Stockholm-headquartered OX2 has started development on Neptunus, a 1.9GW offshore wind and hydrogen hub in the southern Baltic Sea. The project is expected to begin operations in the early-2030s.

The project will produce 8TWh of electricity—equivalent to 5pc of Sweden’s current electricity consumption—and could produce up to 225,000t/yr of green hydrogen. OX2 will also investigate if the oxygen, a byproduct of electrolysis, can be used to oxygenate the bottom waters of the Baltic Sea in the project area.

“The shift towards hydrogen, fossil-free industries and general electrification demands huge amounts of renewable energy, and Neptunus is strategically located to play a key role in this transition,” says Emelie Zakrisson, OX2’s head of Swedish offshore wind development.

225,000t/yr – Estimated green hydrogen production capacity

The developer plans to submit an environmental impact assessment for the project by 2024.

Sweden is one of two EU member states with a grid carbon intensity below 18g of CO₂e/MJ, allowing grid electrolysis under the delegated acts as long as a power-purchase agreement with a renewables project is signed. The country’s most northerly bidding zones, SE1 and SE2, have more than 90pc of the electricity mix supplied by renewables, potentially allowing hydrogen projects in these zones to waive additionality requirements.

Neptunus will be located in Sweden’s most southerly bidding zone, SE4.

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Author: Polly Martin