Prime Capital acquires RES hydrogen project in Sweden, develops plans for eSAF production

Image: RES

RES, the world’s largest independent company in renewable energy, announced Dec. 3 that it has signed a sales agreement with the independent asset manager and financial-service provider Prime Capital AG for the Alby hydrogen plant project in Ånge, Sweden.

Following the signing, Prime Energy Infrastructure Fund II, a fund managed by Prime Capital, will become the sole shareholder of project Alby.

RES will remain involved and, together with PGEIF II, will develop the project.

The facility will be expanded in two stages and is expected to produce 90,000 tons of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) per year at full capacity.

This corresponds to approximately 4 percent of the expected demand within the EU in 2030 to meet the EU requirement of 6 percent SAF.

Technically speaking, the facility will be supplied with 500 megawatts of renewable energy from the Tovåsen substation.

Through electrolysis, water will be converted into green-hydrogen gas, which will then be further refined into synthetic sustainable aviation fuel (eSAF).

Prime Capital owns several other RES-developed energy projects, including the nearby Björnberget Vindkraft AB.

“This is a big day—90,000 tons of renewable aviation fuel per year is an impressive capacity, which, in a wider perspective, is an important step in the transition to fossil-free fuels,” said Matilda Afzelius, CEO of RES Norden AB.

Erik Lövgren, chairman of the municipal board in Ånge, added, “We have long realized that green hydrogen is a fantastic enabler both for the green transition and for our municipality. Just as with natural resources such as forests and ore, we also have access to cheap renewable energy—a prerequisite for hydrogen production. This is an important step on the way for Ånge, from a closed-down area to a developing area. We look forward to continuing the collaboration with Prime Capital and RES.”

Mathias Bimberger, the head of infrastructure and managing director at Prime Capital, said, “The Nordic region is exceptionally well-suited to the production of synthetic fuels due to the low cost of electricity, the high proportion of renewable energy sources in the energy mix and the large availability of water. With the Alby project, we are acquiring a very attractive location—both in terms of location and commercial conditions—in Sweden, which enables the development of a large-scale Power-to-X facility in close cooperation with RES.”