Dynelectro ships 250kW SOEC to Icelandic e-SAF pilot plant

Denmark’s Dynelectro has sent the first solid oxide electrolyser (SOEC) to Syntholene’s geothermal-powered synthetic aviation fuel (e-SAF) pilot plant in Húsavík, Iceland.

Set to be one of Dynelctro’s first real-world deployments, the 250kW electrolyser will be used to assess integration between geothermal heat infrastructure, SOECs, and balance of plant systems.

Once it arrives in Húsavík, the electrolyser will undergo commissioning and is expected to be operated for the first time before the end of June.

It will also contribute to data informing the facility’s future optimisation, which Syntholene aims to gather this year.

The supply deal was , and the delivery follows the May of the plant, which saw ahead-of-schedule engineering milestones, bringing potential operations forward to this year.

The facility could supply up to 20,000 tonnes of e-SAF per year to Icelandair under a non-binding offtake agreement signed in January.

The Húsavík plant aims to support e-fuel mandates such as the EU’s RefuelEU Aviation plan, which demands 1.2% of jet fuel supplied at EU airports must be synthetically derived by 2030.

Sune Lilbaek, CEO of Dynelectro, said the deployment will be an important validation milestone for the firm’s goal of enabling the “world’s lowest available levelised-cost-of-hydrogen.”

SOECs are positioned as a highly-efficient electrolyser technology due to their potential to use heat sources to reduce electrical inputs. Dynelectro has stated its 250kW unit can produce 27kg of hydrogen per MWh of electricity used.

However, SOEC remains a nascent technology, with no large-scale systems operating globally.