 10,000 jobs, of which around 1,000 would be direct positions. Additionally, the initiative aims to act as a driver for more than 400 SMEs and self-employed workers linked to the value chain.
The future plant in Huelva will be built on land owned by the company, adjacent to the La Rábida Energy Park. The initial design set the start of operations for 2026 and the achievement of its maximum capacity for 2028. Meanwhile, the planned installation in the Campo de Gibraltar will be located within the San Roque Energy Park.
Moeve will primarily direct production towards the decarbonization of its industrial processes and those of its clients, as well as the development of sustainable fuels for hard-to-electrify sectors, such as heavy transport, maritime and air transport, in addition to certain industrial activities. The company estimates that the entire valley will prevent the emission of six million tons of CO2 per year.
To supply the electrolysis, the group is studying the development of wind and solar photovoltaic projects that add up to 7 GW of power, along with supply agreements with other renewable energy producers in Andalusia and the rest of Spain.
The CEO of Moeve, Maarten Wetselaar, has emphasized that the company is laying the groundwork to launch large-scale projects capable of shaping “the new hydrogen market.”
Wetselaar has assessed that the transposition of the European directive on renewable energies RED III “is going in the right direction” to boost demand, although he has called for “much more ambition” in order to meet decarbonization targets and strengthen the energy autonomy of the European continent.
The Andalusian Valley of Green Hydrogen also aims to position Andalusia as a center for the production and export of renewable fuels. To this end, the project plans to take advantage of the proximity of the ports of Huelva and Algeciras and is based on the agreement signed by Moeve with the Port of Rotterdam to develop a maritime corridor of green hydrogen between the south and the north of Europe.
